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1For YMMV tropes that apply to the ''VideoGame/TonyHawksUnderground'' series, click [[YMMV/TonyHawksUnderground here]].
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3* AudienceAlienatingEra: Some believe the franchise got swept up into one with the release of ''RIDE'', but it can be argued that the gears were already turning as far back as ''Underground 2'' (or even before that, following the release of ''[=THPS4=]''). But no matter where one stands, fans will agree ''[=THPS5=]'' basically killed what dignity the series had left, until ''THPS 1 + 2'' finally brought the series back to greatness in the eyes of fans and critics.
4* SugarWiki/AwesomeMusic: One of the consistent high points of the series is its mix of licensed music, which offers a little bit of something for fans of many music genres (hard rock, heavy metal, hip hop/rap, etc.), though mostly punk rock/hardcore, and from ''Underground'' on, emo and alternative rock as well.
5* BreatherLevel:
6** Even for the standards of the game's Classic Goals, the starting level of ''THAW''s Classic Mode, ''THPS'' Minneapolis, is too easy. The C-O-M-B-O is just a straight line, the barriers aren't hard to spot at all, and the level has ridiculous gaps that are worth thousands of points, making the points missions all but trivial. Notably, a simple Spine Transfer over the one barrier in front of the theater will automatically conclude the High Combo mission even on the SICK level. Inverted, however, with the Secret Tape.
7** Between Concrete Park and Downhill, two of the hardest Classic Goals in the franchise, ''[=THP8=]''[='s=] Fun Park's [=PS2=] version is not all that hard, except for the balloons mission. The Secret Disc is literally the easiest in the entire franchise, requiring a simple Boned Ollie on a place right behind you as the mission starts.
8** Philly FDR's Classic Goals are surprisingly easy for the last unlocked level on Proving Ground's [=PS2=] version.
9** The ''Tony Hawk 3'' Rio level (its first competition level) is perhaps the easiest level in the entire series. Circling the level is an endless loop of rails and fences you can grind, which when navigated a handful of times will net you a gold medal without much effort at all. This is in stark contrast to the competition levels in the previous two games, which actually required knowledge of special moves to impress the judges.
10* BrokenBase: It's debated when the series began its truly ''epic'' fall from grace which came to an end in the wake of the disastrous ''RIDE'' and [[FranchiseKiller franchise killing]] ''Pro Skater 5''.
11** Some fans point to as early as ''Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 4'' beginning the downward trend in quality, citing its ObviousBeta status and it being an inferior follow up to the much loved third entry.
12** And finally depending on who you ask, ''THAW'' was a step in the right direction after the ''THUG'' games, the last 'classic' Tony Hawk game, or an ill omen of what was to come.
13** A few even point to ''3'' as the start of the series' downfall, saying that the introduction of the Revert made the game way too easy due to its ability to link vert and street combos together (never mind that its use is ''entirely optional'').
14* ContestedSequel: [[BrokenBase Take your pick!]] Was it ''4'', or either of the ''Underground'' games, or ''American Wasteland'' and so forth that drove series fans up a wall? The classics are [[FirstInstallmentWins always appreciated by all]], but beyond that, anything goes until eventually the series fell apart. Nowadays veterans will debate at length the positives and negatives of each individual game, without fail.
15* EvenBetterSequel: The first ''[=THPS=]'' received good reviews upon release. ''[=THPS2=]'' is considered one of the best games of all time, and it received tens from several reviewers. And then there's ''[=THPS3=]'', the first sixth-gen entry in the series, which also got top scores for said sixth-gen versions. ''Tony Hawk's Underground 2'' is considered to be the best game in the series by many, although older fans complained that the game's mechanics and speed made it too easy.
16* FandomRivalry: With EA’s ''VideoGame/{{Skate}}'' series. As each series caters to a different kind of player, a fair number of ''Skate'' players say that they “grew out of” ''THPS'' and with ''Skate''’s focus on simulating actual skating, it lets them embrace realistic challenges of trying to skateboard instead of ''THPS''’s arcade-y score attack approach. Meanwhile, those who stuck with ''THPS'' say its simple gameplay allows the player to focus on hitting big lines and crazy combos instead of the reality of skating (where you’d be lucky to slide even the length of a curb with average momentum).
17* GameBreaker:
18** ''[=THPS2=]'' and ''[=THPS3=]'' would add up the total amount of degrees you spin in a combo and multiply your entire combo's score as if it was one air. For example, if you do a combo with five grinds and five 180 degree spins, you get credit for five 900 grinds.
19** It only works in certain places in ''[=THPS2=]'' (The Bullring's loop and Skate Heaven's "Animal Chen" ramp's pass-through) but if you do donuts then complete the loop or pass-through gap you'll get a massive rotation multiplier when you come out the other side.
20** In [=THPS4=]'s [=PS1=] version, Tony Hawk's Gymnastic Plant scores you insane points, enough to clear most High Score goals in no time.
21** Grinds in [=Sk8Land=] don't cause the balance meter to appear until about half a second into the grind, so if you jump again within half a second, you cannot bail the grind. If your combo consists only of grinds and [[WallJump wallplants]], you can combo forever.
22** Manuals in ''[=THAW=]'', literally letting you get your multiplier into the 50s, by randomly mashing a couple of the buttons. Gets worse when your manual skill gets high, because it becomes ''incredibly'' easy to balance.
23** Also from ''THAW'', breaking the theater glass window in Minneapolis gives you 10,000 points.
24** ''THPG'''s Aggro Kick. A simple trick that boosts your speed for simple tricks and gaps... that can easily be kept for a long time, allowing you to pull special air tricks more easily and clearing huge gaps when combined with Nail the Trick.
25** Also from ''THPG'', the Rigger career allows you to build Boost Quarter-Pipes out of nowhere, making otherwise hard high-score missions a lot easier.
26** The revert, which wasn't available in the original ''THPS'' and ''[=THPS2=]'', can turn into this in ''1+2'', whose levels weren't originally built with the mechanic in mind. Notably, both Downhill Jam and [=SkateStreet=] Ventura have narrow pipes where even novice players can ring up insane combos, due to the verts being so close to each other that only a revert is needed to keep the combo string going into the next air without much loss of speed.
27** The Combo Run Out mechanic introduced in ''THUG'' made it easy to string along long street combos, as triggering it would reset any active balance meter, allowing the player to get back on the board into another grind or manual while the Run Out timer was active (it lasts for about 5 seconds, non-cumulative within a combo but more than enough time to, say, run from one rail to another and resume grinding) - and, if used on air, it would prevent any bails, so one could use it to right themselves and get back to riding with a manual.
28* HarsherInHindsight:
29** In ''Pro Skater 3'', players can break the ceiling in the Skater Island level via a well-timed jump on the ceiling rails. The real Skater Island park in Rhode Island was forced to close in 2004, a mere three years after the game's release when the roof collapsed.
30** In ''THPS 2'', [=SkateStreet=] Ventura is presented as empty and gated off (until you find the keys); the real [=SkateStreet=] Ventura closed its doors for good in 2005.
31* HilariousInHindsight: ComicBook/SpiderMan is an unlockable skateboarder in the second ''Pro Skater'' gamer. Twelve years later, ''Film/TheAmazingSpiderMan'' had Peter Parker (Spidey's secret identity) pulling off some skateboarding stunts. Then the later film ''Film/SpiderManHomecoming'' featured "Blitzkrieg Bop" by the Ramones, which was in the soundtrack of ''[=THPS3=]''.
32* IKnewIt: Due to various leaks, [[https://twitter.com/Nibellion/status/1260228966893453317 teases by Tony Hawk himself]] and even a big-name rapper mentioning a forthcoming game, a fair few fans determined that a remake or new game would be announced during the Summer Game Fest of 2020, on May 12's announcement. Sure enough, the unveiling of ''Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 1+2'' happened.
33* JustHereForGodzilla: Some people mainly get the games for the chance to play as ComicBook/SpiderMan, ComicBook/{{Wolverine}}, [[VideoGame/{{Doom}} Doomguy]], or any of the other guest characters.
34* MemeticMutation: The Tony Hawk timeline.[[note]]A joke "timeline" that is needlessly complex. In particular, one of the timeline splits (the end of ''Underground 2'') is especially popular, as it's entirely dependent on Bam living or dying from his injuries to justify his absence from some of the games.[[/note]]
35* {{Narm}}: The space limitations of the Nintendo 64 cartridges had already [[PortingDisaster affected the music]] in the first two games. When 3 somehow got an [=N64=] port too, the music was so badly butchered that something like [[Music/{{Motorhead}} Ace of Spades]] keeps repeating the normally one-off line, "And don't forget the Joker!" almost as if it's the main chorus.
36* ObviousBeta: ''THPS 5'' was rushed out the door to make it to market before Tony Hawk's contract with Activision expired, and it shows. The graphics look like a [=PS3=] launch title, the physics are extremely broken, and there are tons of bugs.
37* OlderThanTheyThink: Untimed gameplay and a bail-out button were added into ''Tony Hawk'' after the release of Acclaim's ''Aggressive Inline'' -- a well-received ''Hawk'' clone on inline skates -- introduced both of these between the releases of ''Tony 3'' and ''4''.
38* OnlyTheCreatorDoesItRight: Even the worst received Neversoft games were considered better than any of the Robomodo games.
39** [[AvertedTrope Averted]] with ''[=THPS 1+2=]'', developed by Vicarious Visions and widely considered to be one of if not ''the'' best in the franchise. VV did have long-time experience with the franchise; they developed the Game Boy Advance versions of the classic-era games (as well as a maligned version of ''Tony 4'' for the [=PS1=]), which were praised for keeping the physics and gameplay true to the source despite the hardware limitations.
40* PortingDisaster:
41** The N64 versions of ''Pro Skater 1, 2, and 3'' had better looking graphics than the [=PS1=] versions, but at the expense of uncomfortable controls due to using the C-buttons, missing effects, NoEnding for beating the game, worse draw-distance, and a butchered soundtrack due to using a 16MB cartridge instead of CD-[=ROMs=]. Some songs in ''Pro Skater 1'' were literally just instrumentals. The 3rd game was the last game released for the N64. What a bad way to go out.
42** While the 3rd game had a decent backport to the [=PS1=] with exclusive content, the 4th game had worse draw distance, wonky physics, lip tricks were nearly impossible to pull off, confusing goals, and glitches out the ass. Of note, the Shipyard level is so scaled-down that it removes almost all the ships from the level, making it illogical and much harder. In addition, the [=PS1=] could not handle the final level Zoo so the simple competition-style level Sewers was made in its place. Interestingly, it was developed by Vicarious Visions, the same people who made the GBA and DS versions of ''THPS'' and eventually ''Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 1+2'', so how they managed to foul up this particular port is a mystery for the ages.
43** Project 8's [=PS2=] version had some real problems with using the old physics engine for a game entirely based around the [=PS3=] version's physics. Notably, a gap challenge between 2 curbs in the very first level is borderline impossible because of the different physics.
44* QuestionableCasting: Music/LilJon's inclusion in ''American Wasteland'' as an unlockable skater was an odd decision, seeing as how none of his music's in the game and the man himself isn't known for skateboarding.
45* ScrappyMechanic:
46** A lot of critics and fans find the combo system to be insane. The first game rewarded you well for making one move in the air. When the later editions came, making 50-trick combos was practically a breeze, even ''required'', and one mistake would spoil the entire combo.
47** The first game’s grinding system was very difficult compared to later entries, especially since there was no balance bar and you had to gauge your skater leaning to keep him straight.
48** Lip tricks are by far the worst type of tricks in the first era of Tony Hawk's game (and the HD remake). They give little points, only work when you're straight as an arrow, and can ruin combos when they're accidentally performed. Until ''[=THPS3=]'', it also had no way to balance it out and the skater would always bail if you kept holding for more than 4 seconds. It's less terrible in the modern games, but there's still some problems. For example, there's a goal on ''American Wasteland'' when you have to lip trick through '''an entire rotation of Santa Monica's Giant Wheel''' (thankfully only on Sick difficulty). The only saving grace of the lip trick was that leaning too far towards the ramp would cause you to land safely and end your combo without breaking it (unless, since ''3'', you linked a revert into it to keep going), but even that's a crapshoot if you're not doing it intentionally.
49** [=THPS2=] introduced Manuals for linking tricks, which were well received. However, it also introduced tricks that must be done whilst in a manual. When executed correctly, they can cause huge scores, but they are infamously difficult to pull off - and thus after 2, they were never part of a level objective.
50** The board peripheral for ''Ride'', full stop. It's so imprecise, you'd wonder what kind of mechanics were they thinking of when they made it.
51** Before ''Ride'', there was the motion control peripheral for ''Motion'', which is so sensitive that performing grinds and manuals is almost impossible. The peripheral, which plugs into the GBA cartridge slot, is the only way to play the game, which means that [=DSi=] and [=3DS=] owners are SOL.
52** The Slam mechanic in ''THPS 5'', which allows you to immediately slam onto the ground if you're in the air. This was designed to be a combo ender, but for whatever reason the mechanic was assigned to the same button as grinding.
53* SequelDifficultyDrop: The third game is much easier than the first two due to a much simplified physics engine and much longer combo lines. The addition of the revert, aside from being directly responsible for said longer combos (as they allow the player to link a vert sequence with a manual) significantly reduces the chances of bailing (although, contrary to popular assumption, it doesn't always hit).
54* {{Sequelitis}}: It's debated by fans where and why exactly public perception of the series started to go downhill (pardon the pun). General consensus is that the decline started somewhere between ''Underground'' and ''American Wasteland'', and hit a low with ''Tony Hawk: RIDE'', which has been derided for being overly expensive and gimmicky (since the player is forced to use a skateboard peripheral to control the action - and a faulty one at that, as mentioned above). ''Pro Skater 5'' was [[FranchiseKiller simply the final nail in the coffin]], thanks in no small part to the [[ObviousBeta horrific state it was in upon release]].
55* SidetrackedByTheGoldSaucer: The Create-a-Park/Park Editor from older games let you build and skate at your very own dream park with all the options available at your disposal and potentially sink hours crafting a perfect skating level or just roaming around it.
56* SignatureSong: Every game has its own signature song.
57** Superman for [=THPS1=] and the entire series in general. For lesser examples, [[Music/DeadKennedys Police Truck]] and [[Music/{{Primus}} Jerry Was A Racecar Driver]] would also count.
58** [[Music/RageAgainstTheMachine Guerrilla Radio]], [[Music/BadReligion You]], No Cigar, [[Music/{{Anthrax}} Bring Tha Noize]], or May 16 for [=THPS2=].
59** [[Music/{{CKY}} 96 Quite Bitter Beings]], [[Music/TheRamones Blitzkrieg Bop]], [[Music/DelThaFunkeeHomosapien If You Must]], or [[Music/{{Motorhead}} Ace of Spades]] for [=THPS3=].
60** [[Music/{{ACDC}} TNT]], [[Music/{{NWA}} Express Yourself]], [[Music/LessThanJake All My Best Friends Are Metalheads]], [[Music/PublicEnemy By the Time I Get to Arizona]], [[Music/IronMaiden The Number of the Beast]], or [[Music/SexPistols Anarchy in the UK]] for [=THPS4=].
61** 2RAK005, A Day At The Races, Cosmic Assassins, Armageddon, The Circle (Part 1), Mississippi King, or [[Music/{{Nas}} The World Is Yours]] for Underground.
62** [[Music/LessThanJake That's Why They Call It a Union]], End of the World, [[Music/{{Ween}} It's Gonna Be a Long Night]], [[Music/{{Rancid}} Fall Back Down]], Interested in Madness, or Back on the Radio for Underground 2. Hell, even [[Music/FrankSinatra That's Life]], way before ''Film/{{Joker|2019}}'' made it cool.
63** [[Music/GreenDay Holiday]], [[Music/DeadKennedys California Uber Alles]], Rawhide, Organism, [[Music/BlocParty Like Eating Glass]], or [[Music/DeathFromAbove1979 Little Girl]] for American Wasteland.
64** [[Music/{{Kasabian}} Club Foot]], Devotion, [[Music/BadReligion Social Suicide]], Lycanthrope, [[Music/EaglesOfDeathMetal Chase the Devil]], Chump, [[Music/{{Wolfmother}} Woman]], or I Hate the Radio for Project 8.
65** [[Music/TheSmashingPumpkins Tarantula]], [[Music/{{Nirvana}} Breed]], [[Music/{{Airbourne}} Girls in Black]], Come On, [[Music/FooFighters The Pretender]], [[Music/TheClash Clash City Rockers]], [[Music/TheRollingStonesBand Sympathy for the Devil]], That's Entertainment, or Bear in the Air for Proving Ground.
66* SongAssociation: Pick any song from the series, especially the ones listed under SignatureSong. Odds are, if you look for the video for the song on Website/YouTube, it'll be flooded with comments from people talking about the Tony Hawk series. Such is the popularity of the ''THPS'' soundtrack that [[CoverVersion cover bands]] dedicated to performing songs featured in the series were formed such as The 900 and Downhill Jam among others.
67* ThatOneAchievement: ''1+2'' is absolutely ''brimming'' with them.
68** The Epic Score challenges. Getting the insanely high scores needed to complete these is difficult enough - to put it in perspective, the Epic Score for Warehouse is a staggering ''22 million'', and this is '''''the first level in the game'''''. Then there's the issue of these being classified as Secret Challenges, meaning that, [[GuideDangIt without extensive research online]], most players would have absolutely no idea that these challenges even ''exist'', much less what the necessary scores are to finish them.
69** Two that stand out are "High Plays" and "Big-Time Builder", notorious for being straight-up [[LuckBasedMission luck-based]] for the average player. To wit, these are earned by getting a total of 20,000 visits and 5,000 upvotes respectively on created parks you submit online. Considering the average player can count themselves lucky to get 100 visits and a dozen or so upvotes on any given park they submit, this boils down to creating and submitting literally ''hundreds'' of parks and praying that, over literal ''years'' of time, they can amass the needed plays and upvotes to complete these challenges.
70** Any of the challenges that require you to win online multiplayer matches. While it might not sound bad on paper, considering you only have to place in the top half in a match for it to be considered a win, the problem is that, at least on PC, online is chock full of cheaters sporting perfect balance and no-bail hacks. This means that the top half of any given lobby is highly likely to be comprised of said cheaters who will be landing million+ point combos and rocking multi million-point scores with regularity. The average player, therefore, is forced either to cross their fingers and pray to the skate gods that they're [[LuckBasedMission lucky enough to find a match that's relatively hacker-free]], or else stoop to installing cheats themselves just to level the playing field.
71** Any of the "Hard Gap Combos" challenges, which task you with getting multi ''million''-point combos using certain gaps in each stage. For just one example, how does getting a '''''20 million-point combo''''' using the "Holy Shi..." gap in Warehouse sound? And this is by one of the ways to grind out the Player Career Level 100 (ONE HUNDRED!) by the ton of EXP for the achievement/trophy.
72** Any of the "Hard"[[note]]In-game mods and cheats must be disabled before peforming these; otherwise the regular Get-Theres only counts.[[/note]] Get-Theres. You have to master the mechanics and the balance meter gauge, as well for timing the ollie at the exact gap. Levels like Mall, Downhill Jam, Roswell, School II, Venice, Philadelphia, Bullring and Skate Heaven determine your skills on reaching these gaps without screwing up your balance meter gauge (before getting bailed).
73* ThatOneLevel:
74** ''[=THPS=]'':
75*** ''Downhill Jam'', whilst regarded as quite aesthetically pleasing, suffers from its almost constantly downhill pace, which coupled with the lack of places to safely land tricks, means that you are likely to be retrying the level again and again if you mess anything up (something that is particularly likely with the Secret Tape) - which is compounded by the fact that your run automatically ends when you cross the finish line at the bottom.
76*** ''Downtown, Minneapolis'' in the original is a relatively easy-going level. It also has some deceptively difficult gaps, but in the original, those were optional and only really useful for boosting your score. In ''Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 1 + 2,'' however, the developers put in additional goals for the first game's levels to match up their overall goal counts with the second game. One of these goals, ''Complete the Rooftop Gaps,'' is hair-pullingly difficult compared to the rest - you have to perform three very large gap jumps requiring very precise timing, all in one run, and, of course, with these gaps being accessible only from the rooftops, if you miss and fall off, you'll have to spend precious time getting back up.[[note]]In fact, you'll be doing this regardless, as two of the gaps ''require'' you to jump off the roof with no way to easily get back[[/note]] Not only can this goal be next to impossible for skaters with very low Ollie and Hangtime stats, the goal flyover doesn't make it immediately apparent where all three of these gaps even ''are.'' To make matters worse, one of these gaps is the 'Death Grind' gap, which requires jumping from a kicker on the second rooftop to a rail going into the fountain plaza below, which is ''impossible to see'' before you take off. This gap alone will probably take you at least three or four tries to land, and you'll still have to land the others to complete the goal. It's not uncommon for players to have to spend an ''entire run,'' or even ''several'' runs, just dedicated to getting this one goal.
77*** ''Burnside, Portland'' is a competition level, but what makes it particularly unforgiving compared to the others is its layout, largely consisting of flat, open space, bowls and quarter pipe ramps, with a couple sparse kicker ramps and almost no rails to grind in sight. In the first game, which lacked manuals or reverts, this severely limited your combo potential, leaving you to resort to building up speed and using vert tricks for bolstering your score, which left less room for error with bails that could drastically tank your placements. Even in future installments and remakes that included reverts and manuals, Burnside continues to be infamous, as the course tends to be drastically downscaled in size. Considering it already is one of the smallest levels in the series, combined with the faster pace of the later games, it can get very claustrophobic and not leave you a lot of room to trick off of and keep combos going.
78*** ''Streets, San Francisco'', the penultimate level of the game and the last traditional 'tape' level, is a large, wide-open level, which you'd think would make it easier to meet the more stringent score requirements. You would be wrong - it's a large, wide-open level with an ''absolute dearth'' of obstacles to trick off of, mostly consisting of, well, just [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin flat, long streets.]] This isn't helped by the very short draw distance, which wasn't much of an issue in earlier levels due to them having more corridors, walls and points of interest, but became a major problem in Streets due to its open-ended design, comparative lack of natural pathways and fewer distinct landmarks overall. All of this made combos in Streets much more difficult to maintain, especially in the first game due to the lack of manuals, and the pathway to get to the secret tape, which involves hopping between and skating on top of narrow awnings and rooftops, is so stringent with its time commitment that, similar to Downhill, you can ''maybe'' afford to mess it up ''just once'' per run. The skate letters are also in very convoluted and out-of-the-way spots, instead of a natural path of exploration, ensuring that it will take you at least a few tries to achieve every goal tape.
79** ''[=THPS2=]'':
80*** The ''secret tape in School 2'' is pretty hard to get due to its position on a high ledge for which you can only ascend to via a short ramp and a specific trick. Essentially you have to build up air to the point where you land on a rail which you then grind to the platform where the tape is.
81*** While most of the ''Venice Beach'' level is relatively easy, the ''Hit 4 VB Transfers goal'' lives in infamy for containing what is among the hardest required gaps in the entire series. The goal itself is no cakewalk, requiring you to complete four transfers at different parts of a relatively large map. The last three are somewhat challenging, but doable. The first, the appropriately named "VB! Huge Transfer!!!", is a different story. Basically, there are three quarter pipes beside each other. Going from the left or right one to the middle one is easy, but of course that isn't the objective. No, to pass it, you must jump from the first ramp to the third one. You must first build up a lot of speed, and then jump off at just the right angle. Sounds easy on paper, but you have such little room to acquire and maintain said speed that it becomes almost impossible. And remember, that's only the first of four, meaning you still have to quickly skate to and complete the other three. Messing up any of the transfers, especially the first one, almost always warrants a restart.
82*** ''Philadelphia'' is a small level that relies so heavily on air, jumping at a specific angle and wallriding - with particular note to its Secret Tape and 'E' letter - that it is widely hated. These mechanics were more often used in the first game, which would suggest this was one of the earlier [=THPS2=] levels designed prior to the team's decision to make the levels more straightforward. Whilst there is a hidden skatepark in the level, it features some places where landing is tricky, and is only really good for vert tricks as the best places to grind are in the main part of the level...which doesn't have many places to do vert tricks so to combine the two into a combo often requires long manuals. The level also suffers for its technological limitations of the time - despite the small size, the amount of objects in the level render the graphics foggy until they are approached. The one positive of its level design is that the frequent jumps from planter and fountain grinds can give you a lot of point multipliers, making the Sick Score less tricky to achieve than it is in some earlier levels.
83*** Ironically, ''Skate Heaven'' is universally reviled among [=THPS 1+2=] completionists. The level itself has a baffling design, consisting of various real life skate spots mish-mashed together without much rhyme or reason, and with very little flow between obstacles. On top of this, it's home to the fiendishly difficult 'Intersectional' challenge, and has a whopping ''68 gaps'' to hit, many of which are very tricky to get. None of these challenges are mandatory of course, but if you're going for 100% completion, you're in for a bad time.
84** ''[=THPS3=]'':
85*** Tokyo, the final competition. In order to get the gold, the player must hit 300K-350K in one minute runs with minimal bailing. The AI skaters will also post higher judges' scores than previous competitions, sometimes as high as 95, requiring players to hit the high end of the spectrum to finish in first. Also, unlike every other stage in the game where they're in plain sight and among common lines, most stat points are tucked away into the most obscure areas of the stage that require deep knowledge and dexterity of the level to get them.
86*** ''Airport'' on the [=PS1=] version's ''Collect Flags'' goal is much harder than it is on the [=PS2=] version due to a difference with the speed of grinding and a hard to control balance meter. In addition, the [=PS1=] version of Canada's 'Nosegrind Down The Tree' goal only works if you approach it from exactly square on, as you will glitch through otherwise.
87** ''[=THPS4=]'':
88*** The C-O-M-B-O mission in [=PS1=] version of ''Kona'' begins at the back of the building and requires walling the fence to climb then jump on the rail that ''goes up''. Even with maxed out stats it was impossible to reach the said platform.
89*** The [=PS2=] version of ''Kona'' is home to two of the most infamous goals in the entire series. The first goal involves doing three increasingly difficult slalom runs down a winding snake bowl. The first two runs are easy enough, but the third requires you to pull off some ''extremely'' sharp turns at high speed. The second goal is even more infuriating. Rick Thorne challenges you to air over a big hut which sits between two bowls. There's no kicker to launch you over it, and the gap is too big to do a Spine Transfer. You have to ''do a Boneless forward out of the vert.'' Getting enough height to clear the hut ''and'' enough distance to trigger the gap and land in the other bowl while doing a Misty Flip is extremely difficult.
90** ''[=THAW=]'':
91*** One of the missions in ''Santa Monica'' requires you to jump over a HUGE staircase and land on a specific spot. Five times. The last time while doing a 360.
92*** ''Downtown'' brings yet another long manual mission. This one in particular is long enough to make you lose the momentum even with a ramp going down AND Spacewalking.
93** ''[=THP8=]'':
94*** [=PS2=]'s version ''Concrete Park'' has a Classic Goals with a ridiculous Secret Disc which requires an enormous momentum to be picked up. Even using Spine Transfer and Boned Ollie, it's not granted that you'll get it.
95*** The returning level of ''Downhill'' has the hardest Collect C-O-M-B-O in the entire franchise so far. Not only it laps around the entire phase, but it spreads over high and low locations.
96** ''[=THPG=]'':
97*** [=PS2=]'s version has the ''Epic Gaps'' goal on ''Downtown Philly'', which requires you to hit a 55 ft. jump over a street light. Even if you build '''Boost QP's''' to boost your skater, use the Nail the Trick Mode and jump with a Boned Ollie, it's still almost impossible.
98*** ''Baltimore Lansdowne's Classic Goals''. Not only the "do all in one session" is required for the SICK score, but the mission to stall in all the shoes is pretty hard to do even individually.
99*** The ''career missions with Stevie Williams.'' Even if you do a frame perfect photo, it won't count and you have to start over and over until you wanna give up playing the game entirely.
100* VindicatedByHistory: The [=PS1=] port of ''THPS 4'' was not well-regarded at the time as it came late in the console's history and greatly simplified the [=PS2=] game with a downgrade in graphics. However, the simplicity of its presentation and sheer amount of goals have made it a nice alternative for those who never owned a [=PS2=]/PC and a copy of the game for its time or those who don't want to deal with the main game's sometimes overwhelming focus on talking to skaters and its larger maps.
101* WinBackTheCrowd: ''1 + 2'' has been widely hailed by publications and fans as a return to form for the series in terms of its refocus on skating, with physics and speed that feel closer to the earlier games in the series.

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