Skate. is back. Long live Skate. EA has officially revived the dormant franchise for a new generation more than a decade after Skate 3 graced seventh-generation consoles at the dawn of the 2010s. Having previewed the early access version of the game, we can tell you that the Flick-It gameplay has been polished considerably; the moment-to-moment skateboarding is moreish and in a compelling position ahead of launch on September 16. But there’s a lot more to this new-wave version of Skate. than just tricks. With that in mind, here’s everything you need to know about Full Circle’s contemporary take on the series.

Sandbox Vansterdam

First off, let’s talk about the map. After learning the ropes on a tutorial island, players are dropped into a multiplayer open-world sandbox called San Vansterdam. Other players will be riding around with you as you gradually unlock and explore its four neighborhoods: Hedgemont, Gullcrest Village, Market Mile, and Brickswich. Servers can hold up to 150 players, and you can party up with them as you chart the area, drop enviable lines, and tackle both structured and ambient challenges. To begin with, there’s a golden path to follow that’s ordained by the San Vansterdam City Council’s talking heads. These missions quickly get you up to speed with the new mechanics, such as walking you through how to bail effectively and use systems like the Replay Editor.

While previous games featured plenty of security guards and hostile hazards, San Vansterdam has been designed as more of a supernatural skater’s paradise. There are classic skateparks if you’re looking for a more grounded feel, but you can also dive-bomb off of skyscrapers and attempt to string unbelievable sets of tricks into lines, if you wish.

Instead of a one-and-done campaign, Skate. is opting for a live-service model instead, with Full Circle planning to evolve the map over time in response to community feedback. Players can expect seasonal challenges as well as refreshed areas and events to skate as the game grows after its launch. Of course, this also means Skate. will be free to play and feature cross-platform multiplayer and cross-progression, so you can kick it with your friends across consoles and PC. And thankfully, as far as monetization is concerned, no gameplay is locked behind a paywall—only cosmetic items are purchasable with a premium currency, and there’s an optional premium battle pass if you’re keen on unlocking more customization items as you play.
 

An expanded moveset

To help bring your wildest skateboarding dreams to life, Full Circle has added more abilities to the off-board moveset in Skate. Now, you’ll be able to roll around like a Droideka and scale vertically with parkour controls that wouldn’t look out of place in Uncharted. This makes sense because with its skyscrapers and overground plazas, San Vansterdam is littered with secret skating spots for players to uncover and etch into the community lorebook. Though with the Throwdowns system, even the most unlikely area can become a community challenge. From the game’s radial menu, players can Quick Drop objects like rails and ramps into the open world, which can also be seen by the players they’re sharing the space with. From there, you can turn your augmented line into a Throwdown, a custom challenge that the rest of the sandbox’s inhabitants can try out for themselves.

As we mentioned at the start, the Flick-It system has been completely rebuilt in the Frostbite engine, which means there’s more subtlety to the skateboarding animations and greater precision is needed when trying to connect a Kickflip onto a rail’s coping for a classic 50-50 Grind. This makes for a rewarding difficulty curve, though there’s also an assisted control scheme option that will be especially helpful for those who may be trying out Skate.’s defining control system for the first time. 

Similarly, the addition of a Skatepedia trick bible (which can also be accessed from the in-game radial menu) visualizes the right-stick movements that are necessary to land more complicated tricks and complete objective criteria. For the series veterans, however, Skate. will launch with new tricks like Quick Nollies, Double Grinds, and Slappies, which enable you to Grind a curb or ledge without the need to Ollie. The game’s mechanical depth is set to be expanded in future updates with the addition of Impossibles and Darkslides too.
 

The (stair) set dressing

It’s essential to include set dressing like a strong soundtrack and real-world brands when building a game that is imbued with skate culture, and Skate. does not disappoint in this regard. I already spotted Vans, Dime, Girl, and Chocolate branding during our preview, and soon discovered some of the earworms hiding across San Vansterdam thanks to the Grabster system.

While skating around the districts, you’ll be able to spot little visualizer nodes pumping out an assortment of tracks to accompany your Manuals and Grinds. If you like what you’re hearing, you can run over to the sound and hold down on the left stick to “grab” the track, and add it to a discovery playlist, another spoke accessible from the in-game radial wheel. Skate.’s soundtrack is already a heady blend of genres, tapping adrenaline-pumping rappers like Rico Nasty alongside Indietronica legend Caribou and pub rock royalty Amyl and the Sniffers. After curating my in-game soundscape, it wasn’t long before I was reaching for my phone to update some playlists of my own.

With that, you should have a firm overview of the significant changes, features, and systems coming to Skate. when it launches into early access later this month. Despite only being the beginning of the game’s journey toward launch, years of playtesting have ensured that Full Circle’s latest game is dropping in with a strong sense of momentum—and hopefully, a clean landing. 

Skate. launches into early access on the Epic Games Store on September 16.