From today it is available on Xbox One (also on Game Pass!), Nintendo Switch, Amazon Luna, and PC SkateBIRD, a curious proposal within the skateboarding games developed by the independent studio Glass Bottom Games. These are going to be my SkateBIRD first impressions.
And when we say "curious proposal within skateboarding games", we should rather say "the most curious there is", because ... In how many games can you skate while controlling a bird !? Okay, technically Tony Hawk is the bird man, but ... You get the picture.
It's funny because it seems that after being in the doldrums, skateboarding games are experiencing a kind of renaissance: a few months ago we tested the realism of Skater XL and enjoyed like dwarfs with the remastering Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 1 + 2, soon Up-and-coming OllieOllie World is coming (looks fabulous) ... Not to mention Skate 4 is on the way.
Within skateboarding games, SkateBIRD falls within those that tip the balance towards arcade control rather than simulation. Come on, he could be described as a Tony Hawk starring little feathered friends. But ... does he fly high or does he fall out of the nest? We tell you about it in our SkateBIRD analysis.
SkateBIRD First Impressions
Better bird on board…
The first impression when starting to play SkateBIRD is very good: when starting a new game, we find ourselves in front of a complete character editor that allows us to create the bird of our dreams.
The selection of breeds is surprisingly high, almost as high as their recreation: parakeet, nymph cockatoo, sparrow, crow, pigeon, woodpecker, cockatoo, parrot, kingfisher ... Even larger birds such as owls, eagles, and hawks. Come on, ornithologists are not going to be disappointed.
The thing does not end there, because the SkateBIRD editor also allows us to add accessories, such as caps, glasses, belts, necklaces, capes ... And since we are facing a skate game, there is no lack of customization options for the board and the wheels.
Unfortunately, that first impression is all the good we can tell you about SkateBIRD. We had never thought about how important control is in a skateboarding game until we got to the controls of the Glass Bottom Games play.
Because things are as they are: control is disastrous. So much so that it eliminates any hint of fun and takes away the desire to continue playing. We are not very clear if it is something related to the Nintendo Switch version (which is the only one we have been able to test), but there is a very annoying delay when performing any action, especially evident when we want to make turns.
Perhaps it is something deliberate, with the aim of representing that a bird cannot turn on a board with the same "ease" as a human? Whether it is a technical problem or a design issue, the fact is that it affects the control very negatively.
To give you an idea, something as simple as a grind, which should not take more than two button presses, here is an impossible mission. Between the fact that we must anticipate the delay of the control to do the ollie and that the collision system is tremendously strict and forces us to place the board EXACTLY on the railing ... The desire to try disappears.
And bad not only because of the control but also because of how limited it is in the rest of the sections: the tricks at our disposal are quite limited, there is only one game mode and there are only five maps, which we must unlock through a rather tedious process: completing the missions proposed by a series of birds.
And you will say: "what is tedious about that?" To begin with, we must find them and it is not always easy; It is not pleasant to want to carry out the main mission and not be able to because we cannot find the bird in question. And to continue, that objectives must be completed within a time limit, and between control and camera problems ... It becomes a very frustrating process.
At least, the scenarios are quite original, because they play with the small size of the birds to allow us to skate everyday objects such as straw, a bowl of soup, books ... These are the 4 cheapest skates for beginners, by the way.
It is always painful to speak ill of a game, especially when it comes to a small title, made by a small studio, which has probably been very excited and has tried their best to get your little one to consoles. Unfortunately, SkateBIRD is a simple curiosity that we can only recommend if you are lovers of skateboarding ... and ornithology. These were my SkateBIRD first impressions.
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SkateBIRD is out now on PC, Xbox One and Nintendo Switch.
