Available on PC, PS5, Switch 2

To paraphrase Fatboy Slim, the best time for skateboarding games is right here, right now. Between the Tony Hawk Pro 3 + 4 remasters, Skate kickflipping back to life, and a few older games like Session: Skate Sim, I’ve felt spoiled for choice with everything on offer. But among them, Skate Story emerged as a gem of originality, style, and authenticity.

While the performance on console has been mixed–at the time of writing, I’m currently grabbing a new patch for it on my PS5–there’s an underdog charm to Skate Story that makes it an instant classic. After all, you’re a demon made out of glass and pain who is attempting to destroy the moons of hell with a well-timed pop shove-it, but Skate Story is more than just a good-looking game with wildly imaginative art direction.

Skating has a tangible feel in the game: a sensation of urethane wheels slowly being worn down as you ollie over demons and lean forward to gain some extra speed, your contractually obligated fragility be damned. That feeling of constant danger, a close-up camera angle with a fisheye lens that makes the game look like it was filmed with a Sony DCR-VX1000, and an irreverent sense of humor only add to Skate Story’s charm. — Darryn Bonthuys