10 Must-Play Skateboarding Games

As a sport that has a reasonably high chance of injury, skateboarding is best experienced, for many, in the virtual world, where your limbs and noggin are safe from the various falls all skaters inevitably take. While most skate video games are not a simulation of the sport, they are still a great way to experience the thrill of skateboarding and allow you to feel like a badass. Especially the ones that focus more on the impressive aerial tricks and spins that skaters in the real world take years to master. There aren’t a massive amount of skateboard games coming out every year, but there are some retro classics and the occasional modern gem that keep the beloved genre going. So if you are looking to get your virtual skate on, these are the best skateboarding games.

Top Skate Games

The first skateboarding game was an arcade game from Atari called 720° that was released in 1986. Compared to today’s skate games, it’s incredibly basic as you just ride around a neighbourhood pulling off tricks in the hope of scoring enough to eventually make it to a skate park, but the idea spawned an epic genre.

These days, skateboarding games are a beloved genre that is somewhat underserved. In the early 2000s, skateboarding games were everywhere, building off the success of the Tony Hawk franchise, and some of them are considered as some of the best games ever made. But in the last 10 years, true AAA-level skateboarding games have become rare, with a handful of indie devs and occasional larger releases serving a genre that has a lot of hungry fans. This list compiles the best of those games from recent years based on critical and fan ratings, but the key is that these are all easily accessible on modern hardware.

10. Hellskate

Hellskate is a skateboarding game that’s also an action roguelike, which is quite the combination. You’ll ride around performing tricks that powerup your next attack against the monsters that populate the world. Each run gives you different powerups to use in the fight, but you’ll always be on your board, skating to save the world.

It launched into Early Access earlier this year, and is still being developed by Phantom Coast, but even in its incomplete form it’s still great fun. It’s a mash-up of genres that sounds a bit silly, but it works well, and the roguelike elements keep it fresh, something other skate games can lack. It is only on PC for now, but feels like it would fit well on other platforms as well, so if you are looking for a skate game that’s a bit different, this is one for you.

9. Skate Bird

Take a bird, give it a skateboard and let it loose inside your house. That is the concept for Skate Bird, and it’s so simple that it works weirdly well. This isn’t a complex game by any means, but if you just want to hit some sick tricks, it’s a perfect entry to the genre.

Developed by Glass Bottom Games and released in 2021, it became a hit after launching on Xbox Game Pass for Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S, with versions also available on PC, Switch, PS4 and PS5. There’s not all that much to it, but it is the perfect way to spend a few hours, and it’s simple enough for anyone to pick up and play almost immediately.

8. Subway Surfers

Hear me out: Subway Surfers is a skateboarding game. Yes it has surfing in its name and yes there’s no physical wheels of your board hitting the ground, but if a hoverboard isn’t a natural progression of a skateboard, then what on earth is it? I rest my case.

I don’t really need to explain Subway Surfers as you’ve probably watched at least an hour of it if you’ve ever been on the internet, since it’s the game people overlay on videos that are mostly audio focused to give you something to watch. It’s an endless runner where you are on a hoverboard going along train tracks, dodging trains and other obstacles. It’s not a traditional skate game, but it’s surprisingly addictive and pretty fun to watch, which is a testament to co-developers Kiloo and SYBO Games. It initially released in 2012 but found success in recent years after its TikTok fame. You can play it on most mobile devices such as iOS and Android, and in your browser.

7. Session

Session and the next game on this list are two very similar games. They channel the old Skate games in terms of style, giving you maps to roam around and try to hit tricks on with a complex control system that takes a long time to master, which is exactly what fans are looking for.

Session released in 2022 on PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X and Switch, and is made by Crea-ture Studios. If you imagine a modern take on the classic skateboarding games from the early- to mid-2000s this is what you would think of, and for the most part it works well. However, there isn’t a ton of depth other than hitting tricks, and the base game without mods can feel underwhelming. But if you are a content creator this is the game for you, as a deep photo/video mode and multiple camera lenses give you a lot of customization options.

6. Skater XL

Skater XL is effectively a rival to Session, and which you prefer will likely come down to personal preference and your platform. Simply due to the mods available, Skater XL ranks higher, but if you are sticking with the base game for both, there’s not much in it.

Having launched into Early Access in 2018 on PC, before coming to PS4, Xbox One and Switch later, it isn’t as easily accessible as Session, but it’s wider mod library on PC means you can turn it into a better game with some limited technical knowhow. As expected you’ll be riding around trying to hit tricks with many players saying this is more of a simulation style than it’s rival. Developers Easy Day Studios have done a good job of making Skater XL realistic, but again there isn’t a ton of depth, so this is one for those looking to recreate real life boarding in the virtual world.

5. The Ramp

The Ramp is the simplest form of skateboarding games, as it’s literally just about hitting tricks on a small ramp or bowl. Described as a “virtual toy” by solo-developer Paul Schnepf rather than a full game, there’s no score, missions or unlockable items. It’s just you going down ramps and hitting tricks.

But it’s this simplicity that makes it fantastic, there’s nothing to get distracted or frustrated by and the smooth controls make it incredibly satisfying to play. You might not rack up play sessions of multiple hours, but as a distraction for a few minutes on a regular basis it’s fantastic, and with versions on PC, Switch and Android there are a lot of places you can play. It released in 2021 and is still as good today as when it released, and it carries a small price tag, so there is little reason to skip this one.

4. OlliOlli2: Welcome to Olliwood

OlliOlli 2 takes the near perfect formula of the original OlliOlli and makes everything bigger, which is rarely a bad thing. It’s a 2-D skateboarding game where you play reasonably short, hand crafted, levels that give you objectives to complete. It looks basic, but in reality it’s anything but.

Developed by Roll7 and released in 2015 with PS4, PS Vita, PC, Android, Xbox One and Switch versions available, OlliOlli 2 masters the 2-D skateboarding style with an addictive level of challenge and satisfying control systems. As you progress through the level, you have tasks to complete, and need to hit tricks to increase your score. But with the additions of manuals you can keep your combo going for the entire level most of the time, making it slightly harder than its predecessor. This is one for folks who love to chase high scores and appreciate the art style, but be warned it’s incredibly hard to put down once you start.

3. Skate 3

Skate 3 is 14 years old, having released in 2010, and it only marginally passes the “playable on modern hardware” test as it’s available on the Xbox Cloud Gaming platform as well as the original platforms of PS3 and Xbox 360. But it’s so good that it deserves to be on this list.

Developed by EA Black Box, Skate 3 is considered by many to be the best skateboard game ever made, with a vast open world to skate around and pull off tricks in some amazing locations. There’s a story and tasks to complete, but the real joy of Skate 3 is just having a giant world to roam around and hit some sick tricks to look like a badass. It’s perfect for anyone who is looking for an open world skate game that has a great control scheme and can stomach the now-dated visuals.

2. OlliOlli World

The second OlliOlli game on this list is both similar and massively different to the previous one, as OlliOlli World takes the series into a 3-D space for the first time. It’s still the side on skate-fest you know from previous games, but a 3-D engine and new art style makes this a different experience.

It’s also developed by Roll7 and is available on Switch, PS5, PS4, PC, Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S, having launched in 2022, and the new visual style makes OlliOlli World feel very different to the previous games. Its cartoony style is beautiful in a very different way to the others in the franchise, and the 3-D engine enables things like branching paths for levels, bigger jumps and improved physics. It follows the same score attack style of play across multiple levels, but feels quite different to play with the new style. If you loved the others you’ll love this, and even if the old games didn’t do it for you the new style might make this more appealing.

1. Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1+2

If this list was the best skate games ever made, even ones that you’ll struggle to play today, then it could easily be entirely made up on Tony Hawk’s games. From the classic originals to the iconic Underground games and even some more out-there titles, the series is the standard-bearer for the genre.

But as the originals get older, the best way to experience them is the remake of the first two games, which came out in 2020 on PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox SeriesX/S, PC and Switch, and were made by Vicarious Visions. While the content was kept the same, a lot of improvements from later games in the series were added in terms of controls, making this arguably the perfect skateboard game and an easy one to pick up and play for anyone. You’ll be riding round the now-iconic levels trying to get high scores through tricks, in order to unlock further levels and customization options. It’s simple, but great fun.

Bottom Line

Despite being a genre based around a single sport, there’s a surprising amount of variety in the world of skateboarding games. From open world epics to tiny indie games and more than a few all-time classics, there are a lot of options, even if there aren’t all that many being released each year.