As blasphemous it is to say, I didn't grow up with the Tony Hawk's Pro Skater series. Instead, I played Disney's Extreme Skate Adventure while listening to Radio Disney. You could say I was a huge Disney nerd throughout my childhood and I still am today.
Based on the Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 4 engine, Disney's Extreme Skate Adventure is a different take on the formula with Toy Story, The Lion King, and Tarzan represented in the game.
As a kid, I finished it to completion as it featured my favorite Disney characters and locations. Woody was rail-grinding a set of dominoes in Andy's Room and Tarzan was skating on vines and hanging out around the treehouse. It also had Simba and Rafiki from The Lion King making tricks in the Elephant Graveyard; thinking about that now, it's pretty grim, but it was cool at the time.
Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 1 + 2 has been a nostalgia blast for many, but Disney's Extreme Skate Adventure could offer even more, especially with all of the '90s properties it contains. The locations from films we know and love were painstakingly recreated in the Tony Hawk engine back in the day. The development teams behind Disney's Extreme Skate Adventure, Toys for Bob, and Vicarious Visions were very creative in how they used the locations to fit the gameplay style.
For example, there is a chest in Andy's Room that is locked and the Army Men are trapped inside. To free them, you have to perform a Gymnast Plant on it, similarly to wall-grinding on the alarm bells in Tony Hawk's Pro Skater's School stage.
There were NPC's walking around, like Hamm and Rex, who gave missions that made sense with their personalities. Wheezy in Toy Story 2 has a problem with his voice box, and in the game, you have to find his squeaker. Each playable Disney character (12 in total) all have their own unique moves to perform as well. It would be wonderful if this game received an HD uplift with modern Unreal Engine graphics akin to Kingdom Hearts 3.
The Tony Hawk's Pro Skater series is known for its music, and Disney's Extreme Skate Adventure has a solid lineup too. Basement Jaxx's "Where's Your Head At?" is a chaotic, energetic song and Reel Big Fish's "Sell Out" is a catchy ska tune – both memorable additions to the soundtrack. It also has Smash Mouth's "Pacific Coast Party," and while the band's music isn't the best in the world, it will give '90s kids a huge wave of nostalgia. It has a few misses here and there (like Jump5's "Spinnin' Around") – but overall, it has a great selection of songs.
While Activision will likely remaster Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3 + 4 next, Disney's Extreme Skate Adventure would be an interesting off-the-wall pick from the publisher's deteriorating list of old games to bring back. Perhaps they could even include new Disney IPs like Moana or Zootopia.