Odds are you’ve been playing the Tony Hawk: Pro Skater franchise for a significant amount of time. The video game franchise, which spawned in 1999, has seen over 15 installments which range from skate park themed fun to freestyle, RPG-esque environments.
There have been a few consistent factors throughout the series including killer punk rock soundtracks, mostly realistic physics (which are occasionally broken), a stellar roster of professional skating personalities, and endless hours of simulated skating fun.
One other factor which has been consistent throughout the franchise is a captivating list of guest characters that have never failed to disappoint. Shout outs go to the original guests, Officer Dick and Private Carrera. Here are the ten best guests to jump on a stick in franchise history.
10 X-Ray
An original character to the franchise, X-Ray appeared in the third installment to the series as an exclusive unlockable character to the Xbox version of the game. If this version was before your time, or if you played on one of the other ports, don’t worry. We’ll fill you in on what you missed.
X-Ray was a skeleton, plain and simple. Modeled after an anatomy skeleton, X-Ray was the first non-human featured in the franchise, toying with the dynamics of a character who wasn’t simply a re-pallet of a fully human skater. It didn’t break the boundaries by any means, but to those of us tuned into the franchise in 2002, it was certainly a break from the norm.
9 Spider-Man
If X-Ray was noteworthy for being the first guest character to break from a human figure, Spider-Man’s appearance in THPS2 can’t be ignored. The most noteworthy guest character in the series’ second installment featured several points of interest worthy of this list, foremost among them being the four outfits available for him.
If the visual of four different Spider-Man outfits isn’t enough for you, his exclusive tricks will be. Moves like Spidey Flip, Spidey Grind, and Does Whatever a Spider Can will treat players to tons of web-slinging fun.
8 Wolverine
Keeping with the comic book theme (because we all love them), THPS3 would feature an appearance from everyone’s favorite X-Men mutant, Wolverine. Unlike Spider-Man in THPS2, Wolverine didn’t have multiple costumes. What he did bring was a list of gimmicky tricks such as the Claw Drag and the Claw Punch.
While Wolverine wouldn’t be the last comic book character to appear in the franchise, he is the last on this list. Tony Hawk’s Underground’s inclusion of Iron Man was just as entertaining - also bringing a ton of special tricks and animations - but Wolverine definitely carried the torch in THPS3.
7 James Hetfield
Guest spots on Tony Hawk game rosters aren’t reserved for the Marvel Universe. Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater HD introduced legendary rock group Metallica’s frontman James Hetfield to the mix with its Revert DLC pack. As with Spider-Man and Iron Man in other installments, Hetfield featured special moves including an air guitar on his skateboard.
Fans of Metallica gained a lot from the Revert DLC, including bassist Robert Trujillo and the song "All Nightmare Long." While extremely targeted, this content pack definitely delivered for expecting fans. Love music but a bit played out on Metallica? No worries! There’s more music content later on in this list.
6 Darth Maul
Returning to THPS3 for a brief trip to the Dark Side. 1999’s Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace not only introduced a new generation to the Star Wars franchise: It introduced the world to Darth Maul.
The most hardcore Star Wars fans will debate Darth Maul’s character to the end of time. What they can’t debate is the greatness of his inclusion into this title. True to form, Maul had the Sith Saber Spin and the Force Grab.
The only question is how he skates so well with that lightsaber fired up?
5 Ollie the Magic Bum
Speaking of THPS3, one would be ill-advised to exclude Ollie from a list of awesome guest characters.
Beginning with THPS2 as an NPC, Ollie has appeared repeatedly throughout the series. While he has only been a playable character twice, Ollie always manages to make the game more interesting.
What really sets Ollie apart from other characters on this list is his appearance. Ollie is truly created in the image of a homeless person. Sporting ragged clothing and a skateboard made from two pieces of wood, Ollie’s unique appearance is something you won’t find anywhere else, and we really enjoy it.
4 Jango Fett
Remember when we listed Darth Maul earlier and didn’t mention his killer menu interaction with the shopkeeper? We knew you’d catch that. And as an apology, we’ll do another Star Wars entry. What could possibly compare to a Sith Lord in THPS3? A bounty hunter in THPS4!
Blasters, grapples, and jet packs? Oh my! Jango Fett’s portrayal in this game is flawless fun, and it is truly entertaining to use his Jango Jump Jet special. The Star Wars duo may be the most well-designed guest duo in the whole franchise. Both bring so much of their on-screen characters into this world while staying entertaining and consistent with the professional skating vibe.
3 Eddie
Remember when we said music fans would see another entry later? Well, here it is.
While Eddie isn’t a member of any band, he is the fictional mascot of the heavy metal band, Iron Maiden. As with the previous musical entries in this list, Eddie is accompanied by the hit song "Number of the Beast" by Iron Maiden.
While his portrayal in the game isn’t remarkable – it really resembles a plain zombie – Eddie features several special tricks which are themed around rock and roll, such as a stage dive trick and a headbanging grind playing air guitar. Add to that the fact that unlocking Eddie gives access to skate decks with various Iron Maiden covers and you have a definite winner.
2 Doom Guy
Who doesn’t love Doom? We certainly do. Apparently, we aren’t alone since he was included in the THPS franchise. Exclusive to the PC port of THPS3, players could unlock the main protagonist from the Doom franchise for their skating enjoyment.
As you’ve probably assumed, Doom Guy brings his own themed tricks. Cool. What you might not know is that he can be unlocked using the code “idkfa” in the cheat menu. Savvy gamers familiar with the original game might recognize this code as the same one which gives players every weapon in the original Doom. Nifty.
1 Daisy
We close this list with the one character we didn’t want to include at all. Why? Because she fits.
Rather than venture outside of the main series to include Gene Simmons for another music appearance, Judy Nails for another cross-title inclusion, or The Hand for another original entry, we end with another THPS4 entry in Daisy. Daisy is based on the real-life Jenna Jameson. Jameson provided voice-overs and a model for the character, as well as an inspiration for her provocative special trick set.
Almost everything about this guest spot is too inappropriate to explore in too much detail. What we will say is that if you’re wondering whether the inclusion was intentionally so, look no further than the cheat code used to unlock the character. We think you’ll find quite the chuckle.