Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3+4 has finally shredded its way across all major platforms. Particularly for Nintendo Switch 2 owners, this release is a rather exciting event, considering it’s the first major third-party game to arrive day-and-date with other platforms. The team over at Iron Galaxy has treated this port with great care, as it proves to be an impressive showcase for Nintendo’s new hybrid, even when held up against the mighty PC edition of the game.
From pixels to pavement
Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3+4 is not an overwhelmingly demanding package considering its levels, while fairly large, are still condensed enough to not be a massive feat to render. Even so, the port for the original Nintendo Switch is in a whole category of its own when it comes to the concessions that have been made to get the remake running on that aged hardware. Meanwhile, its successor brings an experience that’s far more similar to all the other platforms, including the all-important 60 frames-per-second parity.
That said, putting the Switch 2 edition head-to-head with the PC version exposes some of the cutbacks that have been made in order to get it so close to the other console releases.
For this comparison, the PC version was captured running with DLSS for Anti-Aliasing and also the DLSS Super Resolution module set to “DLAA”. All other settings such as Texture and Shadow Quality, were set to a mix of “High” and “Highest.” On Nintendo Switch 2, the game was running docked in TV mode to a 1080p monitor. The game also outputs at 1080p. At launch, no visual settings can be modified with this version of the game.
Flowing through The Foundry
Of course, the most appropriate starting point is the very first level—The Foundry.
Right off the bat, the texture quality looks very comparable between the two. I did notice a few differences in the ground details, such as minor changes to certain floor textures and assets. Yet, for the most part, everything is basically the same. Shading quality is even comparable, as the visual details remain pretty consistent throughout each section of the level.
The biggest difference in this level between the two versions is actually a rather small one—a relatively tiny change in the use of special lighting effects. Set at night, there’s not much outside lighting that’s pouring into the rooms of the Foundry. But, the vibrant god rays from the moon’s illumination coming through the windows that’s present on PC are absent on the Switch 2.
Small is it may be, it is a rather surprising omission, considering that other special effects such as the intense flames, sparks and heat blur coming out of the various machines around the room look practically similar between the two versions for the most part.
The second-biggest lighting difference can be seen by standing near molten pot at the middle of the level. It generates a brighter level of volumetric light on PC. It’s not a major difference, but noticeable once you stop and take a closer look.
Already, this first round is a pretty good showing from the Nintendo Switch 2, at least in my opinion. While the subtle lighting ommissions on Switch 2 are somewhat dissapointing, the fact that it stacks up so well to the PC edition in basically every other area is impressive. Even the shadow quality remaining intact is a good sign.
The hot metal and sparks in here aren’t quite pleasant to keep smelling. So, let’s get some fresh air out in the streets of San Francisco.
Ollies on the bay
The sun-soaked streets of this new version of THPS4’s San Francisco offer quite the vibe. This also happens to be the tutorial level.
Once again, the difference between the Switch 2 and PC editions are rather negligible here. The near blinding-intensity of the sun is mostly the same across both platforms, with shading also being equal. Everything is wrapped in the hue of golden hour, which always tends to look good no matter the game.
Skating out towards the waterfront, however, the differences start to become more apparent. At the edge of the Pier, looking out into the distance offers a slightly different scene depending on the platform.
While both versions include an animated powerboat racing along the water, the Nintendo Switch 2 edition lacks the plentiful number of static yachts that are present on PC.
A similar difference can be observed over by the Rusty Sea Horse building. Out in the distance lies the monolithic Golden Gate Bridge, complete with even more yachts out on the water. Again, those yachts have been removed on Switch 2, along with the lack of a fruit stand right next to the building and a flock of animated birds above that’s present in the PC version.
At the risk of seemingly trying to cover for the Switch 2, I must comment on how minor these differences are from a gameplay standpoint. These scenery elements certainly do add some depth and vibrancy to the level, making it feel more lived in. But, seeing as they’re just decorative, you’ll hardly notice their omission when playing on Switch 2.
These were likely removed to save on system resources. Every object is more polygons on-screen, which need to be rendered, textured, lit and shaded. By culling them out, this helps to keep the frame rate stable. Of course, it’s mildly dispiriting to see such seemingly inconsequential items get axed, but at least the gameplay isn’t impeded.
Thankfully, there aren’t any other big differences anywhere else in the level. For instance, the fountain with the half pipes towards the centre includes similar puddles across both versions.
The Nintendo Switch 2 is allegedly ray-tracing capable. Though, we have yet to see it implemented in any games, and that remains true for this situation. The puddles on display here are likely just screen space reflections, while less realistic, are less demanding and get the job done just fine. This is especially true for such a relatively simple scene like this.
Seeing that we’ve already gotten a little wet here, we might as well carry on to our next destination.
Sparking up the Waterpark
Not every level from the original Pro Skater 3 and Pro Skater 4 have made it into the remake. So, to make up for it, Iron Galaxy has developed three originals; Waterpark being one of them.
It’s a very dense level with a lot of interesting features and scenery elements. Even the theme of an abandoned waterpark being taken over by skaters is a very cool concept.
Right from the jump, the differences between the two versions remain minimal. At first glance, they’re practically identical.
But, some pixel-peeping of these first pair of shots revealed to me that the old carpets off to the left appear slightly more jagged on Switch 2. This suggests a reduced poly-count. Once again, an example of minor resource management at work. There are some negligible differences to some of the ground textures, but the actual texture quality remains comparable overall.
Moving just a little further into the park, again, things remain consistent between the two. One other incredibly minor difference I noticed is that there’s a beach ball that you can bounce around on PC, but it’s not present over on Switch 2. A flock of seagulls above the park are also missing. Object culling is clearly again being implemented, just as it was back in San Francisco. It’s almost a little humorous how seemingly simple elements that one would expect to have near zero impact on performance apparently do have an effect.
Now that we’ve had some fun in the sun, it’s time to see what a ‘night out on the town’ looks like.
London fog
Not only is it quite the variation of scenery from the last venue, this remake’s rendition of London from Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 4 is also quite different from its original version. Now set at night, it’s filled with city lights and neon signs. It offers a stark change in atmosphere compared to the original, and is a good example of the healthy mix of different themes that the whole remake consists of.
That said, here’s where we spot one of the most striking differences between the Nintendo Switch 2 and PC versions of Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3+4.
On PC, the level has a pretty pleasant touch of volumetric fog. It gives the whole scene a misty, light blue hue, as the city lights filter through the moisture in the air. It’s a relatively realistic effect, all things considered. Meanwhile, on Switch 2, the fog appears to be entirely absent.
No contest—the Nintendo Switch 2 loses some serious style points in this comparison. The lack of the fog effect sucks colour and life out of the scene, leading to a more murky, drab appearance.
Sure, fog is not always present in real life, so one could think of this as just a different in-game night altogether. But, that’s not how the game is built. There’s no dynamic time of day or weather. Even NPCs and scenery elements are scripted, so their movements are basically 1:1 when playing side-by-side.
Nevertheless, overall scenery details remain pretty decent across both versions. However, I personally can’t overlook the lack of volumetric lighting. Rolling towards a row of streetlamps, the stark contrast is once again made apparent as the PC version features some very pronounced lighting effects that are completely absent on Switch 2. Oh, and a trash can has gone missing, too.
Going back to the aforementioned details about The Foundry, the lack of god rays in that level were easy to forgive. A nice touch, but a small one, making their absence less weighty. Here, it would’ve been beneficial to see concessions made in other areas if it meant maintaining at least a similar effect.
Putting visuals aside, one final point of comparison that hasn’t been covered yet is that of load times. From the main menu to the “College” level, the PC version downloaded to an SSD loaded in 10 seconds. On Switch 2, with the game installed to a MicroSD Express card, it took 30 seconds. A big difference in comparison, but not ground-breaking.
Close calls
Despite our jot through London proving to be a bit dreary, the fact that still remains is the Switch 2 edition of Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3+4 is a pretty competent port.
There are clearly some caveats, but Switch 2 players still have access to an overall beautiful remake that breathes new life into two early-2000s classics. With the level selection consisting of a lot of different environments, times of day and weather conditions, there are an array of scenes to admire. But, the small selection of levels we examined today give a pretty good sample of the game’s overall visual identity.
Considering that the Switch 2 is still a mobile-first device, even the idea that it gets so close to the PC edition of this game is mightily impressive. Again, the port to the original Nintendo Switch, while pretty decent in its own right, is still miles behind every other version.
Thus, even if Switch 2 is your only means of playing this remake, you’re getting a pretty polished pass to do so.
On that note, crossplay with other platforms is supported for online multiplayer; the fact that it continues to play at 60 fps is a big benefit for that, along with the single-player campaign.
Curiously, despite prompting you to log in to your Activision account upon first boot, cross-saves are not currently supported. Even more curious, I could only log in to one instance of the game at a time.
Of course, you won’t typically be trying to play the game from two devices at once, but for the sake of doing this comparison, I was playing side-by-side to try and line-up my shots. I had to disable my laptop’s Wi-Fi and play offline in order to accomplish that. It’s a shame that cross-saves are not yet supported to allow the option to hop into a few sessions while on-the-go, and then enjoy a higher visual fidelity while at home.
Nevertheless, Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3+4 stands as a solid early third-party outing on Nintendo Switch 2. The burgeoning hybrid has many years ahead of it, and promises to deliver a much more comprehensive visual experience than that of its predecessor.
We know it’s not nearly as powerful as other modern home consoles, but this port is a strong example of how it’s shaping up to be “the little handheld that could.”
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