This Tony Hawk Pro Skater documentary will have you feeling like a Superman

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The documentary will track the rise of skateboarding from subculture to mainstream

Watch the trailer for Pretending I'm a Superman: The Tony Hawk Video Game story, and try not to get hit with the nostalgia bus. Go on, try it.

The documentary, produced by former Neversoft employee Ralph D'Amato, will tell the story of how skateboarding culture almost disappeared in the 90s before exploding onto the mainstream. Its rise can be directly attributed to the X Games, Tony Hawk, and of course, Tony Hawk Pro Skater. 

Pretending I'm a Superman (a reference to the Goldfinger song of the same name that was featured in Tony Hawk Pro Skater 1) will premiere on February 29 at the Mammoth Film Festival. There will be a panel discussion with Ralph D'Amato and the rest of the team behind the documentary, Swedish filmmaker Ludvig Gür, and pro skaters Rodney Mullen and Tony Hawk. And yes, the official THPS cover band, The Downhill Jam, will be performing at the afterparty. Honestly, I'm sad I can't be there, but you can still buy tickets if you're interested. 

The first THPS came out in 1999, and I can remember the Warehouse level vividly - you'd start facing a massive glass wall, break through it, and drop into a room built for shredding. I'd always pick Elissa Steamer, as she was the only woman skater, and spend hours trying to run a perfect circuit through the Warehouse, eventually learning the lyrics to every song on the soundtrack. 

If all this has you feeling nostalgic, congratulations, you're human. And while it doesn't look like there are any more Tony Hawk Pro Skater games on the horizon (or Skate 4, for that matter), you can check out Session, which will debut on Xbox One later this year. 

If you're curious about Crea-ture's skateboarding sim, check out our Session preview. 

Alyssa Mercante
Alyssa Mercante
Former Features Writer

Alyssa Mercante used to be a features writer at GamesRadar+ and is now a freelance writer and editor. Prior to entering the industry, she got her Masters's degree in Modern and Contemporary Literature at Newcastle University with a dissertation focusing on contemporary indie games. She spends most of her time playing competitive shooters and in-depth RPGs and was recently on a PAX Panel about the best bars in video games. In her spare time Alyssa rescues cats, practices her Italian, and plays soccer.