Tony Hawk Ride: Are YOU going to like it?

You WON'T like Tony Hawk Ride if... you love your carpet

From what we've seen, there's a very real possibility that prolonged play could absolutely shag your pile. On the carpet we were playing on, using the skateboard controller really churned up fluff. We fashioned a little skater out of just *some* of the fluff we made. This is him:

We're not claiming to be carpet experts or anything, but logically we'd think that sustained and vigorous use of the skateboard on the same patch of carpet would, over time, have some detrimental, wearing effect.

You WILL like Tony Hawk Ride if... you like games that your family can enjoy together

That's what this is all about. Tony Hawk Ride has been very deliberately designed so that it welcomes all players, regardless of gamer status. The skating is incredibly intuitive and any person with working legs can step on the board, have a go and feel like they're pretty good at it.

Casual difficulty 'steers' the board pretty much automatically, so unskilled players - like your mum and dad or whoever - can concentrate exclusively on pulling off tricks that make them look like they know what they're doing. They will enjoy it and you'll probably enjoy watching them enjoying it. It's that kind of game.

You WON'T like Tony Hawk Ride if... the thought of spending £100/$120 on a skateboarding game makes you feel a bit sick

Based on our experience we've had with Tony Hawk Ride so far, there's absolutely no question that the board works fantastically well. It *is* gimmicky, but it's sturdy and responsive and it does a commendable job in its role as an input device. But it's expensive. Real expensive. We're talking £100/$120 expensive.

It feels even more expensive when you consider that - after a couple hours play and despite being a lot of fun - there's nothing about Tony Hawk Ride that suggests it's going to be anywhere near as good as Skate 2. And that's a game that you can pick up for around a third of the price and play with a conventional controller. Which is how we'd rather play a skateboarding game.

And there we have it. A whole load of factors that should help you decide whether Tony Hawk Ride is going to be YOUR kind of thing. It's not released until December, so you've still got plenty of time to um and ah before making up your mind.