The official title for the fourth game in the Skate franchise has been revealed, along with the unexpected news that the game is going free to play.
The fourth game in the Skate franchise is going free to play, and has also revealed that its official title is Skate. The much-anticipated skateboarding simulator has been in development for a long time, and fans have been treated to very sporadic updates since the work began. It wasn’t until earlier this month that Skate revealed its first proper gameplay footage, promising fans that despite the long delay, work on the game is still ongoing.
While official updates on Skate have been few and far between, a lot of gameplay footage has been leaked in recent months, giving skateboarding fans a more substantial, if illicit, look at the development of the title. These leaks have already revealed some substantial info on the game, including details on the game’s California-inspired setting, as well as footage of the title’s online multiplayer component in action. While the release date of the game is allegedly coming in the very near future, these gameplay leaks have provided a much more in-depth look at Skate‘s multiplayer and setting than anything EA has offered thus far.
However, a recent video from the skate YouTube channel has provided quite a bit of new information. Perhaps the most surprising revelation is that the new Skate game is going free to play when it launches, which will be a first for the franchise. The live-service element will probably be a boon to the aforementioned multiplayer, which has also been confirmed to have cross-play functionality across PlayStation and Xbox consoles, as well as PC. This reveal has also demonstrated that the game is still very early in development, which throws further doubt on the EA CEO’s claim that Skate‘s release date is coming soon.
The reveal that Skate is going free to play has been met with trepidation by some. Free to play games generally carry a stigma of being heavily burdened with microtransactions and pay to win mechanics that make it difficult for players to enjoy the game unless they’re willing to spend extra money on it. In-game microtransactions are arguably one of the most controversial aspects of the modern video game industry, to the point that some countries are introducing legislation to control and even ban such practices. Some games that include them have gone to huge lengths to monetize their titles; for instance, Diablo Immortal requires $110,000 to fully upgrade a single character. In the face of such overwhelming fees, it’s natural for fans to be wary of what Skate has in mind.
This early in development, though, it’s hard to say how Skate will turn out. If the core gameplay can capture what fans enjoyed about the previous Skate titles, then the microtransactions might end up being a relatively unobtrusive factor. In theory, going free to play will greatly expand the amount of players who’ll be able to give Skate a try. With no official release date in sight, only time will tell.
Source: Skate/YouTube
Peter has been playing video games ever since he was a child, pulling his chair up to the TV so he could hold the GameCube controller for Wind Waker. Video games have been a vital part of his life ever since. They’ve been an important piece of his academic career as well; at the University of Redlands, where he studied Creative Writing and Theater, he once submitted a philosophy paper on the video game Soma. Today, in addition to his freelance work for Screen Rant, Peter spends most of his time blogging, playing Dungeons & Dragons, and, of course, playing video games. He believes that video games are an important and oft overlooked medium for telling stories, as well as an excellent medium for having fun. His favorite video game is still Wind Waker, the one that started it all, and he credits the fun he had with that game as the reason he’s here writing for Screen Rant today.
