Cruisin' and Vibin'

OlliOlli World is a blast!

Hello there, my bodacious reader! Allow me to take you back in time to the far-out land of 1999. Let us meet in ye olde Blockbuster video to peruse some “choice” movies and video game options. Woah! Check out this dope new game about skateboarding, it says here that it’s called…Tony Hawk's Pro Skateboarder. Yoooo, let’s get some Lunchables, crank up some Mighty Mighty Bosstones and head on over to my place. My parents got the big tv in the living room and they won’t arrive for another hour!

Alright, enough of the stereotypical “skater” lingo. If you grew up in the 90’s or early 2000’s and had a PlayStation, chances are you played a demo or even owned a copy of the first Tony Hawk game. And you loved it,because it made you feel like the coolest kid in the world to be able to land sick tricks on the half-pipe. Grind the longest rails on the course and catch sick air off the ramps in order to get the high score and show off to all you friends during recess. It was truly one of the best games to come out on the console (Playstation) enough to make people not just want to become better at the game. But even motivate others to pick up a board for the first time! THPS (Tony Hawk’s Pro Skateboarder) became a household name and a must have for everybody looking to have a great time with family and friends. 

As the years went on, the franchise grew larger than anticipated and had many sequels, spin-offs. It even changed up the gameplay formula here and there to keep things fresh for returning players of the series. However, as with most series that lived past their prime, it died off and skating games were barely being made.

Enter Roll7, british video game developer based in London. They were at first known for creating educational video games on a contract basis.They later created their own intellectual properties in 2012. And in 2014 they created the first in their own line of skateboarding games: OlliOlli. Having received mostly positive reviews, it gathered an almost cult-like following on the indie game scene. Known for its simplistic yet difficult to master controls, OlliOlli was a two dimensional, side-scrolling arcade game that just oozes style. 

After becoming a cult hit in the indie scene, a sequel was released. 2015 saw OlliOlli 2: Welcome to Olliwood flip its way to digital shelves. Hopping right off the success of its predecessor, Welcome to Olliwood brought new courses, tricks and more lofi to grind some rails too. Unfortunately, it was pretty much the same game as the original. Though it had generally positive reviews, it just felt like more of the same for me. To the point where both gaming experiences bled into the same one in my head. This of course dampened the hype of returning players including myself, but little did we know Roll7 was hard at work on a third entry in the series.  

The 6 year wait was well worth it when a trailer for OlliOlli World was shown during a Nintendo Direct that put emphasis on indie titles coming to the Switch. Gone are the days of looking like a Newgrounds flash game, this time the developer went all out and brought out its new hyper-pop style with more lofi that you can shake a struggling writer in a coffee shop at. The new aesthetic was inspired by “comic books and another cult classic video game: Jet Set Radio” said J. Ribbins the creative director over at Roll7.

Does the game have a plot? Surprisingly, yes it does! 

You are a rookie skater who wants to become the next Skate Wizard. What is that you may ask? Think Aang from the Avatar; you would essentially be the medium between the mortal skater and the realm of the skate Godz. Yes, there are skate Godz (Yes, that’s how it’s written). And they look incredible! You meet up with the current Skate Wizard and her crew as they take you under their wing across all Radlandia to become the best skater around, and hopefully the next Skate Wizard. Along the way, you’ll be able to meet a colorful cast of characters; ranging from local skate punks to weightlifting seagulls. 

I think the most fun one will have; apart from skating around a colorful world full of surreal visuals and characters, is customization. That’s right! You ever fantasize about being a blue dude with a pink mohawk and flowy sundress? A beach bum with a viking helmet? Or skating around in a full bumblebee suit?! Well guess what? You absolutely can, my dude! Though admittedly, at first the selection looks like the sales rack from a Pacsun or a Vans store, which can be a bit underwhelming. But as you start to clear levels, beat high scores and smash some challenges the selection of gear gets to some truly wild things.

The gameplay is similar to the previous games in the series. You push off your board with one button to pick up speed and use the left analog stick to do some sick flips. Grinding, manuals and wallrides are also tricks you can perform with the left stick. The right stick though is reserved for grab moves, which can be performed when going up a half pipe or if you have big enough airtime. Now even though it sounds simple to control and it is, that does not mean it is easy to master. Some challenges require almost complete mastery of certain tricks to complete them, otherwise you bail and have to restart the level. One of the newer additions to gameplay is the ability to change paths: meaning that if you see an alternate path[gnarly route] on a level, you can take it. Consider it the hard mode of the level since it has more obstacles and opportunities to perform longer combos if you’re bold enough. 

Yeah, yeah yeah, but is the game fun?

Short answer: yes.

Long answer: YYYYYYEEEEEEESSSSSSS

Ok, no more goofs. The game is a blast to play: from the high speed jumps to the oh-so satisfying rail grinding, this is the type of experience you can have while winding down from a day at work or school. The game [Olli Olli World] promises a dope time from start to finish and if you’re like me; it will make you go down the skate media rabbit hole all over again. The colorful characters may be at times a bit too “hand-holdy” yeah, I came up with that, but they add to the fantasy of the world. Radlandia [the overworld] is a vibrant and surreal landscape that just begs to be thrashed by sick tricks and kickflips. The backgrounds have an almost “Adventure Time” feel and it rules! From beaches overrun by ice cream, muscle-bound seagulls that cheer for you, giants roaming the lands while tip-toeing over houses and a colossal tree called Thicc Mary, the world is both inviting to the player and imaginative enough to get lost in. 

The sound design deserves a shout out for how incredible it feels to get swept up in the auditory landscape the developer offers the player. From the crisp, almost ASMR sound of your wheels cruising the pavement. To the satisfying click that tingles when you land the perfect run. If “skateboarding asmr” ever was a thing, the sound design team nailed it for this title.  

OlliOlli World is a platforming skateboarding game that explodes with the old school feel of the THPS [Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater] games and a personality all its own. Customization feels fantastic to the point where you can choose how to start your run on a course; and how you look in the online lobby. When it comes down to the challenge aspect of the game, it goes on a steady rise to the point where when you fail a course or bail on a trick, it never feels like the game is punishing you. Instead it feels more like it’s pushing you more and more, the deeper you are in the courses. 

The version I had the pleasure of playing was for the Nintendo Switch. And, not to brag but it feels so dope to just take the console with you, put on your headphones and vibe out for a quick skate session. (Plus you just feel cooler and happier playing this game on a handheld, instead of doom scrolling on your phone). If ever you need a quick serotonin boost or are looking for a great skateboarding game. Look no further than OlliOlli World! This game is available now for Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S. 

*The images used in this article are not owned by me. They are the intellectual property of Roll7 and the creative team behind OlliOlli World.*