Tony Hawk's Underground breaks free from the traditional Pro Skater formula, injecting a story-driven campaign where you rise from a local unknown to skateboarding legend. The game offers extensive character customization, a massive, interconnected world to explore, and a wealth of goals to tackle. While some of the story beats can be cheesy, the focus on creating your own skater and exploring a skater's world provides a refreshing change of pace in the franchise. Tony Hawk's Underground offers a satisfying mix of classic arcade-style challenges and open-ended exploration.
So much of who I am as a person has been shaped by this game. From the really incredible story for a skateboarding game from '03, to the impeccable soundtrack, to the freeflowing gameplay loop that could still keep me hooked for hours on end, I am in love with this game. I love this game so much I speedran it for a while and I was actually pretty good at it.