Tony Hawk's Pro Skater was released for home consoles and handhelds in 1999, and it was met with critical acclaim. Simple, innovative gameplay, and level design, along with a great soundtrack also helped the game achieve commercial success. The team at Activision had a hit on their hands, and they quickly capitalized, releasing sequels in three consecutive years. In fact, the Tony Hawk series has been so popular that 2011 was the only year since the initial release that we have not seen a game involving the legendary skateboarder. Despite the popularity, the last few years have not been so kind to one of gaming's recent iconic franchises. Changing gameplay, poor peripherals, and a departure from series roots have led to a sizable nosedive in quality. Fortunately, Activision and developer Robomondo took last year off to reboot the series. The result is Tony Hawk's Pro Skater HD, a downloadable title set for release later this year.

Despite the name, this is not an HD remake of the original game. Instead, Activision has decided to take a collection of levels from the first two games and pair them with a brand new engine. The game will be played with a controller only, so the critically panned skateboard peripheral used for Tony Hawk Shred and Tony Hawk Ride will not be usable. Expect the game to play very similarly to the original entries in the series.

Confirmed skaters for Tony Hawk's Pro Skater HD include Hawk, Nyjah Huston, Chris Cole, Andrew Reynolds, Rodney Mullen, Eric Koston, and Hawk's son Riley. The famous Warehouse level from the original game was shown in the game's debut trailer; the Mall, Phoenix, Hangar, School 2, Marseilles, and Venice Beach will also be in the remake, with more levels likely to be announced at a later date.

Hawk's Pro Skater HD is set for release later in 2012, and it will be available through the PlayStation Network and Xbox Live Arcade for between $15-20.

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