Skate Story Reviews
Skate Story is a unique experience. It is a video game that accepts the risk of being misunderstood in order to remain faithful to its vision. It requires the player to tune into its language and not vice versa. But once this small obstacle has been overcome (with a simple Ollie), Sam Eng's work manages to engage with surprising naturalness, revealing a rare coherence between the author's intention and the sensory response. More than a game to be “finished,” Skate Story is an experience to be tried. It is a work that speaks of movement, fragility, and silent resistance. And it is here that Skate Story fully reveals its nature as a lesson in resilience. Not heroic or decisive resilience, but one made up of attempts, falls, and imperfect restarts. A resilience that does not eliminate pain, but teaches us to live with it, to adapt to it, to keep moving despite the constant possibility of breaking. A title that teaches that the journey is important, not just the destination. That you have to grit your teeth and keep going with tenacity, even when the ground seems to be falling away beneath your feet. And it is precisely in this precarious balance between form and feeling that Skate Story finds its most authentic strength.
Review in Italian | Read full review
For the long development this game took, Skate Story is indeed one of the most eye-catching games to come out in 2025. While it’s not for everyone as it’s story is a bit overwritten that doesn’t really add up and the controls do have a bit of a learning curve. It’s visual style, presentation and fluid gameplay makes this ride a worthy trip, even it’s just a one way road into the underworld. And again, that soundtrack is AMAZING!
Skate Story was not made to meet the typical standards of a skating game. It doesn't give you a choice, limits replayability, and resists mastery fantasies. What it does offer is a link between the theme, the physics, and the mood. Instead of viewing skateboarding as a sport, Skate Story views it as a theory.
Skate Story is easily one of Devolver’s best published titles in a few years and exactly the kind of game I want to see more of with its sublime aesthetic, brilliant music, and amazing feel.
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Review in German | Read full review
Skate Story is a visually striking and emotionally resonant skateboarding adventure set in a surreal demon realm. Blending expressive gameplay with philosophical storytelling, it challenges players to master a unique trick system while navigating a poetic narrative. Though its structure and controls demand patience, Skate Story rewards persistence with unforgettable style and substance.
Skate Story stands out with its surreal, visionary style, turning a repetitive genre into something unique. Despite some technical flaws and lack of localization, Sam Eng’s game impresses with its gritty aesthetics, eclectic soundtrack, and bold fusion of gameplay and narrative. A wild, poetic journey—challenging for some, but a hidden gem for those seeking something different.
Review in Italian | Read full review
Skate Story presents itself as a sensory work about movement, fragility, and rebirth, delivering much more than a simple skateboarding experience. By uniting poetry, precise physics, and a deeply immersive aesthetic, the game transforms falls into learning experiences, slips into contemplation, and each maneuver into a moment of emotional release. Its surreal atmosphere, marked by dark scenarios, introspective music, and powerful symbolism, reinforces the feeling of undergoing a ritual of self-discovery. Even with occasional limitations, its narrative and symbolic strength remains intact, leaving the player with the feeling of having participated in a personal and transformative journey.
Review in Portuguese | Read full review
Skate Story is an evocative game that combines skateboarding mechanics with a unique audiovisual experience. Its music is perfectly integrated with the gameplay, enhancing every trick and every line with emotional charge. The skateboarding is responsive and forgiving, but still offers some challenges for those who seek them. A must-play for fans of skateboarding games, artistic indie titles, or simply those who appreciate when music and gameplay blend together harmoniously, Skate Story is an experience to be savoured.
Review in Italian | Read full review
After so many years, Sam Eng proves to live up to the very high expectations and signs a unique, deep and radically unusual game.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
The game combines poetry, a surreal setting, precise mechanics, and a unique art direction, delivering an adventure that completely breaks away from the conventional.
Review in Portuguese | Read full review
From beginning to end, Skate Story is a fantastic experience. The great narrative premise, a charming list of characters, beautiful visuals, a brilliant soundtrack, and addictive gameplay strike the right balance between style and substance. While I wish there was more content to experience once the credits roll, I will never forget the time I spent with Sam Eng's near-masterpiece.
Skate Story focuses on how skating feels moment to moment, putting speed, control, and line choice ahead of flash or structure. Its strange underworld setting stays mostly in the background, giving you room to learn runs through repetition and quick restarts. Boss encounters and chapter progression add direction, even if extra modes and content are limited. When everything clicks, it delivers a focused experience built around motion, rhythm, and staying upright at full speed.
Skate Story is weird, confident, and completely committed to its vibe. It doesn’t care if everything makes sense, as long as it feels right — and more often than not, it absolutely does.
Sam Eng creates a modern version of Pinocchio, with a giant centipede instead of a whale and a skateboard under his feet.
Review in Italian | Read full review
Skate Story dazzles with a style and confidence that set it apart from ANYTHING else in the skateboarding genre. Sure, the controls can take getting used to and there are a few little missteps, but these are small blemishes on an experience that’s consistently thrilling, gorgeous, and packed to the brim with skateboarding goodness. With its surreal world, hypnotic presentation, and thrilling sense of skateboarding style, Skate Story manages to feel really, really special. And hey, what a year 2025 has been for skateboarding fans… it’s wonderful.
Skate Story combines strong gameplay, visuals, and audio into a cohesive, memorable experience. Minor issues in the storytelling and small gaps in visual polish keep it from perfection, but overall it’s highly recommended.
Skate Story is a mesmerising blend of fragility, speed, and surreal art, carving out a space unlike anything else this year. Its demanding mechanics can frustrate, but its emotional depth and visual brilliance more than reward persistence.
Skate Story delivers an incredibly unique perspective into the mind of a skater’s journey to perfecting their favourite tricks. As a skater myself, I couldn’t have found it easier to connect to the campaign’s challenges that it throws at every turn.