Skater XL Reviews
Skater XL is a strong proof of concept but it’s currently incomplete.
Skate XL cleverly mimics real-life skateboarding, but the minimal amount of gameplay means it's only ever going to be for real-life skate fanatics.
Skater XL is the most realistic skateboarding simulator we've ever seen, but also the hardest. If you love skateboarding you'll probably enjoy it a lot (specially if you skate in real life), but if you don't, it's difficulty and barebones content won't seduce you.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
Easy Days Studios strived to achieve a great and realistic control system for Skater XL, and they nailed it. On the way to get it, though, they forgot to build a proper and fun game around it.
Review in Italian | Read full review
First representative of a lost genre in years, Skater XL will clearly disappoint those who hopes for dense content. Clearly focused on its core simulation mechanics, the game offers a true experience of what skating might feel, but lacks on every other level, with very few stages, a meagre soundtrack and many technical flaws.
Review in French | Read full review
Either way, it's a tough sell, but the reward for effort and perseverance is a good one, the bigger question: how committed are you?.
Skater XL at its core is decent fun, but its lack of worthwhile objectives and lacklustre performance sees it fail to stick the landing
In sum, Skater XL tries to fill a void in the world of skateboarding video games by offering a valiant blend of the familiar and innovative. The music and aesthetic are warm and welcoming to build a carefree experience for the player. The settings are bright, crisp, and appealing, but the controls and game layout that Easy Day Studios decided to embrace seems misguided. The freedom to explore and create your own lines may be liberating for some, but the lack of direction can leave players cold. Most sandbox games offer something tangible to work toward, to build, to interact with, etc. This same sort of goal isn't in Skater XL, which makes the experience feel blasé. While the game's website touts that there are no specific inputs for tricks as a selling point, this sort of freedom is a nasty combination of overwhelming and undefined. Games generally work when the player is either presented with goals to reach or a world to explore, but Skater XL doesn't provide enough of either to be a fulfilling experience.
Skater XL is a unique take on a market that certainly isn’t saturated.
Skater XL is a game full of good intentions, but not only is it completely devoid of content, but it’s also devoid of a community that was supposed to come up with new levels and assets for other players to enjoy. Sadly, I see no reason for people to give this game a shot nowadays.
In its current state, Skater XL is nothing more than an elaborate tech demo to show its gameplay potential. What's actually missing is the game itself.
Review in Italian | Read full review
Skater XL feels incomplete. There's not a lot of content, and the game is lacking a personality, a vibe to engage the player. In a year that has Skate coming to mobile, the Pro Skater games being re-released (again), and Session also working its way through Early Access, you should hold off on Skater XL.
Skater XL has promise as a platform but on console it still feels a bit too much like a prototype
Skater XL's exit from Early Access doesn't feel like a proper 1.0 release, with disappointing levels and a lack of polish letting its good trick system down.
Easy Day makes a valiant effort with Skater XL, but this game isn't a pro skater just yet.
I am a massive skateboarding game fan and wanted to love this game. Skater XL just does not have enough content to remain enjoyable for very long. The levels, characters and gameplay are dull and I find it very hard to get excited about it. I think it perhaps could be a good game in the future but I do not have that long to wait. Yes, it does have a unique control system and pulling off tricks is fun but we need more than that, as that can only take you so far. Move on people, there's little to see here.
Once you overcome Skater XL's learning curve there's some fun board-based entertainment to be had here. But this is a lightweight package with subpar presentation, and unless you're so deep into skater culture that you absolutely need a simulation for your PS4, we'd recommend either waiting for this to be updated – or pre-ordering Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 1 + 2 instead.
Skater XL is undoubtedly a very robust experience in terms of gameplay and probably the most sophisticated of its kind. However, it suffers from the lack of content, objectives and certain elements, in addition to having serious level design problems in the few available scenarios, still having a very raw collision system and a below average audiovisual construction, even for an independent production.
Review in Portuguese | Read full review
Skater XL is doing a great job trying to simulate real skateboarding as close as possible, but lack of content, modes and overall polish makes this game hard to stick to.
Review in Russian | Read full review
Skater XL has some great trick animations that prove the developer understands the sport and brought that experience to the video game medium. Sadly, nothing else holds up as the environments and playability fall apart the moment you realize there’s nothing to do. The game excels for those who enjoy creating their own fun, but for the price point, I cannot recommend a game that still feels like it’s in Early Access after game crashes and numerous bugs. Anyway, at least the soundtrack is dope.