As the name suggests,SkateBIRDis askateboarding gamethat puts players in control of a small bird. The game was released in September 2021 by Glass Bottom Games, launching on multiple consoles andMicrosoft’s Game Pass service, giving plenty of people the chance to play.
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Unfortunately for Glass Bottom Games, reviews of the game haven’t been too kind.SkateBIRDcurrently has three Metascores ranging between 51 and 63, while its user scores sink as low as 3.2. The game definitely has its issues, though there is still plenty to love for those who think that the bizarre concept sounds appealing.
8Loved: Creative Levels
One ofSkateBIRD’s most immediately apparent positives is the creativity of its levels. Reminiscent of theMicro Machinesvideo games, the levels put the tiny protagonist in seemingly mundane areas that have been turned into skateboarding levels thanks to the placement of common household items.
Players will grind laptops, ride up pizza boxes, and do flip tricks off laundry baskets on their way to completing missions.
7Didn’t Love: Generic Missions
Unfortunately, the aforementioned creativity doesn’t extend to the missions.SkateBIRD’smissions tend to consist of painfully generic goals, such as successfully landing a couple of simple grinds or collecting various items littered around each level.
This is a great shame, as one would expect a game with such an oddball concept to have more life and creativity in its missions. The missions aren’t exactly bad, they just don’t seem to have much effort put into them. It was perhaps the developers' intention that the game’s main gimmick alone would keep missions interesting, though this soon wears off (more on that later).
6Loved: Collectibles Encourage Exploration
Thankfully, completing missions isn’t all that players can do inSkateBIRD’s stages. The levels have a range of collectibles to find, encouraging players to fully explore each one.
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Unlike some games with collectibles,SkateBIRDgives players a good reason to find and collect them, as they provide new clothes, boards, and more for players to customize their character with.
5Didn’t Love: Frustrating to Control
It should come as no surprise that the way the playable character controls is by far the most important aspect of making a skateboarding video game. Consequently,this isSkateBIRD’s largest shortcoming, as players will often find themselves having to battle with the game to navigate their character on small platforms and through tight gaps.
The game doesn’t quite reach unplayable levels of poor control, though many players will be swiftly uninstalling it after just a few minutes, particularly those who downloaded it on Game Pass.
4Loved: Customizable Character
Before starting a new game, players have the chance to customize their character. There is a surprising amount of options available, with the species of bird, skateboard’s wheels, and clothing all able to be changed.
As mentioned before, players can unlock more customization options by finding collectibles dotted around the stages. This customization offers some purpose and objective to progressing in the game, which it severely lacks otherwise.
3Didn’t Love: Camera Issues
Unfortunately, the control issues aren’t the game’s only major shortcoming, as camera problems also plague Glass Bottom Games' release. Players don’t only have the janky controls to battle with, they also have to contend with a camera that seems to have a mind of its own.
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Like the controls, this issue is particularly prevalent when trying to navigate tight spaces, which can often make riding in a straight line seem like completing aSuper Meat Boylevel.
One of the game’s saving graces is that it lands in the bittersweet category of “so bad it’s good”. This tagline always seems like a brutal assessment, though truth be told, these games can often provide some of the most enjoyable andhilarious gameplayavailable, which is a major positive regardless of whether it’s intentional or not. Whether it’s failing countless of times to perform a simple grind or attempting to pull off bizarre challenges of the player’s own creation,SkateBIRDcan be the surprising source of laughs, particularly when playing with friends.
The “so bad it’s good” tag has made films likeThe Rooma must-see andgames likeSonic ‘06a must-play, so the categorization may not be so bad for Glass Bottom Games.
1Didn’t Love: The Gimmick Soon Wears Off
The concept of having a bird on a skateboard is a decent one on paper, as, beyond the obvious Tony Hawk puns, it will make extreme-sports fans wonder what kind of flying tricks they can perform. If done correctly, this could have madeSkateBIRDa genuinely intriguing and enjoyable sports game and brushed aside initial doubts that the gimmick is the game’s main attraction.
Unfortunately,SkateBIRDoffers minimal depth beyond its gimmick. The novel idea of a skateboarding game with a bird soon wears off when it becomes clear that, aside from being able to float for a few seconds, the game barely expands on its core concept in regards to gameplay.
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