With “Tony Hawk’s Underground 2,” it is
impossible to ignore the old adage, “the more things change;
the more they stay the same.” And therein lies the crux of
the problem with Activision’s sixth installment in the
venerable series. Despite all of the glossy updates and slick new
moves, the basic gameplay has remained virtually unchanged since
the original — which isn’t necessarily a bad thing.

So, what is new in “THUG 2?” Basically, the
developers changed the story mode. It now centers on a competition
between Tony Hawk’s team against skateboarder Bam
Margera’s team in an effort to cause as much chaos as
possible around the globe — think a standard episode of
MTV’s “Viva La Bam.” Whereas last year’s
edition focused on the meteoric rise of a user-created skater, this
game panders to the “Jackass” crowd.

While the gross-out humor tends to turn the game more into
“Bam Margera’s Pro Skater,” the levels and
challenges remind players of the older games in the “Tony
Hawk” series. Moreover, in a nod to traditionalist fans out
there, “THUG 2” features a “Classic”
gameplay mode. Classic strips the game down to its
two-minute-challenge roots, but uses the new levels and abilities.
Don’t worry, if the player wants the full effect of
nostalgia, then he can return the game to its original moveset,
removing moves like manuals or reverts.

The greatest strength of “THUG 2,” and the
“Tony Hawk” series in general, lies in its tight
controls. “THUG 2” sticks with the tried-and-true
formula, but still finds room to make a few additions. While
neither the sticker slap, nor the Nayas spin revolutionize the
gameplay like “THUG’s” caveman, they do offer
slight alterations. Of those two moves, the sticker slap most
easily fits into the combos that make “Tony Hawk” games
so memorable.

Aesthetically, the visuals are on par with “THUG,”
but don’t really appear that much changed. Yet, the
soundtrack is upgraded significantly, featuring nearly 60 licensed
songs as diverse as Johnny Cash, Frank Sinatra and Rancid. Whatever
the player’s musical preference, the songs in the game should
adequately suffice.

Though the series is showing its age and limitations,
“THUG 2” is incredibly fun and addictive. Hardcore
“Hawk” fans will be hard- pressed to not spend hours
finding every gap and hitting every line. However, “THUG
2” will not bring in new players who didn’t appreciate
other entries in the series.