Skate It for iOS

Skate It is the handheld version of the popular EA game Skate that most will recognize from console versions. On the iPhone, your control system includes using the accelerometer to turn your skater, a couple of buttons for kicking and grabs, and various swipes of your finger to pull off tricks. Having played the console games quite a bit on the Xbox 360, we were amazed at how many of the original locations are available on the iPhone version. The graphics are predictably not as good as on console versions of Skate, and older 3G iPhones may struggle to keep up at times, but Skate It still manages to look and play (mostly) better than other skateboarding games in the iTunes App Store.

Skate It comes with 20 locations, which all will be familiar (though a little watered down) to those who have played the console version. Each of the areas are unlocked by completing challenges in Career mode, which usually require you to pull off specific tricks so a magazine photographer can get a good shot. Getting tricks just right is often the most challenging part of the game, but thankfully there is a trick library that shows how to do all the various grabs and flips required to complete challenges.

Like many games of this type on the touch screen, you'll long for a real joystick for some of the more complicated maneuvers, but most should be able to get the control system down after about an hour of playing. Overall, if you like skateboarding or have played Skate on consoles, Skate It offers a ton of locations, a unique and effective control system (with practice), and plenty of challenges to keep you coming back for more.