Skater XL, SkateBird, OlliOlli For Nintendo Switch: Where's Tony Hawk?

Today the folks at Nintendo announced the release of Skater XL for Nintendo Switch. That's the third notable skateboarding game for the handheld/console gaming system – the first of which game out well before the console itself. This console would be perfect for the likes of the most fantastic skateboarding video game of all time, Tony Hawk Pro Skater. So where is it?

The game Skater XL is the closest game yet to Tony Hawk Pro Skater for the Nintendo Switch. This game includes real human skateboarding characters, it's got tricks, it's got an over-the-shoulder third-person view, it would seem ideal. But it's still not Tony Hawk. This game is scheduled for release in July 2020.

The game OlliOlli is certainly interesting. It's very blocky – side-scrolling, and definitely made to be capable of working on multiple platforms. This is a mobile game, if ever there were a mobile game made for mobile devices, and there's a version with advanced gameplay called OlliOlli: Switch stance! But it's definitely not in the same realm as the original Tony Hawk.

Then there's SkateBIRD, a masterpiece of an oddity of a game. It's got a bird in the title, but don't be fooled! It's not Tony Hawk. Instead, it's easily the most awesome skateboarding bird game ever made. This game was also released in the year 2020 for Nintendo Switch.

Look at that masterpiece! Now, if only we could get the original Tony Hawk Pro Skater, or Tony Hawk Pro Skater 4, to the Nintendo Switch. That's the dream. We've been playing Tony Hawk on a PlayStation emulator on the original handheld NVIDIA SHIELD for the past 7 years, so don't even begin to tell me it's not possible to get that game here on the Nintendo Switch. Somebody's holding out!