Skating games have seen a resurgence recently. Games like Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1+2 Remaster, The Ramp, Session, and SkaterXL have brought skateboarding back into the hands of gamers. Skatebird (stylized as SkateBIRD) does things a little bit differently and has a surprising amount of heart to it.

In SkateBIRD, you play as a skateboarding bird, who is saddened by the fact that his human (known as the Big Friend) has stopped skateboarding and spending time with them. The human’s life has been bogged down by things such as work and various adult commitments, but you plan to change that. You and your bird friends plan to use the power of skateboarding to help your human.

Gameplay is simple in theory but more difficult in practice. You control your bird on a skateboard, traveling around Skate Park areas made out of things like straws, cardboard, staplers, tape, and more. You can pull off all sorts of tricks, similarly to other popular skating games. Your speed is tied to the “FANCY” meter, which fills as you pull off tricks without falling off your board. Certain obstacles can only be traversed with a higher fancy meter.

As you play, you’ll have a variety of quests to undertake, such as finding your human’s phone charger. These quests can be timed and usually involve skating to a specific point, which may require you to master grinding or some other skill in order to reach the item or thing you need. Grinding is particularly tricky since you have to carefully balance while maintaining momentum.

In truth, I’m not the most coordinated player. However, the developers added a slew of accessibility options that allow you to bind multiple actions/tricks to the Ollie button, which makes it easier to execute certain tricks. The controls themselves aren’t super complicated, but for people (like myself) that may not have super fast reflexes, I could see some folks struggling.

The accessibility options are vital though because, between that and the options to make the text more easily read, I think a lot of different types of players could enjoy this game. As you progress through the levels you can get new outfits and music to customize your experience. The music was made specifically for the game and has a Hip-Hop Lo-Fi-type feel to it.

The outfits are all super cute and allow you to personalize your bird to whatever your style is. You can also choose multiple different bird species, to really nail your custom skateboarding avian friend. I might not be very good at Skatebird, but that doesn’t mean I don’t know a fun, wholesome experience when I see it.

If you love Skateboarding games such as SkaterXL, The Ramp, Session, or the old-school Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater games, then I think you’ll find a lot to love in Skatebird. Besides, who doesn’t want to see a bird do sick tricks on a skateboard?

A Nintendo Switch review copy of SkateBIRD was provided by Glass Bottom Games for this review.

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SkateBIRD

$19.99 USD

8.5

Score

8.5/10

Pros

• Cute Concept
• Lots of Customization and Unlockables
• Plenty of Accessibility Options
• Great for Hardcore Skating Fans

Cons

• Controls are Complex Without Accessibilty Options
• Might not be Beginner-Friendly