Alpha features of Skate 4 Playtest have been leaked online by early playtesters. The leak surfaced on Reddit and stated clearly that "This is from a very early state of the game," so the features provided are subject to change before the game's official release. This means all the features mentioned here are not to be taken as facts, just a general idea of what may be in store for Skate 4.
They mention that the playtest was still untextured, the same as during the recent showcasing of the trailer for the game. The game is currently running on the Frostbite engine, a game engine developed by DICE designed for cross-platform use.
One of the map sections testers could access was the "Fun City" map, which is described to be only a tiny portion of the larger map that will be playable after release. The test map is said to feature a mash-up of new areas and older untextured areas from the previous games, including the Community Center from Skate 1.
They also mention the use of bus stops as a means of fast traveling through the game, and all of the bus stops are shown on the map for players to locate them. Another interesting spot the testers mentioned is "The Space Store," which sports a giant sculpture of Saturn.
The testers also mention three different control presets currently available:
- Classic
- Streamlined
- Experienced
The testers speculate that these could be replacements for the difficulty settings and suit more playstyles than the previous games, ranging from ultra-realistic to arcade-style. There are also controls that are catered solely to PC players.
Camera angles also seem to come with two options, high angled and low angled, which are easily switched by pressing the right stick. It is worth mentioning that this would be the first time in the Skate series that players can choose to push the sticks, quickly turning it off if they no longer wish to use the feature.
The testers currently compared the Career Mode to Tony Hawks Proving Ground, where followers have meaning. The Career Mode is centered around skating, creativity, and sharing. The tester also mentioned they believe they were playing the online version of the career mode and that there might be a different but similar experience hidden from testers as it is still being developed.
As with the other games in the Skate series, mainly Skate 2, emotes will be brought back. At this time, it is unknown whether or not the characters will have their dialogue during cutscenes. The testers mentioned that while the players have voices, they can only say things related to the emotes during the playtest, such as "cheers."
There appear to be craftable items in-game as well, since the tester mentioned crafting material and blueprints are available for skate park items. Assuming there is a crafting element, one can imagine the in-game currency earned by completing challenges and objectives and finding collectibles would be a way to purchase these blueprints and materials. The testers also stated that the currency could be used to purchase customization options such as clothes. The tester also mentioned the ability to buy frames and stickers that can be used on the player's skate videos, with the most liked content showing up on billboards.
The gameplay has been described as more fluid than the game's predecessors, where the tester states, "Ragdoll physics are more ragdolly compared to Skate 3 where the ragdoll physics were really stiff."
They mention a possible spectator mode where players may get teleported to different locations to view in-game events. They do note they hope this is more of a passive thing, so other players can't just run rampant and throw off other players attempting to land tricks.
While the release date of Skate 4 still hasn't been released, the leaks show that the game is headed in the right direction, and there will most likely be more leaks to follow. Those who would like to read the playtest in its entirety can do so here.
