Tony Hawk’s Downhill Jam, or THDJ, is a video game released in 2006 and 2007 on the PS2 version. Tony Hawk's Downhill Jam is a spin-off in the Tony Hawk's series. The game was a launch title for Nintendo's Wii, and is also available for the Nintendo DS, Game Boy Advance, and PlayStation 2.
As a departure from Neversoft's Tony Hawk games, Downhill Jam emphasizes gaining speed and racing opponents, as well as competing for high scores and completing goals.
Wii and PS2 versions[]
The version of Downhill Jam for Wii was developed by Toys for Bob, developer of Disney's Extreme Skate Adventure and the game adaptation of Madagascar. The PS2 version was developed by SuperVillain Studios.
As in older Tony Hawk’s games, there are game modes for high scores and completing goals, but a high-speed racing mode is also included. Tricks are used in part to reach secret and alternate routes, although revert and manual tricks are absent from the game. This formula is similar to that used in the SSX series of snowboarding games. There is a multiplayer mode with four players competing head-to-head in split screen. While online play was announced within early development, the final version of this game does not include online play.
The Wii and PS2 version of the game are near identical. The Wii version uses motion controls for steering, while the PS2 version uses a more traditional control scheme. It also features three exclusive characters: Fang, Victor, and Skylar.
Downhill Challenge[]
The Wii and PS2 versions of Downhill Jam feature a single player mode called "Downhill Challenge". The story to this is Tony Hawk who puts on an event where Tony and friends tour around the world to compete in a series of downhill skateboarding competitions such as:
- Race - A two to five player racing competition downhill. First player to get to the finish first gets a gold mark, second gets a silver mark, and third gets a bronze mark.
- Slalom - A one or two player slalom where the objective is to get to the finish line before time expires, with the only way to earn more time is to hit a blue "slalom gate".
- Trick - a one to four player skateboarding trick session where the objective is score as many points as possible by doing skateboard tricks, with the only way by earning more to is to hit a "TIME" checkpoint.
- Elimirace - a two to four player race that consists of the time clock counting down, with the last player being eliminated from the race once the time hits zero.
- Steal the Head - only playable in Multiplayer Mode, a two to four player race downhill with the leader who has the lead, has a head on their character's body, the other characters appear headless if they are not in the lead.
- Special - a one player miscellaneous event only playable in 1-player mode, that can consist of players destroying things or even knocking out pedestrians.
Locations[]
- San Francisco, California
- Hong Kong, China
- Edinburgh, Scotland
- Machu Picchu, Peru
- Rio, Brazil
- Rome, Italy
- The Alps, Switzerland
- Chicago Mall, Illinois
Characters[]
Pro Skaters[]
Fictional Skaters[]
- See main article, Downhill Jam Characters.
Nintendo DS version[]
The Nintendo DS version was developed by Vicarious Visions, who gained much experience with the Tony Hawk franchise by adapting almost every previous version for GBA as well as Tony Hawk's American Sk8land for Nintendo DS.
The DS version has six tracks, each four times larger than a typical level from Tony Hawk's American Sk8land. The DS version has a similar character set to the Wii version, as well as the ability to create a character and customize his or her appearance, stats, and special tricks.
The DS version maintains a traditional Tony Hawk control scheme, and much of the same trick set from Sk8land. However, flip tricks can now be held like grab tricks, reverts are eliminated, and the bert slide has been optimized for downhill racing. Additionally a combo buffer has been implemented. When a combo is broken, the player has a few seconds (a buffer) to start a trick again and save the combo. The player is allowed 20 buffers per combo, making the maximum score of 100 million points per combo still difficult to obtain.
Tony Hawk's Downhill Jam for the DS does not support online play anymore as the servers are not being supported anymore.
World Tour[]
The story mode to Tony Hawk's Downhill Jam on the Nintendo DS is called "World Tour", in its story, Tony Hawk and the Custom Skater recruit other characters into Tony's skateboarding crew and compete against a rival crew run by Antonio Segul. During the World Tour, the player has the option to change characters while playing the story mode. In most levels, the player is basically trying to prove Tony Hawk's crew worthy and racing against Antonio Segul's crew.
Locations[]
Characters[]
Pro Skaters[]
Fictional Skaters[]
- See main article, Downhill Jam Characters.
GBA version[]
The GBA version of the game was developed by Visual Impact. It is a 3D racer where the player aims to win a championship race in each location. Additionally, there are score attack and Challenge modes which allow the player to unlock additional clothing options and tricks.
GBA Locations[]
- Hills of San Francisco
- Steps of Morocco
- Castle of Edinburgh
- Rio de Janeiro
- Tour of Rome
- Vail Mountain
- Lights of Hong Kong
- Ruins of Machu Picchu
- Montmartre
- Hawaii
Gallery[]
See also[]
External links[]
- Tony Hawk's Downhill Jam on IGN
- Tony Hawk's Downhill Jam on GameSpot
- Tony Hawk's Downhill Jam review on IGN
- Tony Hawk's Downhill Jam video review on IGN
- Tony Hawk's Downhill Jam review for the Wii on GameSpot
- Tony Hawk's Downhill Jam review for the DS on GameSpot
- Tony Hawk's Downhill Jam review for the GBA on GameSpot
- Tony Hawk's Downhill Jam review for the PS2 on GameSpot
Tony Hawk's Game Series |
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Pro Skater • Pro Skater 2 • Pro Skater 3 • Pro Skater 4 • Underground • Underground 2 • American Wasteland • Project 8 • Proving Ground • Pro Skater 5
Downhill Jam • Motion • Ride • Shred • Shred Session Pro Skater 2X • Underground 2 Remix • American Sk8land • Pro Skater HD • Skate Jam • Pro Skater 1 + 2 |