As consoles come and go, each generation can safely say that it has a defining Skateboarding game within its repertoire. Over the years, skateboarding games have become a staple in the gaming industry with each console having a slew of them to choose from, and all of them following a similar formula. Session seems to break the mold by promising true realism in it’s simulator. On Xbox One, Creā-ture has recently released the test version of its game to gather feedback for the final product.

Gameplay

Session boasts a completely new control scheme that actually has quite the learning curve.  Akin to skateboarding in real life, the board is controlled by the movements of the skater’s left and right foot; therefore mapping each foot to an individual control stick.  This allows the player to control how the skater places their feet on the board to both skate and perform tricks. Upon first playing Session, the control scheme will result in a massive learning curve, especially if one is used to the mechanics of other games in this genre. Once players learn maneuverability and some basic tricks through the incredibly witty tutorial (more on that later), the preview opens up and becomes inherently free roam. While the control scheme can be a bit frustrating at first, overtime players should grasp the mechanics, allowing them to explore the available maps and attempt tricks with ease. If having each stick mapped to a specific foot is not desired by the player, the game now allows for the option to choose different control difficulties. The solution for this resulted in the addition of a legacy mode, in which the left stick controls direction while the right is used for tricks. In general, the realism offered by Session results in a game that is quite unforgiving and even a minor slip up can lead to a wipeout (without the pain at least).  Players may find this frustrating, but stepping away from the controller after a few bad falls can both mend their patience and pride.

Map Design

The preview of Session provides players with five highly detailed and interactive maps to explore and skate around in. Each is unique and has its own challenges and quirks that enhance the gameplay. One could spend a lot of time skating around the underground parking lot and find the immersion quite fun. Almost all of the objects placed around the maps are interactive, meaning that in order for a smooth skate, the player may have to ollie over the trash scattered throughout the New York streets. There is a lack of consistency though, as players will notice that there are some textures that don’t respond to plowing through them with the board as much as others that would normally cause the skater to bail.

Sound Design

It seems that Creā-ture spent a great deal of time working on the sound design and based on what is included within Session, they nailed it. The sound is reactive to the ground beneath the board and will change on a dime to reflect the material the board is running over, such as gravel, concrete or grinding on an iron rail.

Humour

One of the shining features of Session is the humour that the developers sprinkled into the experience.  The tutorial itself is witty in the way that people with experience in a good natured ribbing would love.  It adds nice moments of levity while the player struggles to learn the controls and more than a few times one may find themselves bailing on purpose to see how many insults and quips are coded into the tutorial.

Looking Forward

The current version of Session that is open to the public is actually quite fun, albeit frustrating in some ways. While the controls are innovative and really change the way that the game is played, they can very easily lead to a new player getting too frustrated to continue. While the legacy controls remedy that, the game can still be quite unforgiving with misaligned hit-boxes and deceptive litter textures.  However, once the player manages to get past the hurdles of realism, Session can actually be fun and it is very rewarding to nail tricks without rag-dolling through the aether. Since the game is still in testing, it is bound to change and morph as Creā-ture polishes it for official release. So in the meantime, maybe pick up a board and give it a shot.   Session was previewed on Xbox One. Check out our previous review of SpongeBob SquarePants Battle For Bikini Bottom Rehydrated for Xbox One.