Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3 + 4 came out in July 2025 to a lukewarm 68% positive rating on Steam, and the criticism is consistent: the two-minute run format got cut back, some parks feel rushed, and the create-a-park tools didn’t ship at parity with the 1+2 remake. If THPS 3+4 isn’t scratching the arcade-skating itch, seven other games on PC will.
We split this list between the two schools of skateboarding games: arcade-style score attack in the Tony Hawk lineage (SkateBIRD, OlliOlli World, Skate City, Rollerdrome) and physics-first sims that took over the genre when Tony Hawk went quiet (Skater XL, Session). One outlier, Riders Republic, mashes skating into the extreme sports melting pot.
Quick comparison
| Game | Best for | Free demo | Starting price | Standout feature |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Skater XL | Physics-based street skating | No | $19.99 | Each thumbstick controls a foot |
| Session: Skate Sim | Hardcore realism | No | $39.99 | Both feet, both hands mapped independently |
| OlliOlli World | 2D arcade skate platformer | No | $29.99 | 130+ hand-drawn levels |
| SkateBIRD | THPS-style with birds | Yes | $19.99 | Miniature parks made of desk clutter |
| Riders Republic | Mass-multiplayer extreme sports | No | $19.99 | Bikes, skis, wingsuits alongside boards |
| Skate City | Bite-sized mobile-style sessions | No | $14.99 | Fast tutorial, quick runs |
| Rollerdrome | Skate + third-person shooter | No | $29.99 | Kill enemies mid-trick |
Why people move on from Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3+4
Player complaints across Steam, r/THPS, and skateboarding forums line up.
Runs feel shorter than 3+4 fans remember. The original THPS 4 dropped the two-minute timer for open-park objectives. The remake reverses that, and long-time fans miss the exploration style.
Create-A-Park is scaled back. Some assets and features from THPS 1+2’s tools didn’t carry over. Custom-park sharing works but the library is thinner.
Music curation split fans. The soundtrack pulls new artists into the mix, and while some tracks land, the deep-cut punk backbone that made THPS 3 iconic doesn’t hit the same.
PC performance is inconsistent. Reports of frame stutter on mid-tier GPUs, especially at 4K.
Each pick below solves at least one of these.
Skater XL — Best for physics-first street skating
Skater XL rewrote the skateboarding genre in 2020 by putting each foot on its own thumbstick. Once your thumbs learn the input, tricks feel earned instead of buttoned. The base game ships with real spots (Downtown LA, Grant Park, Hawaii) and mod support turns it into a bottomless well of user parks.
Where it falls short: No goal structure, no career mode, no lines to beat. You have to bring your own reason to skate. Learning curve is steep enough that some players bounce off in the first hour.
Pricing:
- Paid: $19.99
- vs THPS 3+4: cheaper; completely different control philosophy
Migrating from THPS 3+4: Zero muscle memory transfers. Budget 3-5 hours of practice before it clicks.
Download: Steam
Bottom line: Pick Skater XL if you want to feel the difference between a bad heelflip and a clean one. Skip if you want structured objectives.
Session: Skate Sim — Best for hardcore realism
Session: Skate Sim goes further than Skater XL. Both feet on the sticks, both hands on the triggers, real weight shift, real speed. Session teaches by frustration. When you land your first switch tre-flip, it earns a genuine reaction. San Francisco, NYC, and Philly street spots are the campaign spine.
Where it falls short: Punishing input scheme, uneven camera in tight spots, and animation stiffness in some tricks. Bail physics are unforgiving. This is not a pick-up-and-play game.
Pricing:
- Paid: $39.99, occasionally on sale
- vs THPS 3+4: pricier; the deepest skate sim on PC
Migrating from THPS 3+4: None. Session actively fights arcade muscle memory.
Download: Steam
Bottom line: Pick Session if you want skating to feel like the real thing. Skip if you want to have fun in the first thirty minutes.
OlliOlli World — Best for arcade skate combos in 2D
OlliOlli World dumps 3D physics for a 2D side-scroller and keeps the score-attack DNA of THPS intact. Levels chain flick-tricks, grinds, and wallrides into 30-second run-ends. Hand-drawn art, 130+ levels, and a soundtrack that’s easily the best on this list. Score attack, speedruns, and daily leagues extend replay well past the campaign.
Where it falls short: No 3D exploration or park skating — it’s on-rails-ish by design. Some players want more variety in gimmick mechanics.
Pricing:
- Paid: $29.99, with two paid expansions
- vs THPS 3+4: comparable base price; different genre entirely
Migrating from THPS 3+4: The combo-chaining brain transfers directly. Controls are simpler.
Download: Steam
Bottom line: Pick OlliOlli World if you loved chaining lines in THPS and want that reflex-attack loop without physics fuss. Skip if 2D turns you off.
SkateBIRD — Best for THPS-flavored charm
SkateBIRD is the closest thing to a THPS clone in tone. You skate as a tiny bird through parks built out of desk toys, cereal boxes, and office clutter. Combo, grind, and manual mechanics lift straight from Neversoft’s playbook. It’s shorter and rougher around the edges than THPS 3+4 but a fraction of the price.
Where it falls short: Physics are floaty, and the framerate can chug in dense scenes. Content runs light — expect 4-6 hours to see everything.
Pricing:
- Paid: $19.99, free demo on Steam
- vs THPS 3+4: half the price; smaller game
Migrating from THPS 3+4: Controls are the closest match on this list.
Download: Steam
Bottom line: Pick SkateBIRD for a THPS-shaped weekend at half the cost. Skip if you want polish.
Riders Republic — Best for extreme sports variety
Riders Republic mashes skating with mountain biking, skiing, snowboarding, and wingsuit gliding into one open world. Skate is a smaller piece of the pie than in dedicated skate games, but the massed-multiplayer races (up to 64 players at once) are unlike anything on this list.
Where it falls short: Skateboarding is not the main event — biking and skiing get more love. Grind mechanics and cash-shop cosmetics irritate some players. Ubisoft account required.
Pricing:
- Paid: $19.99 base, plus DLC seasons
- vs THPS 3+4: cheaper on sale; multi-sport instead of skate-only
Migrating from THPS 3+4: Trick vocabulary transfers loosely.
Download: Steam
Bottom line: Pick Riders Republic if you want extreme sports variety and 64-player mayhem. Skip if you want a pure skate game.
Skate City — Best for quick pick-up sessions
Skate City started life as an Apple Arcade game and it shows in the pacing. Sessions are short, controls are simple, and the vibe is more mood than mission. Los Angeles, Barcelona, and Oslo neighborhoods look like they were drawn for a phone screen and stretched up. The soundtrack is lo-fi hip-hop territory.
Where it falls short: Depth is limited. Trick vocabulary is smaller than any other pick. Career mode is thin.
Pricing:
- Paid: $14.99
- vs THPS 3+4: much cheaper; much smaller game
Migrating from THPS 3+4: Adapts fast. Tutorial takes 20 minutes.
Download: Steam
Bottom line: Pick Skate City if you want a chill 20-minute session before bed. Skip if you want depth.
Rollerdrome — Best for skate + shooter
Rollerdrome is the wildcard. Third-person shooter on rollerskates, cel-shaded, one player against arenas of enemies. Kill combos rely on maintaining trick meter, so tricks and gunplay feed each other. It’s the most original take on skate mechanics released this decade.
Where it falls short: Short campaign (6-8 hours). Not for players who want plain skating without the violence.
Pricing:
- Paid: $29.99, often 40% off
- vs THPS 3+4: comparable; genre mashup instead of pure skating
Migrating from THPS 3+4: Trick chaining logic is familiar. Shooting layer is new.
Download: Steam
Bottom line: Pick Rollerdrome for a short, sharp, completely different take. Skip if guns and skating don’t sound like a good mix.
How to choose
Match the pick to why THPS 3+4 didn’t land for you.
Pick Skater XL if you want skating to feel physics-real without going full Session hardcore.
Pick Session: Skate Sim if you’re chasing the deepest sim on PC and don’t mind bleeding for it.
Pick OlliOlli World if the combo-chain brain is what you loved and you can accept 2D.
Pick SkateBIRD for the closest tonal match at half the price.
Pick Riders Republic if extreme sports variety and massed multiplayer sounds more fun than another park.
Pick Skate City for a phone-shaped skate session on a big screen.
Pick Rollerdrome if you want something genuinely new that respects your existing THPS reflexes.
Stay on THPS 3+4 if the fantasy of skating iconic 3D parks with a punk-adjacent soundtrack is the exact thing you want. Nothing on this list captures the specific THPS feel.
FAQ
What is the best Tony Hawk alternative on PC right now?
Skater XL for physics-based skating, SkateBIRD for the closest tonal match, and OlliOlli World for arcade combo-chaining. Which one wins depends on what you liked about THPS.
Is Skate 4 (EA’s Skate) worth waiting for?
Skate 4 is in early access as a free-to-play game and its early access is still gated by an EA account and Skate. sign-up. If you want to play skate-flick-controls today, Skater XL and Session already fill that space.
What is the cheapest skateboarding game on PC?
Skate City at $14.99 and SkateBIRD at $19.99 are the cheapest picks that still deliver skate-focused gameplay. Both go on sale regularly.
Do any of these games have online multiplayer?
Riders Republic has 64-player extreme-sports races. Skater XL and Session support server-based multiplayer sessions. THPS 3+4 has cross-platform online for up to 8 skaters.
Which game has the best soundtrack?
OlliOlli World gets consistent praise for its curated original soundtrack. Rollerdrome’s is close behind. THPS 3+4 leans on a mix of new and nostalgia tracks.
