A personal reflection on the now-Olympic sport that evolved from a misunderstood subculture.
When I was growing up in Canada in the 90s, skateboarding was perceived as being for troubled youth, misfits and rebels. It felt like a crime (and was outlawed in many places). As I headed into my first year of high school, I remember being warned by my older neighbour not to skateboard on campus or I’d get my ass kicked.
Fast forward to 2015. Skateboarding reentered my life when Snowman connected with Daniel Zeller from Agens, an Oslo-based design agency, to talk about a skate game they’d been working on. After connecting over our mutual love for skateboarding, we ended up deciding to collaborate on what would become Skate City.
Now, in 2021, skateboarding is coming to the Olympics for the first time in history. The sport has made its way into the mainstream in pop culture, fashion, advertising and as a means of transportation for everyone from teenagers on their way to school to distinguished bankers on Wall Street (or Bay Street in Toronto). The 2020 Tokyo Games feel like the final stamp of approval for the sport, and if you ask us, it’s been a long time coming.
We’re really excited to be part of this in some small way and, with travel to the Games being inaccessible because of the global pandemic, we hope Skate City Tokyo can offer a way for people to feel part of the action from the comfort of their home.
Skateboarding has shaped much of who I am. I started skateboarding when I was in grade six or seven, first teaching myself how to ollie on the carpet flooring in my parent’s basement. I remember it taking forever to crack just that one trick, but after mastering it I made progress quickly. It was the repeated failure, repetition and ultimate gratification of landing a trick that has stuck with me as I’ve grown older. I’ve learned that failure is not just something that might happen along the way — it’s a necessary part of success.
Around this same time, Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater came out and I fell in love. Not only did the game energize me about the sport (and indirectly teach me a few new moves), it was my first real taste of music beyond the radio or listening to my parent’s favourite tracks. I didn’t own a PlayStation, but I was able to visit a friend’s house, dive into the game and discover new music. Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1 was truly the first time I discovered my passion for music and had the desire to build a collection of my own.
While Skate City’s soundtrack is wildly different from the one in the THPS games, music has always been extremely important to us when we were working on the game.
Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater also had a big influence on the Alto series. When we were working on Alto’s Adventure, we picked up an old PlayStation 2 and THPS 1, 2 and 3 to play for research. Much of the trick combo system in the game is inspired by the Tony Hawk games. Jordan (the co-founder of Snowman) and I spent much of our younger days playing the series into the wee hours of the night. It’s definitely one of my fondest childhood memories.
Skateboarding has become such a popular trope in product marketing as well. Apple often uses skateboarding when showing off a new iPhone’s camera system or a new way to edit videos. It’s made its way into fashion, music, film and television, and has been welcomed all around the world. Skateboarding is no longer for misled youth (Misled Youth is a great skate film though, and one of my all-time favourites growing up) — it’s for women, for children, for men, for the abled and disabled, the young and the old, the rich and the poor — skateboarding is truly for everyone, no matter your age, background, profession or the colour of your skin.
And with that, I wanted to leave you with a trailer for our biggest update to Skate City yet: Tokyo.
Ryan is the Co-Founder & CEO of Snowman. Follow him on Twitter (@)ryanacash.
