Review: Dragon Ball Z – Ultimate Tenkaichi (PS3)

After the debacle that was last year’s Tony Hawk: RIDE, Skate 3 seems to be poised to become the new difinitive skateboarding title on the consoles.  From the “on the ground” camera to the slick controls, Skate 3 looks to own the genre.  Now we have a date for the retail release of Skate 3, and it will be May 11th, 2010.

Not content with resting on its laurels, Skate 3 boasts an impressive roster of professional skaters, Jason Lee is now here as “Coach Frank”, teaching you the ropes, and a ton of new courses for your skateboarder to tame.

I for one have loved the Skate series.  I think the controls give me a feeling of pulling off tricks on the board.  The controls are simple to pick up, but take time to master, adding to replayability.  That was my biggest fault even today with the Tony Hawk series, which is that it was way too easy to pull off super hard board tricks with button hammering.

Check the jump for screens and a presser.

Team up and Throw Down in SKATE 3 on May 11th

The Ultimate Cooperative Skateboarding Game Takes Players to a True Skater’s Paradise

REDWOOD CITY, Calif., Mar 17, 2010 (BUSINESS WIRE) — Black Box, an Electronic Arts Inc. studio (NASDAQ:ERTS) announced today that SKATE(TM) 3, the latest installment in the award-winning franchise, will be in stores in North America on May 11th, 2010 and worldwide on May 14th, 2010. Redefining the skateboarding experience, SKATE 3 breaks new ground by letting gamers build their ultimate skate team both offline and co-operatively* to take on new challenges or competitive battles against other teams.

“Since the very beginning of the Skate franchise, we have captured the true essence of skateboarding, be it from the feel of nailing that perfect trick, to the feeling of just hanging out and sessioning with your friends,” said Jason DeLong, Senior Producer. “For us, SKATE 3 is the culmination of this endeavor – the most connected, accessible and social skateboarding experience yet.”

In the all-new Skate.School, Coach Frank acts as a mentor and teaches newcomers the ropes by showing them all the ins-and-outs of skateboarding as they hone their skills on the sticks before hitting the streets with their team. Veterans will also feel right at home in Skate.School as they refresh their skills but also learn all the new tricks SKATE 3 has to offer including darkslides and underflips.

Gamers can hit the streets with the pros in the all-new city of Port Carverton – a true skater’s paradise with unique districts, skate parks, and endless lines. For fans with a creative flair, the new Skate.Park editor allows gamers to create their own dream plaza or mega-ramp park from scratch or use the Object Dropper to alter the landscape of Port Carverton to truly change the face of the city. In the end, SKATE 3 delivers a completely immersive and connected experience, giving gamers the tools to build and share their own skate parks, videos, and photos with all their friends by uploading them directly from their console or importing custom created graphics & logos from the Skate website*.

SKATE 3 features a deep roster of the world’s greatest skaters including several Thrasher Skater of the Year winners.

Andrew Reynolds, John Cardiel

Benny Fairfax, John Rattray

Braydon Szafranski, Josh Kalis

Chris Cole, Lizard King

Chris Haslam, Lucas Puig

Colin McKay, Mark Appleyard

Dan Drehobl, Mike Carroll

Danny Way, P.J. Ladd

Darren Navarrette, Pat Duffy

Dennis Busenitz, Ray Barbee

Eric Koston, Rob Dyrdek

Jason Dill, Ryan Gallant

Jason Lee (as Coach Frank), Ryan Smith

Jerry Hsu, Terry Kennedy

Joey Brezinski

SKATE 3 will be available on the Xbox 360(R) video game and entertainment system and the PlayStation(R)3 computer entertainment system. The game is rated “T” for Teen by the ESRB and “16+” by PEGI. More information can be found at www.skate.ea.com, become a fan on Facebook at www.facebook.com/skate, or follow us on Twitter @ Hippyjump.

* Internet connection and EA account required.

About Electronic Arts

Electronic Arts Inc. (EA), headquartered in Redwood City, California, is a leading global interactive entertainment software company. Founded in 1982, the Company develops, publishes, and distributes interactive software worldwide for video game systems, personal computers, wireless devices and the Internet. Electronic Arts markets its products under four brand names: EA SPORTSTM, EATM, EA MobileTM and POGOTM. In fiscal 2009, EA posted GAAP net revenue of $4.2 billion and had 31 titles that sold more than one million copies. EA’s homepage and online game site is www.ea.com. More information about EA’s products and full text of press releases can be found on the Internet at http://info.ea.com.

EA, EA SPORTS, EA Mobile, POGO and SKATE are trademarks of Electronic Arts Inc. Microsoft, Xbox and Xbox 360 are trademarks of the Microsoft group of companies. “PlayStation” is a registered trademark of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.