I’m on a boat. 

Have you ever wondered what a bear looks like on a jet ski, firing a gun, pulling a heel flip, while set against a Miami Vice-esque hotel backdrop?

Well now you can find out!

Wavebreak published by Funktronic Labs takes everything you loved from the original Tony Hawk Pro Skater franchise and puts it on water. 

Aesthetically, the game looks stunning on Nintendo Switch. The water mechanics are breathtaking and the Miami Vice vibe is in full force. The locations are diverse from a beachfront hotel to the streets of an evening downtown, there’s plenty of places to perform tricks. There’s traditional half pipes and pools, but also palm trees to grind up. Everything is trickable here, and mastering the diverse locales is essential to finding all the secrets. 

The music is one of the best parts of the game. The soundtrack is so smooth and really gives the game a noir jazzy electronic vibe. It helps you maintain your sanity when you fall off your boat again and again—and again. 

All Hands on Deck

Tony Hawk on water wouldn’t be complete without sick decks—I mean boats. You’re in a boat. Each character rides a little motorboat. This essentially functions as your skateboard. Character Customization could be deeper, but you can make your character naked--so there’s that. 

True to the Tony Hawk Underground mechanic, you can also dismount from your boat and run around the levels... that being said there isn’t many reasons to do this. When you get shot—yes you shoot in this too— you’ll fall off your boat and have to run to it to retrieve it. This is only annoying for a brief moment. But there’s nothing more frustrating than working for a combo and having your Alligator opponent mow you down with a speedboat sidearm. Those hard earned points become blood splatters on the pavement. 

An "M" For All Seasons

The game may look cartoony but it’s rated M for a reason. The dialogue could be out of Grand Theft Auto and the story based mission dialogue always put a smirk on my face. Without spoilers, I will say one of the coolest features is that environment is affected when completing missions. It was impressive to watch a level grow and develop which made me want to work a little harder to complete objectives.

As previously mentioned, literally everything you remember from THPS is transposed here in Wavebreak. Even frustrating missions... There’s the expected find the secret tape sections of course, but the combo point based objectives are screamingly difficult. Further, occasional frame skips or minor performance issues plagued some of my attempts, and I almost threw my controller, which would be bad considering I plat handheld a lot. Three pieces of technology would have been destroyed. 

Performance wise, the graphics were buttery smooth and I really can’t tell you enough how much I adore the water physics in this title. 

Online multiplayer is very fun. I loved competing with another real person for a high score. This is when the gunplay comes in... and it’s such a welcome edition to an established formula. A well timed shot can decide a game. When your opponent is better than you, stay close and trick out by them. Knock out their combo from under their pedals. Further, going online helps you play new levels faster, as you’re stuck in the same one until you mail all of the objectives in the location. 

Combo Mambo

One gripe I have in a game all about nailing combos is some of the boat and water physics. While I firmly understand that boats don’t run as precisely on water as skateboards do, I wanted gameplay to be a little easier to get used to. Funkatronic actually recently released a very welcome control layout for players to look at. When I first picked up the game I had no idea how to play... as a THPS veteran, I thought that was weird. Controls and movement are very hard to get used to, and that poses some frustration when all you want to do is unlock the next arena size level... but you’re stuck trying to nail 75 000 points in a rigid time frame. 

Overall

All in all, I added Wavebreak to my library to continue to fill the new THPS game void in my heart. Turns out that rather than fill it, it made a space of its own! While controls and gameplay are definitely not easy to pick up and play, once you got the hang-10 of it, you’re sailing...

With that I must say that Wavebreak is a mostly enjoyable experience on Nintendo Switch. If you’ve been craving that arcade classic THPS experience, with a fresh take on the genre, then this is for you. At a $39.89 CAD price tag (I’m Canadian by the way everybody) I’d say the content is worth the price. While difficulty level is definitely a factor in enjoyability at times, a challenge is a good thing right? Maybe I’ll catch you on the waves, and thanks for reading my review.

*This review was originally posted on Stadiasource.com, which I am honoured to say I was a reviewer on the team there. 

Now that Google Stadia ceases to exist, it was adapted for this website.