I think some people at some point their 20s will find themselves living with a great bunch of (maybe random) friends. One of the great things that happens in these scenarios (certainly to me at least) is being introduced to new things; for me this was the PS2. Ok that could have been more exciting, but coming from a computer and PC gaming background, I hadn't really touched on consoles since the heady days of the SNES, so meeting the black obelisk for the first time was an eye-opener!

My flatmate's taste in games converted me pretty quick, especially when he brought home Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3. I think it's safe to say I spent a considerable amount of time refining tricks and combos and "helping" unlock as much as possible, as well as solidifying our friendships and ruining them as much as possible within the space of hours by constantly one-upping high scores. (At least you know who was better in the end MM, right?).

The revelation of the "graffiti" multiplayer in particular lost us a fair few late nights, and the addition of wide open spaces with actual NPCs blew my tiny 90s based gamer mind (oh how things change!). The "revert" also allowed insanely long and high scoring combos to be chained together (and by all accounts changed the way the game played for the better).

So, in celebration of the game's HD remaster, and our upcoming event at the Spit and Sawdust skate park, here are 3 facts about related to the game that you probably (almost, maybe) didn't know...

1. The game featured a slew of secret characters (rumours have it at 67!), but my particular favourite (and not well known at the time) was the guy from Doom! Also known as "doomguy" (no seriously).
   
2. In addition to secret characters, every level had a "secret area" that you could discover. But there were also a few hidden goals and in-jokes scattered around the game, including the ability to start an Earthquake in "LA" by grinding 4 rails that will end up destroying the bridge!
3. Remember the gruesome and brilliant Neversoft logo? Well, Neversoft went onto the Guitar Hero series (and the Tony Hawk's series arguably went downhill), the studio was sadly shuttered and merged with Treyarch for some dumb reason. As a result they had a cermonial burning of a giant eyeball!
   

So, why don't you come along to our Spit and Sawdust event and check out the greatest multi-player skateboarding game ever and come and try and argue with me if you think I'm wrong? (I'm not - you are). In the meantime, I'm going to find out how to revert in real life and see if I can chain together a giant combo of walking, sitting, eating and playing some more THPS3.