Skate into summer

OVERDUE REMAKES OF MORE TONY HAWK GAMES ARE AMONG THE TOP TITLES HEADING OUR WAY

- CHERYL MULLIN

JUNE has swept past in a blur, and the arrival of July means the sounding of the starter's pistol for the school holidays.

We've spent much of the month in a heatwave, trying to find quick and easy ways to cool down.

Apart from a few downpours, rain has been pretty scarce, and some parts of the country are even serving hosepipe bans.

The summer months also mean a bit of a drought of big name releases on the gaming front, and that dry spell is really starting to kick in.

But all is not lost, there are a handful of noteworthy games landing in the coming weeks.

Tony Hawk fans will be delighted with the arrival of Pro Skater 3 and 4, Lord of the Rings fans get Tales of the Shire and Monument Valley 3 makes its console debut.

Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3 + 4

(PEGI 12) PS4, PS5, XBOX ONE, XBOX X/S, Switch, Switch 2, PC Release: July 11

It’s been four years since the frankly brilliant remake of Pro Skater 1 + 2, which had me falling in love with the games all over again.

With the merger of Blizzard Entertainment and Pro Skater 1 + 2 developer Vicarious Visions, it fell to Iron Galaxy Studios to pick up the remakes of 3 + 4.

With a roster of 32 skaters, the biggest in the series so far, there are nine new faces and “special guest” skaters including Doom Slayer and a Revenant from Doom, and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle Michelangelo.