REVIEW Skatebird (Switch), Wings Clipped
Skateboarding is fundamentally cool. Skating is a cool sport. All of the equipment that goes with it — the pad, helmet, pads, and helmet — is cool. As every teen knows, it’s not easy to be cool, but it’s easier to appear cool than actually to learn how to skate.
Skateboard is a charming and charismatic bird who knows how to look the part. Skatebird’s miniature skateparks are adorable and charming. You have a wide range of customization options and costumes for your birds. There is also a vast selection of bird breeds available. This puts you in the center of a toybox. More items are unlockable within the game.
Skatebird’s soundtrack is a highlight. The first tracks are great “lo-fi beats for skating to” spot. Additional unlockable tunes allow you to change the pace by adding ska or punk tracks from bands like We Are The Union, Illicit Nature, and Grave Danger. These secret cassette tapes can be found in Skatebird’s five parks and are extremely rewarding to unlock. A button is available for screaming. This can be very entertaining.
These charming facets of Skatebird serve as an ancillary story to the main story. The protagonist bird teams up with his feathered friends to save his human owner (or Big Friend) from his horrible job. He must feel so alone because he is unable to spend time with his bird friends. This is an amusing explanation for why the birds are skating on a roof. While players would likely have accepted the idea that birds like to shred, it’s interesting that there is a narrative behind the idea.
