If you still have your old PSP in a drawer, charge it up. If you don’t, grab an emulator. The streets of Moscow, the ramps of Tampa, and the secret tapes are waiting.
There are certain moments in gaming history that feel like magic. For many of us who grew up in the mid-2000s, one of those moments was realizing you could take Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater on the bus. Not a watered-down mobile port. Not a 2D sidescroller. But the real deal—full combos, secret tapes, and Jackass-style mayhem—all on Sony’s PlayStation Portable (PSP). psp tony hawk
The gameplay was buttery smooth at 60fps—a feat for a handheld in 2005. You could still get off your board, do vehicle levels in a shopping cart, and destroy levels with the "World Destruction Tour" mode. For many PSP owners, this was their first taste of true console-quality portable gaming. The PSP version of Project 8 was a technical marvel. While it lacked the seamless open world of the PS3/Xbox 360 versions, developer Shaba Games (later Page 44 Studios) built a bespoke experience. It introduced the “Nail the Trick” mechanic (slow-motion flip control) to handhelds and featured streamlined versions of classic levels. If you still have your old PSP in a drawer, charge it up