Skate or Die!
Encyclopedia
Not to be confused with the Law & Order
episode "Skate or Die
"
Skate or Die! is a skateboarding
game released by Electronic Arts
in 1987 for the Sinclair ZX Spectrum, Commodore 64
, Atari ST
, Apple IIgs
, Amstrad CPC
, and IBM Compatibles running MS-DOS
. It was ported to the Nintendo Entertainment System
(NES) by Konami
, and published by Ultra Games
. In 2007, the NES version was re-released for Nintendo
's Virtual Console
service in Europe
(excluding France
) and Australia
. The Atari ST
conversion was contracted to CodeMasters
, who contracted Kinetic Designs to do the work.
In the style of the Epyx
"Games" series, players can compete in five different skateboarding events, either individually or sequentially. When the events are challenged sequentially, up to eight players could sign up to participate. The original Commodore 64 version was created by Michael Kosaka, Stephen Landrum and David Bunch. This group of programmers had previously been at Epyx and worked on the early "Games" titles.
The game featured two ramp events - the freestyle ramp and the high jump, two downhill events - the downhill race (in a park setting) and the downhill jam (in a street setting), and the pool joust. The pool joust, downhill jam, and the downhill race (in two player mode only) were all head to head, while the ramp events were single player. Except for the joust, which was a hand-to-hand knockout competition (literally and figuratively), all of the event winners were decided by a point system.
Two characters were featured in Skate or Die!: Rodney Recloose, a wild man with a purple mohawk and a Marine Corps
tattoo (and a facial resemblance to comedian Rodney Dangerfield
) who runs a skate shop in the game, and his son Bionic Lester, an even wilder kid with a green flattop, who you were able to take on in the joust and the downhill jam. In the joust, Lester and his two cronies await the skater. Poseur Pete challenges beginners and Aggro Eddie takes on intermediate players, leaving Lester with the advanced pros.
The game was well liked with players on both the computer and console sides, and inspired a winterized sequel in Ski or Die
in 1989 for the C64, Amiga, Atari ST, PC and NES, and a true sequel, Skate or Die 2
in 1990, a NES-only game. Ski or Die
retained the multi-event format while Skate or Die 2 veered into "adventure" territory; both games featured Rodney and Lester as key players.
The C64 version of Skate or Die! was also well liked for its introductory music, a highly catchy rock-flavored tune with digital samples that took full advantage of all of the SID chip
's capabilities. Composed by Rob Hubbard
, one of the world's foremost game music composers, it has become a popular tune among modern fans of SID music and remixers of such tunes.
#132 by Hartley, Patricia, and Kirk Lesser in "The Role of Computers" column. The reviewers gave the game 2 out of 5 stars.
Law & Order
Law & Order is an American police procedural and legal drama television series, created by Dick Wolf and part of the Law & Order franchise. It aired on NBC, and in syndication on various cable networks. Law & Order premiered on September 13, 1990, and completed its 20th and final season on May 24,...
episode "Skate or Die
Skate or Die (Law & Order)
"Skate or Die" is the 21st episode of the 19 season of NBC's legal drama Law & Order.-Plot:Detectives Lupo and Bernard investigate a serial killer who targets homeless men and discover that a copycat may be at work.-Law:*Jeremy Sisto – Det. Cyrus Lupo...
"
Skate or Die! is a skateboarding
Skateboarding
Skateboarding is an action sport which involves riding and performing tricks using a skateboard.Skateboarding can be a recreational activity, an art form, a job, or a method of transportation. Skateboarding has been shaped and influenced by many skateboarders throughout the years. A 2002 report...
game released by Electronic Arts
Electronic Arts
Electronic Arts, Inc. is a major American developer, marketer, publisher and distributor of video games. Founded and incorporated on May 28, 1982 by Trip Hawkins, the company was a pioneer of the early home computer games industry and was notable for promoting the designers and programmers...
in 1987 for the Sinclair ZX Spectrum, Commodore 64
Commodore 64
The Commodore 64 is an 8-bit home computer introduced by Commodore International in January 1982.Volume production started in the spring of 1982, with machines being released on to the market in August at a price of US$595...
, Atari ST
Atari ST
The Atari ST is a home/personal computer that was released by Atari Corporation in 1985 and commercially available from that summer into the early 1990s. The "ST" officially stands for "Sixteen/Thirty-two", which referred to the Motorola 68000's 16-bit external bus and 32-bit internals...
, Apple IIgs
Apple IIGS
The Apple , the fifth and most powerful model in the Apple II series of personal computers produced by Apple Computer. The "GS" in the name stands for Graphics and Sound, referring to its enhanced graphics and sound capabilities, both of which greatly surpassed previous models of the line...
, Amstrad CPC
Amstrad CPC
The Amstrad CPC is a series of 8-bit home computers produced by Amstrad between 1984 and 1990. It was designed to compete in the mid-1980s home computer market dominated by the Commodore 64 and the Sinclair ZX Spectrum, where it successfully established itself primarily in the United Kingdom,...
, and IBM Compatibles running MS-DOS
MS-DOS
MS-DOS is an operating system for x86-based personal computers. It was the most commonly used member of the DOS family of operating systems, and was the main operating system for IBM PC compatible personal computers during the 1980s to the mid 1990s, until it was gradually superseded by operating...
. It was ported to the Nintendo Entertainment System
Nintendo Entertainment System
The Nintendo Entertainment System is an 8-bit video game console that was released by Nintendo in North America during 1985, in Europe during 1986 and Australia in 1987...
(NES) by Konami
Konami
is a Japanese leading developer and publisher of numerous popular and strong-selling toys, trading cards, anime, tokusatsu, slot machines, arcade cabinets and video games...
, and published by Ultra Games
Ultra Games
Ultra Software Corporation was a spinoff company created in 1988 as a subsidiary of Konami of America, in an effort to get around Nintendo of America's strict licensing rules for the North American Konami release games for Nintendo consoles. One of these rules was that a third-party company could...
. In 2007, the NES version was re-released for Nintendo
Nintendo
is a multinational corporation located in Kyoto, Japan. Founded on September 23, 1889 by Fusajiro Yamauchi, it produced handmade hanafuda cards. By 1963, the company had tried several small niche businesses, such as a cab company and a love hotel....
's Virtual Console
Virtual console
A virtual console – also known as a virtual terminal – is a conceptual combination of the keyboard and display for a computer user interface. It is a feature of some operating systems such as UnixWare, Linux, and BSD, in which the system console of the computer can be used to switch between...
service in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
(excluding France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
) and Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
. The Atari ST
Atari ST
The Atari ST is a home/personal computer that was released by Atari Corporation in 1985 and commercially available from that summer into the early 1990s. The "ST" officially stands for "Sixteen/Thirty-two", which referred to the Motorola 68000's 16-bit external bus and 32-bit internals...
conversion was contracted to CodeMasters
Codemasters
The Codemasters Software Company Limited, or Codemasters is a British video game developer founded by Richard and David Darling in 1986...
, who contracted Kinetic Designs to do the work.
In the style of the Epyx
Epyx
Epyx, Inc. was a video game developer and publisher in the late 1970s and throughout the 1980s. The company was founded as Automated Simulations by Jim Connelley and Jon Freeman, originally using Epyx as a brand name for action-oriented games before renaming the company to match in 1983...
"Games" series, players can compete in five different skateboarding events, either individually or sequentially. When the events are challenged sequentially, up to eight players could sign up to participate. The original Commodore 64 version was created by Michael Kosaka, Stephen Landrum and David Bunch. This group of programmers had previously been at Epyx and worked on the early "Games" titles.
The game featured two ramp events - the freestyle ramp and the high jump, two downhill events - the downhill race (in a park setting) and the downhill jam (in a street setting), and the pool joust. The pool joust, downhill jam, and the downhill race (in two player mode only) were all head to head, while the ramp events were single player. Except for the joust, which was a hand-to-hand knockout competition (literally and figuratively), all of the event winners were decided by a point system.
United States Marine Corps
The United States Marine Corps is a branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for providing power projection from the sea, using the mobility of the United States Navy to deliver combined-arms task forces rapidly. It is one of seven uniformed services of the United States...
tattoo (and a facial resemblance to comedian Rodney Dangerfield
Rodney Dangerfield
Rodney Dangerfield , was an American comedian, and actor, known for the catchphrases "I don't get no respect!," "No respect, no respect at all... that's the story of my life" or "I get no respect, I tell ya" and his monologues on that theme...
) who runs a skate shop in the game, and his son Bionic Lester, an even wilder kid with a green flattop, who you were able to take on in the joust and the downhill jam. In the joust, Lester and his two cronies await the skater. Poseur Pete challenges beginners and Aggro Eddie takes on intermediate players, leaving Lester with the advanced pros.
The game was well liked with players on both the computer and console sides, and inspired a winterized sequel in Ski or Die
Ski or Die
Ski or Die is a 1990 winter sports game by Electronic Arts for the Amiga, NES, MS-DOS and Commodore 64. It consisted of 5 minigames which could be played individually or in a set sequentially...
in 1989 for the C64, Amiga, Atari ST, PC and NES, and a true sequel, Skate or Die 2
Skate or Die 2
Skate or Die 2: The Search for Double Trouble is a skateboarding themed action/adventure game for the Nintendo Entertainment System, developed and published by Electronic Arts, who also developed the first game, which was ported by Konami's Ultra Games subsidiary...
in 1990, a NES-only game. Ski or Die
Ski or Die
Ski or Die is a 1990 winter sports game by Electronic Arts for the Amiga, NES, MS-DOS and Commodore 64. It consisted of 5 minigames which could be played individually or in a set sequentially...
retained the multi-event format while Skate or Die 2 veered into "adventure" territory; both games featured Rodney and Lester as key players.
The C64 version of Skate or Die! was also well liked for its introductory music, a highly catchy rock-flavored tune with digital samples that took full advantage of all of the SID chip
MOS Technology SID
The MOS Technology 6581/8580 SID is the built-in Programmable Sound Generator chip of Commodore's CBM-II, Commodore 64, Commodore 128 and Commodore MAX Machine home computers...
's capabilities. Composed by Rob Hubbard
Rob Hubbard
Rob Hubbard is a music composer best known for his composition of computer game theme music, especially for microcomputers of the 1980s such as the Commodore 64...
, one of the world's foremost game music composers, it has become a popular tune among modern fans of SID music and remixers of such tunes.
Reception
The game was reviewed in 1988 in DragonDragon (magazine)
Dragon is one of the two official magazines for source material for the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game and associated products, the other being Dungeon. TSR, Inc. originally launched the monthly printed magazine in 1976 to succeed the company's earlier publication, The Strategic Review. The...
#132 by Hartley, Patricia, and Kirk Lesser in "The Role of Computers" column. The reviewers gave the game 2 out of 5 stars.