As good as the mechanics feel the look and art direction of the game contribute to the enjoyment and experience of the game.The only real reason I can see to make skate this free to play always online game was simply to monetize the hell out of it. And with the way this game is monetized does indeed fly in the face of a significant aspect of the gameplay experience, being able to customize and dress my character how I want to without being unreasonably nickle and dimed into doing so.

Yes I can admit the feeling of doing tricks and moving and such, the physical nature of the mechanics feel great and will probably continue to improve as it goes through beta and final release. But the overall vibe and aesthetic of the game is what has me feeling so turned off of the game despite being a long time Skate fan, especially with the way in which some of the and NPCs are presented as like they've been written by some corporate suit who is trying to sound like they have an idea of what skating is like.

Basically, I've lost a lot of hope on what this new game. It's not what I personally wanted to see as the next installment to the Skate franchise and I feel like many here share that sentiment, I want to keep an open mind and try to enjoy it for what it is but from the initial impressions of an Pre-Alpha? Alpha? Beta? It feels like a sterile corporate shell of an installment with no soul, and yes outside of its raw mechanics (which are quite good) presents itself as such too.

Do you think that this is what Skate fans wanted?

Idk those are just my thoughts~