While it's still merely a rumor that start-up Chicago game studio Robomodo is working on a "Tony Hawk" game, two images taken of the team's view (including the one above) indicate that the studio may be gaming's highest. Read more...

Neversoft president Joel Jewett said that the Activision-owned development studio is no longer working on the "Tony Hawk" series, and is instead continuing to focus on the "Guitar Hero" franchise. Read more...

One of the reasons EA's "Skate" was so widely accepted was because it wasn't a another "Tony Hawk" game. It was a different (and new) experience.

As Electronic Arts and Black Box finish work on "Skate 2," however, they need to start looking at where the franchise is going, and how to avoid falling into the same trap.

At a "Skate 2" event in San Francisco last week, the game's associate producer for environments, Shaun Laker, told me how they'll accomplish that.

"As long as we keep putting out great games and don’t rush it out and polish it and make sure we're listening to the community and hearing what they're having to say [we will avoid that]," said Laker. "A big part of it too -- and what drove our features this year -- is we were finding out how people played the game. We know people play the game to find their own spot and to own it to be able to call it their own. This year, you can go and do that, and in a community, you can share it. That's how we stay fresh and we don't go too far; we listen to the community and know what they're asking for and respond to that."

From what you've seen of "Skate 2," do you think they're on the right track? Can the developers avoid "Tony Hawk" Syndrome?

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We know Activision Blizzard loves sequels.

Just moments ago, the publisher revealed a slate of follow-ups coming this year at an Massive Inc. upfront attended by Stephen Totilo.

An upfront is where publishers showcase their upcoming lineup to advertisers and are a new practice for games. Upfronts occur every year for TV and movies.

This event is being held in downtown Manhattan to get advertisers pumped to buy more ads in games. Massive is a Microsoft-owned firm that did the Barack Obama ad in "Burnout Paradise."

At the meeting, Activision Blizzard showcased new games that would make sense for in-game ads, including the vaguely titled "Guitar Hero 5," which included a screen shot of gameplay with a Burger King ad to the right of the note highway.

The publisher confirmed rumors that "Tony Hawk" will be different this year. "You're not going to be playing this game with a controller in your hands," said the company. The new "Tony Hawk" arrives on Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Wii and DS in October.

Additionally, Activision Blizzard acknowledged the "Call of Duty" series will move forward yet again with "Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2" coming this fall. No details on the game were released.

We've also heard rumors that Bizarre Creations was working on a racing-oriented "James Bond" game, which have turned out to be true. The original Bond adventure, not tied to a movie storyline, is coming this September. The former "Project Gotham Racing" studio is also working on an original racing IP for the publisher, which they tagged as "'Mario Kart' meets 'Forza.'"

Curiously, the lineup included absolutely no Blizzard Entertainment games.

If any more news breaks from the Massive Inc. upfront, we'll let you know.

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I haven't played more than five minutes of Electronic Arts' highly praised "Skate."

Being the only reporter for MTV Multiplayer in San Francisco, I'm used to seeing many games in genres unfamiliar to me. "Skate" is in that pile.

Yet I found myself at EA's coming out event for "Skate 2" last Thursday. I'd loaded up the demo for "Skate" just minutes before walking out the door. I barely made it through the tutorial.

Given that, if you (like me) haven't played "Skate," should "Skate 2" be on your radar? Absolutely. We both probably should have played "Skate," anyway.

Here's what matters and what doesn't about the new game...

Read more...

This aquatic entry comes courtesy of our very own vice president of MTV News, Ocean MacAdams...

This weekend, I was working the MTV Movie Awards in Los Angeles, and decided to take a break and headed over to the EB Games at the Universal Citywalk.

As I usually do when I'm in LA, I had just gone for a pre-work surf session (the less said about my wave skills the better) and was thinking -- "maybe I should get a surfing video game."

In the back of my closet, I have a copy of "Transworld Surf," and back in the day I played a few satisfying hours of "Kelly Slater's Pro Surfer." But when I started to look, I realized that except for a "Surfs Up" movie tie-in, I could not find any surfing games.

What gives?

A quick Google search confirmed my suspicion. In fact, I could only find two other surfing games ever made: "Sonny Garcia Surfing" and "Surfing H30" from Rockstar Games. None of these games are available for Wii, Xbox 360 or PlayStation 3.

I know that surfing isn’t as popular as football or bass fishing, but at least as many people surf as snowboard. Hell, if I can buy a ping-pong game, I should be able to buy a surfing game.

I can only imagine previous attempts haven't sold well. I certainly see the argument of "well, all you do is stand on a wave -- where's the fun in that?" But I think most people would have the said the same thing about skateboarding before they played "Tony Hawk's Pro Skater."

Any thoughts from the Multiplayer community on the lack of surfing games?

Over at MTVNews.com today I got a chance to debut the soundtrack for October's "Tony Hawk Proving Ground."

We also have a couple of screenshots that show off the game's not-so-secret unlockable character: the Beastie Boys' MCA. The rapper joins Travis Barker, Darth Maul and Spider-Man among the characters accessible in the long line of Tony Hawk games.

Can anyone tell me if unlockable video game characters are really meant to be played for extended periods of time? Or do gamers prefer to unlock them, play them a bit for laughs, and then go back to the regular cast? I ask because I don't think I've unlocked a hidden character in any game since ... maybe ... "Super Smash Brothers Melee." Does that even count?

Click through at the link above to see the 54-song "Proving Ground" track list and the MCA shots. It looks like he's going to skateboard on the moon! Makes me think of the last levels in "Blast Corps."