Skatebird flips out this August

Skatebird's tiny Tony Hawks (get it?) are padding up to hit the parks later this year, as revealed by a new trailer at IGN's Summer of Gaming expo.

The perfect name for a perfect pitch, Skatebird is an arcade skateboarding game in the vein of Tony Hawk's Pro Skater with one crucial difference. The skaters are teeny tiny birds, and they're flipping around appropriately dinky makeshift parks built around rooftops and furniture.

The best part, of course, is that there's secretly an incredible bird dress-up game hidden under all this stunting. You can pick from over 30 types of bird, and dress them up in all kinds of hats, scarves and accessories. Hell, you can try that right now for free on Itch with SkateBIRD x JAZZ MICKLE's Pro Cap Wearer do a Spoopy Combo.

Skateboarding games are in something of a renaissance right now. Skatebird wasn't even alone in tonight's IGN showcase, with the gorgeous Olli Olli World showing off its latest tricks. Forget THPS and EA's Skate—it's the indies who are carving a new breed of skating sim.

Skatebird is coming to Steam and Itch.io on August 12th.

20 years ago, Nat played Jet Set Radio Future for the first time, and she's not stopped thinking about games since. Joining PC Gamer in 2020, she comes from three years of freelance reporting at Rock Paper Shotgun, Waypoint, VG247 and more. Embedded in the European indie scene and a part-time game developer herself, Nat is always looking for a new curiosity to scream about—whether it's the next best indie darling, or simply someone modding a Scotmid into Black Mesa. She also unofficially appears in Apex Legends under the pseudonym Horizon.