While there are a lot of great skateboarding games out there, Tony Hawk is the franchise that truly started the craze. After four successful entries into the Pro Skater series, Neversoft revolutionized the genre once again with Tony Hawk’s Underground. The result was more than just another skateboarding game — it was a cultural event.
For many of us, THUG was the first time we heard from bands like Dead Kennedys, Sublime, or Jurassic 5 blasting through our TV speakers. It was raw, loud, and unapologetically tied to the skate scene of the early 2000s. Even in 2025, the soundtrack from both Tony Hawk’s Underground 1 and 2 feels iconic.
The Perfect Match For Gameplay
When a game has a good soundtrack, you naturally start to enjoy the game more than usual. THUG’s soundtrack doesn’t just fill the silence; it elevates the gameplay. Listening to high-energy punk anthems and gritty hip-hop beats makes every action feel more impactful. The loud grind of a rail or the satisfying thwack of a perfect landing hits different with Kiss playing behind you.
It also does a good job of defining the pace and vibe of your playthrough. A fast-paced punk track will push to hit every vert and chain quick combos, while hip-hop songs like “The World Is Yours” get you into a smoother flow with longer, deliberate lines. The soundtrack works with you, not against you. So, it’s more than just great-sounding tracks — it’s great-sounding tracks that enhance the experience.
Genre Diversity Done Right
The genius of THUG’s lies in its bold execution of genre diversity. You wouldn’t really think songs from artists like Nas, Red Hot Chili Peppers, and The Clash would work together in the same game, but they do. Rather than feeling chaotic or disjointed, this eclectic mix somehow feels completely natural and cohesive with the game’s high-energy presentation.
This is a concept that you rarely see anymore, as studios tend to stick to one type of sound for their games. Take a look at Need for Speed: Unbound, a game that only features hip-hop songs in the soundtrack. There’s nothing wrong with hip-hop, but it gets very boring quickly. Need for Speed: Heat is the opposite; it has a more diverse soundtrack, but with songs that don’t hit as hard. THUG is the perfect middle-ground, balancing cohesion with diversity.
A Snapshot Of Early 2000s Culture
Both of the Underground games feel like a time capsule, but not in a corny or dated way. The early 2000s aren’t “retro” enough yet to be laughed at, but far enough behind us that those years feel nostalgic. That’s what makes revisiting THUG’s music so interesting — it captures the energy of that era without feeling old-fashioned.
The mix of pump, hip-hop, and alternative rock still feels fresh, the kind of throwback that’s nostalgic. Plenty of games from the early 2000s suffer from dated soundtracks, full of silly tracks or trend-chasing radio hits that don’t age well. Songs like “Los Angeles” by X still sound great today, while reminding us of an era obsessed with skater culture, baggy jeans, and angsty anthems.
The Remakes Stick To The Same Formula
If the soundtrack from the early Tony Hawk games didn’t work today, the Pro Skater 1 + 2 and 3 + 4 remakes would have changed the vibe. The fact that they didn’t just shows that these old games got a lot of things right. Newer THPS games still prominently feature punk-rock, boom bap hip-hop, and alternative rock. This is something that hasn’t changed, from Tony Hawk’s Underground 2 all the way to Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3 + 4.
Sure, there are a lot of new songs featured in these remakes, but they all belong to the same genres as before. Tony Hawk was never about chasing trends — it’s about defining them. Now, if they give the Underground games the same treatment, that would be a dream come true.
