Kelly Slater's Pro Surfer - Square Eyed Jak

The O2 series has not gone well so far, which spells disaster for Kelly Slater if Pro Surfer fails to impress. But with excellently faithful and well designed controls, could this game be an underrated gem?
Massive thanks to the Kickblips team for the music featured in this video!
🎶 kickblips.com/
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Intro/Outro Music:
• Royalty Free Music #15...
#hawktober #surfing #review

[@DividerByZero]

Love how the background music is all water-themed. Mario's underwater music, Battle for Bikini Bottom, and the DKC music on the pirate ship levels

[@Zigstar]

And the jetboarding music from Crash Bandicoot 2: Cortex Strikes Back

[@Saxdude26]

Battle for Bikini Bottom is fitting because, much like Pro Surfer, every level is a water level. 😉

[@TheLeggedOne]

0/10 no random FPS section

[@viktorvaughn8192]

0/10 no giant tiki boss

[@JahgotMoney25]

@CuckooCoins FidgetSpinner Matt Hoffmans pro bmx 2

[@paulw858]

"You honestly thought this was about to be a positive review for a hidden gem, didn't you?" Um... yes :(

[@dasantihero2827]

Had us in the first half ngl

[@borissidealmeida]

I was already thinking about buying it

[@cappantwan2978]

You really had me there for a second. I was hoping this would be a hidden gem we missed. But there really is only so much you can do with surfing in a goal-based structure.

[@vechirni_anbernic]

if you can emulate - i suggest you try it on yo own. Pro Surfer, Wakeboarding unleashed and MTX game are all very competently made

[@kitgautier1658]

Agreed, Roman, but I'd also argue that it's a great game *after* you've completed all the goals; the free surf and multiplayer modes are tons of fun.

[@KoldAsHell]

Dude, it is a hidden gem. I played through the whole thing 100% and have no regrets, it's a 8/10 easy. I did grow up owning this game so it was nostalgic and that may be what made it for me but the game is amazing nonetheless imo.

[@wahmaster2788]

Lol I was gonna go out and buy it lol. Might still do that tho

[@youtubesucks1111]

I've always wondered how this game played ever since I saw it advertised in the manual of thps4. I may still play it someday.

[@TheMNZGrandeRio]

They had us in the first half, not gonna lie. As far as it seems, the overall theme with those series is that they fail to bring out the interesting points of each sport, instead leaning on TH-like gameplay to fill the gap. Which can only take you so far.

[@Mateus_Carvalho]

Can't remember for the life of me but I have to thank this game for finding out about THPS. I had a friend in school who actually surfed and he bombed at school, so his father told him to give me some of his games until he got his grades back up. He had this and THUG 2. To avoid awkwardness, I loaned them for a week. Surfing never really was my kind of stuff, so I gave it back at the end of the week... and then sort of kept THUG 2 for a month.

[@jovialto7287]

I LOVE HAWKTOBER

[@SquareEyedJak]

Thanks so much! 😊

[@sidape8521]

we all do

[@danfox3586]

Best time of the year 😂

[@justin_your_cousin9273]

Hock TOEEE BER

[@StokedOnFishing]

Kelly Slater's Pro Surfer was one of the best games of its time.

[@fromvault801]

Not a physicist but reverting on water after a double kickflip never felt right

[@SquareEyedJak]

Yeah the game has a weird blend between the more realistic carves and tube stuff, mixed with unrealistic arcadey ariels and reverts etc. to make the game work. I like it though, just a shame the game itself doesn't offer much.

[@tuttiman55]

@@SquareEyedJak you should compare the tony hawk games to the skate series

[@viktorvaughn8192]

@@tuttiman55 so compare I chillidog to a hot dog with chili So compare chili dogs to each other making no sorts of differences apart from oh this controls better or oh looks better Yeah no point in doing that

[@Berry_Best]

@@tuttiman55 One is meant to be a fun arcade game and one us meant to be a more realistic skateboarding game. Thats about it lol

[@tuttiman55]

But the reason i said was they’re the most popular skateboarding games and they’re both so good

[@DeeRhoe]

Nothing I love more than the Halloween Season and Tony Hawk (As well as the Mediocre Tony Hawk clones.) Hawktober is always something I can look forward to, it’s a tradition now. 😌

[@AlexJonesGaming]

I get where your coming from but it's still my favorite O2 game and it's by far the best Surfing game ever made Wakeboarding is a close second for best O2

[@NitroLad2001]

Blue water high. Jesus, I remember coming back from primary school to watch with my sister. Aussie childhood 🙌🏻

[@blackfoxalpha9708]

Man I love this series. You put so much effort and detail in these video. Nothing short of astounding! Keep it up my dude.

[@j_fizzle]

Used to play this game for hours. The music took me back

[@MrRaivokasMagma]

Almost makes me wish there would modern surfing game. All the water physics 🤤

[@cameronreid817]

Can I just say that I love your channel so much? I grew up with these games, especially the THPS series, and I love these videos. They’re almost documentary quality, and I find myself binging your videos sometimes.

[@AKAGubin]

I didn’t realize this was uploaded 5 mins ago lmao, rad

[@ingridlovesboris]

The time you posted this comment no one had watched the whole thing except Jak himself because it wasn't on KZbin long enough.

[@AKAGubin]

Kale Void I’d count that as pretty early lol, I was just kinda vibing eating pizza rolls and saw the vid by him and clicked on it lmao, this guy is very enjoyable

[@ingridlovesboris]

@@AKAGubin You can say that again!

[@brad6546]

And he already got 133 comments square eyed jak goin up

[@baddragonite]

Nitro Rad lmao

[@drsourcreamonion]

You got a little rise out of me when you mentioned Blue Water High. Loved that show as a kid.

[@ihavenoname1819]

I could not keep a straight face with the battle for bikini bottom theme going in the background 🤣🤣

[@caldadextra2063]

That cosmic level gives me "So Long, and Thanks for All the Fish" vibes

[@lynottlives]

You’ve got my favourite video game song every - Gang plank galleon from DKC. Nice one mate!

[@FormalGibble]

These games are really making me appreciate pro skater more and more everyday.

[@SANICRAWY2J]

That blue water high reference was a reach and a half. I completely forgot that show existed.

[@hecatombe4724]

love these reviews, rewatching the entire tony hawktober playlist from all the years' past. thanks for creating

[@prof.milkdickphd5170]

I loved this game as a kid I played it for hours on end. brings back memories :' )

[@DevilJ432]

no lie, I started watching these videos like 5 hours ago and I was thinking "man I wonder when he'll talk about the surfing game, I'm really curious about that one" talk about timing

[@peeron6829]

Haha nice

[@Booboomuffins]

Honestly thank you for posting all these videos back to back. You've singlehandedly made this week bearable . Thanks for spoiling us

[@Edlandish]

I really wanted this game as a kid and looks like I made a good move never getting it :D Amazing how impressionable I was as a kid. My thought process was basically "Tony Hawk Pro Skater is good, therefore xxxx yyyy's pro zzzz must also be good". I also got some weird games that I just don't know why I cared about, like Summer Heat Beach Volleyball. It was on a demo disc and I just bought it. I don't care about volleyball and I 100% completed that game anyway.

[@jerrysmith8814]

Kelly Slater feels like a 2D perspective boss battle in a 3D slasher.

[@jamflowman8283]

I always thought when it said “activision 02” it was saying “activisionable 2”

[@suciodan5817]

Best surfing Game ever, love the OST.

[@BugsyFoga]

Has anyone here actually surfed before , cause I sure haven't?

[@DoswarePictures]

I kinda did it once.

[@kitgautier1658]

I definitely did a bit when I was younger (i.e., high school), but I was never any good; I mostly went to hang out with friends who were into it. I was much better at skateboarding, although by "better" I mean "still trash, but not as bad as Jak". :-D

[@JomasterTheSecond]

Ridden a couple waves in Tassie, but nothing in depth. No tricks at all, but lots of falling face first, though.

[@RivieraStyx]

couch, channel and web

[@j_fizzle]

Yeah surfed in waikiki, it was the best

[@braedenlamont9186]

You hit me with a “wave” of nostalgia with that blue water high reference lol.

[@Jorgemagottnumber9]

That Travis Patrana unlockable character was foreshadowing something that never happened

[@Philipoko]

Been waiting for this video, love the content bro

[@JomasterTheSecond]

"Who remembers Blue Water High?" Aaaaaand you've got my *full* attention.

[@David01.d]

Junior Character Designer: It's my time to shine! Lead Character Designer: What did you create? Junior Character Designer: Surf Freak! Lead Character Designer: We ain't getting a sequel.

[@TimGaukerToons]

Surf Freak looks like a brand character, like the kind of mascot you'd see tourists wear around beaches and surf shacks

[@jaihainsworth4094]

As a fella who surfs I’m very happy to see this video, good stuff jak!

[@Botrytis18]

I remember enjoying the hell out of this game. Was surprisingly beautiful on PC, calm, pouring good vibes and a pleasant experience in general next to THPS and BMX games.

[@aquariuskudo]

The fact that Jak threw in that "gnarly" proves how great the quality of his videos are.

[@SquareEyedJak]

Gotta shred the gnar brah, otherwise it's not a surfing video! 🤙

[@PsychoticLeprachaun]

I used to have this Pro Surfer THUG dual pack on GBA (basically a cartridge that had both games on it). I bought it because I obviously wanted THUG. I had no idea the GBA version came first. I remember playing this one level over and over again because I liked the background music. I just found out IGN has a video of game footage with that level which has only like 900 views

[@cronaldjefferson3235]

Love your vids so easy to binge watch ❤️❤️

[@SquareEyedJak]

Yay! Thank you!

[@SpaceyMcSpacer]

While not perfect Surf’s Up the video game (Consoles & PC) had more personality to it and felt more Tony Hawk-ish. Kind of sad the Penguin movie game was better than a realistic one.

[@hugevibez]

Shaun Murray's Wakeboarding Unleashed was a lot of fun, there was a demo of it on THPS4

[@fordparson4756]

Please tell me you're going to do MTX Mototrax! Not technically an O2 title but originally planned as such.

[@DoswarePictures]

Yes he is, since it originally was meant to be an O2 title.

[@weed75black35]

Love the Battle for Bikini Bottom soundtrack used here

[@DoswarePictures]

A classic. Enjoyed it but have yet to play Rehydrated.

[@geoserenity]

Hawktober: so good, it just keeps surfin on

[@alijahtaylor778]

Please keep doing these they make me soo happyy

[@BugsyFoga]

A Pro Skater styled game revolving around Surfing , now if that's not a recipe for success then I don't know what is .

[@noahdoerksen1908]

Hearing that uh oh uh oh UH OH!! Brought me back to family road trips

[@SquareEyedJak]

FAR OUT!

[@Trisaaru]

Loving the new content, Jak

[@theangelandtheone]

Fresh out of work coming home to a new Hawktober video is quite nice.

[@SquareEyedJak]

Don't get used to it, we've only got 2 days left 😥

[@theangelandtheone]

@@SquareEyedJak That's one more day that I realized we had. I'll do just fine this year.

[@ThatWhiteGuyAndrew]

Love this marathon.

[@mannytrey]

I really wish we had gotten a Pro Rollerblader/Blader. I really don't know who would've been on the title tho.

[@DoswarePictures]

Beat

[@QuarrelsomeLocalOaf]

Do you mean you wish there was an Activision O2 inline game or just one in general? If it's just in general, Aggressive Inline was pretty much "what if THPS4 was an inline game."

[@JetpacksWasYes2]

Aggressive Inline would like to chat with you Seriously tho how did you miss this or didn't know it existed. Genuinely curious not trying to be a smart ass lol

[@mannytrey]

@@JetpacksWasYes2I should've been a little more specific with my post. I know Aggressive Inline and even Rolling were a thing. I skate myself lol. I still play Rolling to this day. Basically what I was trying to say is that I wanted to see a Rollerblading game under Activision or O2 with Pro in the name like Tony Hawk, Matt Hoffman and so on.

[@DoswarePictures]

@@QuarrelsomeLocalOaf it was a Jet Set Radio refrence. I should get those someday:

[@DoswarePictures]

My only refrence for surfing is Surfs Up, both the Backyardigans episode and the 2007 animated movie, both featuring penguins. Also I once tried it in low LA waves during a thing years ago. By the way, perfect waves are found at Tiki Beach, not the Bermuda Triangle.

[@RedRoss_YT]

Honestly love this series....and channel too of course! Good Job Jack!:D

[@BrodyEllis111]

Idk why but this game happened to be one of the first video games I've ever owned. All I remember is that I played the pro skater 4 demo 10x as much as the actual game

[@kaleidoscopex7213]

This game RULES, i love this game as a kid , & the fact i live near Mavericks In HMB

[@SharonisCarin321]

Are you planning on doing the Razor Scooter games or Roller Blading games next Hawktober?

[@TimGaukerToons]

Tony Hawk clones would make a great topic. Plus you get to see him suffer in Simpsons Skateboarding

[@car1it05WAY]

Can’t wait for the Wakeboarding Unleased featuring Shaun Murray review

[@cocoluco54]

Blue water high OMG totally forgot about this lol..

[@SockyNoob]

Dude, your videos on these games are better than anybody else's I swear. I'm gonna have to go check out your non-Hawk game reviews as well

[@Prykora]

great vid jak! engagement and all that XD

[@boogieheads]

One of my favorite growing up

[@iimdiego]

loving this channel you uploading crazy😂

[@MattJerkhole]

Even without playing them myself, I always thought out of all the extreme sports games these surfing ones would be the most mediocre and repetitive. But you really got me going there in those first 6mins. I always wanted to pick this up myself. lol EDIT: Almost 4 years later, I actually picked this game up out of curiosity over the summer and I was actually very positively surprised. Sure, there are some odd physics problems on the wave, the camera can be tricky sometimes, and the game is much more limited than THPS for example due to the setting. But it does have a couple fun, unique mechanics like the tube tricks, and I actually give them big props for managing to have the different locations/waves feel different just through slightly different attributes. A beach having a shorter but much taller wave with a very aggressive tube section plays a lot different than a long but more shallow wave for example. I would have loved them do a sequel and iron out some kinks, honestly. But anyway, I still have to beat the brutal final stage, so I'm gonna go sink some more hours into that. lmao

[@tookool5616]

Jak i picked this bad boy up for GameCube last year. Great video.

[@Stevoisiak]

I have fond memories of this game

[@Saxdude26]

"Blue Water High is my only reference point for the world of surfing." Well, you're doing better than me, Jak. XD (inb4 too much water 7.8/10)

[@yofyo]

I think you were a little hard on this game dude. It's fantastic for what it is. I know it's not super diverse, but it executes it admirably.

[@Endi7b]

Gonna review MTX Mototrax? That game was actually awesome. Like a THPS or THUG with dirt bikes. Loving these Hawktober reviews this year!

[@DoswarePictures]

Yep, he’s gonna do it since it was originally intended to be another O2 game.

[@Endi7b]

@@DoswarePictures great to hear, I’m sure he’ll rip it apart. But I loved that game as a kid.

[@AlexOvTheAbyss]

I feel like this would have been a better fit as a secret/bonus level in a snowboarding or skateboarding game. It would have at least made more sense than an FPS being in a BMX game 🤷‍♂️

[@cas256]

My favourite time of the year isn’t Christmas or my birthday, it’s TonyHawtober.

[@DoswarePictures]

It really improves the end of October with all the stress and Halloween, which I’d rather skip straight to Christmas.

[@2004flippy]

Really enjoying Hawktober o2 this year. Shame we're not at the skatepark but understandable under these difficult circumstances.. Anyway really good reviews and kick ass music in these videos as always the effort you put into these is apparent and well appreciated. I hope the merch is selling well and these videos will get the many views they deserve. Cheers Jak !!! :)

[@SquareEyedJak]

Actually just filming everything at home is because I needed to take it easy this year.

[@coreykelley9441]

It being so expensive back in the day brought it down, for a bargain bin game, this woulda been a HIT. It was pretty fun for a little while back as a lad

[@niccage6375]

Wakeboarding unleashed is pretty fun

[@LA-st6dq]

I'm not sure what more variety you want from a surfing game, the sports relies on catchin a wave, surf it do tricks, survive and make sure the wave doesn't role you over and then go back behind the banks in the bay and wait for the next big one, slash it and cowabunga dude , each wave is unique. Maybe they should have lit up the difficulty so non surfers get frustrated. I think this is a game that is mostly specifically for surfers and people that understand surfing, are interested in surfing, and in extreme sports. I'm a skier and snowboarder myself, do all kinds of sports and surfing is a super nice alternative in the offseason, I mean summer.

[@tcwtfln_yt]

I seriously niss the good ol days of these kinds of games, sad to see that not all of them managed to stand up to good 'ol Bir Man

[@kalebnolan8343]

Surfs up will forever be the best surfing game

[@toyminator9006]

I haven't played the game, so I don't know the soundtrack, but I feel like the song "Misirlou" (aka Pulp fiction intro song) or any surf rock music could've aided the game well But maybe the budget didn't allow for licenses, which is such a shame, it would've been nice to hear if the game had at least a decent soundtrack

[@DoswarePictures]

They should’ve had “I Can’t Surf” because it’s a good song and because irony.

[@captainnintendo]

While I never really got around to play this game I do have a rather memorable experience with trying it. When I was around 12-13, I was allowed to visit the location of the Nintendo Hotline call center here in Denmark and see how things worked. Turned out to just be a small room with two people answering the calls but they did have a little shelf with games and a TV and I got to try out Kelly Slater's Pro Surfer... I have no recollection on why I chose that game though. It was also the first time I got to try out a Wavebird controller..... Wait a sec... Surfing game... Wave... Bird... I never even thought about that xD I just blew my own mind xD What is kinda funny is that today I live less than 100 meters from where the Club Nintendo place used to be. I could have called them with two tin cans and a strings xD I would many years later receive the game as a random gift while I was working at an arcade, probably cause I had also told that story to the manager. And I mean, who the hell would care about Kelly Slater's Pro Surfer anyway. So yeah, the game is really unmemorable but despite that, I have some good memories surrounding it. Maybe I should actually get around to play it for real sometime? xD

[@CoolJonathan28]

When I had this I actually play the THPS4 demo when I got bored of the surfing

[@DoswarePictures]

Ah, good old demo, with the secret tapes that didn’t make it into the final game.

[@ToxicKlay]

Real gang members remember buying this game on the cheap back in the day solely to play the on-disc THPS4 demo

[@DurtyDude69]

Did they not have the movie "surfs up" across the pond??

[@DoswarePictures]

That movie was probably the best Sony Pictures Animation film before Spiderverse.

[@isard7833]

Blue Water High Escuela de surf ahhhh didn't expect to be hit in my childhoold like this

[@Petronious]

The Tiki god must be the Activision O2 series equivalent of Thanos at this point...

[@skaterdude14b]

as a beach-starved grommet, this offered an aesthetic & connection to a sub-culture I was craving. imagination rendered a lot but I loved this game no matter what you say

[@mazdaroadster-mx5]

I always really liked this game. Never heard anyone talk about it before so I'm interested to listen. Even if I disagree

[@Eirik_Bloodaxe]

I always wanted to try this game. That GBA version actually looks surprisingly good, just like the THPS2 one, graphic wise. I can say however that the feeling of surfing in real life feels amazing, once you figure out how to stand.

[@BillyTenny-mh6ym]

This game is still fun to this day. It’s a shame there’s no good next gen surf games. I find it fun and challenging, the game was ahead of it’s time. I also find it easier to use the directional pad instead of the analog stick, more control that way 🏄‍♂️

[@sirswellow7210]

These are coming out FAST

[@SDK2K9]

You were saying good things about this game at the start and I thought this would have been one of the best out of the games you reviewed so far for this Hawktober. Sad to hear that this just turned out be a stinker like the rest of them.

[@ferrariairwolf]

"the sunset and piss levels" XD

[@justincarter3384]

I remember this game getting it from blockbuster when I was like 7 wow this brings back memories. I couldn't remember the name of it

[@nicks4802]

I swear one of these -- --‘s pro --er games was a wakeboarding game, and i remember playing a demo at a friends house EDIT: It was Sean Murray’s pro wakeboarder!! I recommend it, its like a autoscrolling tony hawk game, but nowhere near as lousy as it sounds!

[@RadioTails]

Maybe Jak will review it? Maybe he will, maybe he won't? *winks*

[@DoswarePictures]

@@RadioTails next time.

[@badleech]

Yeah, i was very nostalgic with this one. Played it a lot on the PS2, and enjoyed it. Was very relaxing and I liked the laid back vibe. I remember a lot about the beaches and that I really was suprised that people surf in antarctica? :D However, I actually could not remember any tasks in the Level. Now I did. And yeah, you are right. They were lame and uninspired. I had more fun just surfing a bit on cool beaches. My favourite ones were south africa and australia.

[@Wade_Tyler]

Blue Water High was a good Aussie show! 🇦🇺

[@CreativeWM_Personal]

This should have been bundled in with Pro BMX 2 so you get real value for money

[@adamkeranen2277]

I hope you end up reviewing Aggressive Inline eventually, Jak! Such an underrated game

[@DomtheDemonSlayer]

I used to have the gba version of pro surfer on a double pack cart with the gba version of Tony Hawk's Underground, every time I played it I never knew what the hell I was supposed to be doing. And that went for both games lmao.