Will Tony Hawk's Pro Skater HD have the original soundtrack?

Tony Hawk's Pro Skater HD probably won't include the original soundtrack, Activision has said.

"Probably not," was Activision community mouthpiece Dan Amrich's assessment on the One of Swords blog.

"First of all, 'original soundtrack' to which game?" Amrich asked. "THPS HD is not a straight reissue; it's neither THPS1 or THPS2, but a new game based on the levels and gameplay from both of those games.

"Second, music licensing is a one-time deal. The songs from the original games were only licensed for those specific games on those specific platforms at that specific time. Any other versions created later would need new licensing deals. This is also why not all songs from earlier Guitar Hero games are importable into later games: They only signed permission for it to be used in that one game. Any change means it's a different deal."

Amrich did offer veteran Tony Hawk's fans a glimmer of hope, though. Activision may try to get some of the songs from the original games, "but it's simply not a sure thing".

He pointed to the game's Facebook page, where fans can make request.

"But from a legal/licensing standpoint, they are back to square one," Amrich explained.

"Having the same levels of the original games is not the same thing as having the same soundtrack.

"Third, consider that the THPS series was famous helping break new bands on its soundtracks; the reason a lot of these songs are such a strong part of people's memories - beyond sheer repetition during gameplay! - is that THPS is the game that introduced you to that song or that artist. It's entirely possible that the devs will stick with that tradition and mix up some classic tracks with new music. If that turns out to be the case, all you can hope is that some of those classic tracks are the ones you remember."

Amrich doesn't expect an announcement on the soundtrack "for some time". "Worst case scenario? Create a playlist and play the old songs while you play the new game. And cross your fingers in the meantime."

Downloadable game THPSHD includes "the best levels from THPS1 and THPS2, rebuilt and remastered for modern machines by Robomodo. "School" and "Downhill" are included.

"It's the "best of our first two games but for the new consoles," Tony Hawk said ahead of the Spike VGAs. "All the same gameplay people love and the joystick controls, big scoring combos and a lot of the classic stuff we had but some new stuff as well."

Gamers will enjoy the old school Pro Skater gameplay because of "the replayability" Hawk added.

"People can come back to it and find new challenges to do, not just the ones we set up for them. But we're going back to the old two minute challenges, collect the letters, get the combos, get the scores. I'm out of my mind excited about it."

Tony Hawk's Pro Skater (Tony Hawk's Skateboarding in Europe) launched in 1999 for the PlayStation, and was later ported to the Nintendo 64 and Dreamcast.

Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 2 launched a year later, again on PlayStation with later ports.