The "Name Squatter" Trap
If your kid is asking for Skate 4, they are almost certainly talking about the big-budget, long-awaited revival of the EA Skate franchise. This 2019 Android game is not that. It is a mobile title that effectively "squatted" on the name before the official sequel could claim it. While the title might look official in an app store search, the experience is a stripped-down version of what fans of the genre actually want.
It’s a sandbox game, which sounds great on paper. You get to build parks and customize your skater’s fashion. For a younger kid who just wants to mess around with digital Legos and skateboards, that’s a decent hook. But for anyone who has played a real console skating game, the physics here will feel floaty and frustrating. It’s the difference between a high-end mountain bike and a plastic tricycle; one is a tool, the other is a toy.
The Wild West of Chat
The biggest friction point isn't the gameplay—it's the social layer. The game advertises "battles and chats" with up to 10 skaters. In a major studio release, you usually have some level of automated filtering or a reporting system. In an obscure 2019 mobile game like this, you are essentially entering an unmonitored room with strangers.
Because this game lacks the visibility of a major franchise, it doesn't have a community of moderators or robust safety tools. If your kid is using the multiplayer mode, they are seeing whatever a random person on the internet decides to type. If you decide to let them play, the first thing you should do is see if you can ignore the social features entirely and stick to the offline park builder.
Finding the Real Deal
If your kid is genuinely interested in the culture of skateboarding—the tricks, the fashion, and the physics—this mobile app is going to feel like a placeholder very quickly. There are better ways to engage with this world that offer more depth and better safety controls.
Before you commit to a random download, check out The Ultimate Guide to Skateboarding Video Games. It breaks down the heavy hitters like Tony Hawk and the actual Skate series. Those games have established ESRB ratings and clear parental controls that this Android version simply doesn't provide. If they want to "make video parts" and "customize trick lists," they’ll have a much better time with a game that has a real development team behind it. This 2019 release is a distraction from the better options available on consoles and PC.
