The Ramp: Skateboarding Simplified

Bust a gnarly stalefish on The Ramp.

By C.A. Ramirez

This article originally appeared on Medium.com (9/8/2021). 

Every now and then, from the dank corners of the Steam library, there emerges a diamond in the ruff.

The Ramp is a casual sports simulation game that puts you in control of an avatar whose sole purpose is to pull gnarly grinds and wicked 720’s. At first glance, it’s wholly unimpressive; the graphics are plain Jane, but I’m okay with that. It’s just you and the four courses. That may not seem like much of a game, but it is a labor of love by a single developer, named Paul Schnepf of Hyperparadise, and it only retails for $6.99 on Steam. The cost of which pales in comparison to what is, essentially, a Tech Deck with a pulse, and it’s a blast.

Hesitation leads to devastation. Commit to The Ramp, and drop in.

The beauty of The Ramp is in its simplicity. There is no scoreboard, and it doesn’t have an expansive sandbox level design, like the Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater series. Hyperparadise has managed to create a skateboarding microcosm that leaves the gamer to concentrate on the rhythm that is needed to propel your avatar into the gravity defying moves seen in the X-Games. The animation is smooth, and the physics engine is rock solid. It’s all about keeping your character from going off the course. The mechanics start to sink in after a few minutes, and the reward is a wonderfully Zen little gem. The Ramp takes you away from the mundane tasks of the day and drops you into a lo-fi drenched skate experience that can help pass the time between the daily minutia of Zoom calls and Cc’d email chains. It also sports a decent ragdoll animation system that can lead to some hilariously entertaining wipeouts.

There is no scoreboard, and it doesn’t have an expansive sandbox level design, like the Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater series.

The Ramp is not stuck in some “Early Access” limbo, nor is it teetering on the edge of the barren-Beta wasteland. It’s a polished title, and I have yet to encounter a game breaking bug or glitch. Getting in some precious and much needed game time can mean the difference between having a good day and running for the wine once the sun sets. It takes seconds to launch The Ramp, but before your boss is back from “the bathroom”, you’ll have gotten in a few satisfying kick-flips. I am not sure how long it took to develop this game, but it is a solid sports title that should be in any gamer’s library regardless of your proclivity to huck yourself down a flight of stairs in the name of that glorious grind. Hyperparadise may be a one-man show, but it’s definitely packing some talent. With larger levels, The Ramp would easily rival some of the AAA skate games on Steam.

The quarantine has been lamentable, but if games like The Ramp are a product of this COVID addled world, then the insatiable appetite of the quarantined gamer will abate … that is until the Zombies come for us all.

Sometimes you have to bail on a trick, but don’t bail on this game!