Skate Summer Comes Early in New Tabletop Game

Pandasaurus Games has launched the Kickstarter for Skate Summer, a new tabletop game that sets out to prove who is the best skater in town. In Skate Summer (which is designed by Randy Reiman with art by Pape Ink), players will attempt to collect six tokens found on each corner of the game's hexagonal board while scoring victory points along the way. Players start their turn by laying out a series of tricks on their individual player board (shaped like a skateboard, of course). Each trick causes a balance token to move in a certain direction on a "balance track" along the board. Moving too far in one direction will cause the player to bail, which results in losing cards from their combo. Players also have to factor in a balance dice that is rolled for each trick they use in a single turn. Players use their trick combos to move across the board, while spending flame tokens to level up or collect the S-K-A-T-E-R tokens at the far corners of the map. As the game continues, players will unlock new abilities and special tricks as they inch closer to being named the town's Pro Skater. 

Pandasaurus Games is best known as the publisher of Machi Koro and the Dinosaur World franchise of games. While the Austin-based publisher produces a variety of games, they have a knack for delivering games that mix unique mechanics with dynamic and expressive art. In Skate Summer's case, the game adds a unique wrinkle to the typical combo chaining mechanic by factoring in skateboard balance. A full digital rulebook for Skate Summer can be viewed here.

Backers will receive a physical copy for a $50 pledge, while the Special Edition (which includes miniatures of the game's skaters) will cost $70. The Kickstarter for Skate Summer will remain open through February 12th. As of press time, the Kickstarter has raised over half of its $20,000 goal. You can check out the full Kickstarter here.