Greetings humans, Monki here with an interview I was pretty jazzed about. I've been playing the Tony Hawk series since the very first title. That's right, I was playing before manuals, before reverts, when a 100,000 point combo was unheard of (let alone a multi-million point combo.)

So, needless to say, I was excited to get to talk to someone working on the new Project 8 title. I ended up doing an e-mail interview with Brian Bright who is the project director at Neversoft on Project 8.

Remember, the Project 8 demo is available for the 360 on XBox Live Marketplace as you read this. Also, along with the interview are a couple of screenshots that I pulled from Activision's site. I'm not sure which system they are for, but I suspect it is the 360.

Monki: This is the 8th iteration of the Tony Hawk franchise; how do you plan on making this new title different from the rest? What are you doing to battle the "stagnant franchise" problem some other mega-titles have had in recent years?

Brian Bright: We're constantly pushing for reinvented gameplay...ways we can make the franchise feel fresh all over again. We have to do this, as we can't rely on a revolving roster of skaters to really drive interest. This year we attacked it in a few ways: Rebuilt engine, streaming world, Nail the Trick, and a "back to the basics" goal structure. All of these come together to make a really fun, truly next-gen skating game.

Monki: How much influence does Tony Hawk have on the game itself, or has it come to a point where he will just give his blessing on a game?

Brian: We talk to Tony about once a month. He gives advice on music, pros, tricks, etc. He also has really great stories, things that he's seen over the past 25 years in skating that can inspire events in the games. This year Tony did a full day session for our motion capture team on the half pipe which was crucial for creating the tricks in the game.

Monki: On that note, I've always been curious, is Tony Hawk good at his own game?

Brian: Tony has played through all 8 games from start to finish. He's a pro level player. Not sick, as that level is reserved for the super hardcore players, but pro is respectable for sure.

Monki: How many of the developers on the game have been with the franchise since the original Tony Hawk?

Brian: At least ten guys here were working on the first THPS game. A large majority of the leads have been on since Hawk 3. We don't loose too many employees. Neversoft has a pretty good work culture.

Monki: With the release of Blu-Ray games on the PS3 (and maybe HD-DVD games on the 360) will there ever be an "Ultimate THPS" title with every previous game? Or perhaps just the levels being updated to work with Project 8? Personally The Warehouse level from Tony Hawk 1 was my absolute favorite to try to go crazy on. Any chance we'll see those classics back again? Or at least School 2?

Brian: Well, the size of the disc may allow for more content, but it doesn't automatically get the work done! We included classic mode levels the past two years, and decided to move forward in a different way this year. Getting those classic levels up to next gen specs is almost as difficult as creating new areas made specifically for all the new mechanics that have been added. With that said, I can't discount the idea for future iterations of the series.

Monki: Can you tell me the differences between developing for the PS3 vs. the 360? Will there be any exclusives for either system? Different skaters/soundtracks?

Brian: It's a bit tricky as the PS3 has 256mb of main memory and 256mb of video memory. The 360 has 512mb of unified memory. This means that we have to really plan out how to maximize both systems yet keep a workflow that is maintainable. In the end, both games look equally good. The PS3 has full SIXAXIS tilt support for steering, balancing, and tricks while the 360 has 100 leaderboards and 8 player online play.

Monki: How will Project 8 take advantage of the marketplace atmosphere of the PS3 and 360? Are there plans for micropurchases? (School 2 for download perhaps?)

Brian: We have no plans for microtransactions at this point. We are putting everything we can in the box at retail.

Monki: I know the game isn't out yet, but is there any chance you can give our readers a hint or perhaps a cheat code for when the game does hit shelves?

Brian: Hint: use Nail the Trick off big kickers in combos to maximize your base score, then kill the multiplier with grinds and manuals. Finish with massive spine transfer rodeo flips to break a million.

So, Tony is a "pro" skater, not a "sick" one, very interesting. I would have figured skaters play Tony Hawk non-stop on bus tours and what not.

Mad props on the "We are putting everything we can in the box at retail." Hey, EA, take note of that. Not having to buy all of your characters individually here. Excellent.

Also, you heard it here, it looks like there won't be "classic" levels in Project 8, which is disappointing to me, I love shredding the old levels. But then again, he didn't kill the idea for future games. Tony Hawk's Armageddon! Every level/character ever! Well, one can dream.

I've got one more interview heading my way that I think you guys will dig, but until then, back up the tree I go!

-Monki