In late 2001, "downloading" a full game like THPS3 was a marathon, not a sprint. While the game officially hit consoles in October 2001, PC players often had to wait for the port by , which arrived in early 2002.

Once installed, the game redefined the genre. It introduced the , a move that allowed players to link vert tricks into massive combos, fundamentally changing how high scores were achieved.

The year is 2001. Your room is lit only by the hum of a bulky CRT monitor and the glow of a tower PC humming with an Intel Pentium III 500 MHz Go to product viewer dialog for this item.

64 MB minimum, though 128 MB was the "sweet spot" for smooth frame rates. Graphics: An Nvidia Riva TNT Go to product viewer dialog for this item. or ATI Radeon with 8 MB of VRAM.

processor. You aren’t "downloading" games the way people do today via high-speed fiber—you're likely listening to the screech of a 56k dial-up modem or, more realistically, waiting for a physical CD-ROM to arrive so you can shred as the legendary .

Here is a look back at the experience of getting Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3 (THPS3) on your PC during that era. The Quest for the Game