Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1 + 2 Changes Insensitive Trick Name; Chipotle Gives Out Free Copies and Burritos

By Joseph Stanichar  |  August 13, 2020 | 12:30pm
Image via Chipotle
Video Games News Tony Hawk's Pro Skater
Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1 + 2 Changes Insensitive Trick Name; Chipotle Gives Out Free Copies and Burritos

Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1 + 2, the upcoming remake of the beloved videogame classics, is changing the name of one of its tricks to correct its insensitive and plain inaccurate implications. Also, Hawk is giving out free burritos tomorrow since he’s just that cool of a guy.

“For nearly 40 years, we’ve shamelessly referred to this trick as the ‘mute’ air/grab,” Hawk wrote in an Instagram post. “So as we embark on the upcoming @tonyhawkthegame demo release, some of you might notice a trick name change: The Weddle Grab. It’s going to be challenging to break the habit of saying the old name but I think Chris deserves the recognition.”

As Hawk describes in the post, prominent amateur skater Chris Weddle was the first to improvise the move, in which the skater grabs the front end of the board while airborne. Weddle is deaf, not mute, but since others described him as a “quiet, mute guy,” the name “mute air/ grab” stuck. Although it wasn’t meant out of disrespect to Weddle, it was both insensitive and inaccurate, so Hawk and Weddle met to figure out a better name to use in the upcoming remakes.

“I am deaf, not mute,” Weddle told Hawk, and thus wanted the name of his trick changed to either the “deaf grab” or “Weddle grab” to accurately describe him. Eventually, they settled on the latter name.

If you want to try out the exciting Pro Skater 1 + 2 demo ahead of its September release, you’ll have to pre-order a digital version of the game. However, there’s another possibility to get your hands on it: you could get a burrito.

Namely, the first 2,000 people who order the “Tony Hawk” burrito, comprised of “brown rice, black beans, chicken, tomatillo-red chili salsa, cheese and guac” through Chipotle’s online app will get access to the demo without needing to pre-order the game, according to Chipotle’s press release. This incentive started Monday, mind you, so they’re almost certainly out of copies by now.

For an incentive that isn’t outdated, Chipotle will stream Hawk, fellow professional skater Jagger Eaton and Stranger Things actor Finn Wolfhard playing the demo on Twitch, giving away 5,000 burritos to random audience members who tune in. The stream takes place this Friday from 5 to 7 p.m. ET.

Although it’s hard to get upset about free games or burritos, it’s worth considering how ravenous people can get for free stuff, and how employees often suffer the brunt of people’s complaints. I suffered through tons of these types of promotional events when I worked there, and each time, customers would scream, spit and verbally attack myself and my co-workers when they were told some loophole excluded them or the offer expired. Like most fast food chains, Chipotle usually treats its employees like dirt, and these types of promotions only make conditions worse. “TONY HAWK PROMISED ME 5,000 FREE BURRITOS!!”, I can already imagine customers screaming at underpaid cashiers across the country.

Tony Hawk Pro Skater 1 + 2 releases Sept. 4 for PlayStation 4, Xbox One and PC. Check out our impressions on the game’s demo here

 
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