Whether you're shredding rails and ramps or splicing together your own skateboarding videos, the latest “Tony Hawk” title reaches rad, but not quite sick status.

“Tony Hawk's Proving Ground” puts players in the Adio - or DC, or Etnies - shoes of a young skater eager to establish him or herself within the sport's elite. By building makeshift rigs and pulling off maniacal tricks and stunts, you can impress skating icons like Arto Saari, Bam Margera and Hawk himself.

You can style your skater to your liking, and “Proving Ground” does justice to the rather fashion-conscious lifestyle of skateboarding by letting players juggle full selections of hats, shoes and even belt buckles. As they earn points on the streets, players can widen their wardrobe choices and make their character even more haute skature.

The game places players on the urban playgrounds of Baltimore, Washington D.C. and Philadelphia, where you can pull off tricks and stunts on the intricate jungle gyms of grind rails, ramps and half-pipes. Respected skaters take you through tutorials on rigging your own obstacles and other skills you'll need to make a name for yourself.

Eventually you can produce videos of your best tricks with a video editor even more in-depth than the character editor. Not only can the player chain together clips of their stunts, they can add music, visual effects and more to polish the package. As the freshest feature of the game, the editor also stands out by offering a simple, yet addictive arena for the player's creativity.

On the Wii, “Proving Ground” puts the system's motion-sensitive controls to superb use. Mid-air kick-flips and board manipulations can be made with a wave of the Wiimote or nunchuk. Players can gain speed by rhythmically flicking the Wiimote downward in sync with the extension of their skater's foot. The controls ask for precise timing, but they deftly nose-grind the line between challenging and annoying.

The game's graphics slip off the rail but land somewhat gracefully. The skaters look slick, but the cityscapes are mildly detailed and the only part of the game that appears to have been given full attention by the designers is Tony Hawk's face. Early-game design errors sent my skater flying through a half-pipe and a crane on a construction site.

As has become standard for “Tony Hawk” games, “Proving Ground” features a full-scale rock soundtrack for your skating escapades, ranging in age from “Gimme Shelter” by the Rolling Stones to “The Pretender” by Foo Fighters. In-game dialogue is suitably hip and slang-ridden.

While it falls short at times, nothing about “Proving Ground” faceplants in such a way that makes the game much less worthwhile. “Tony Hawk” veterans will find the video editor the only really new feature, but anyone new to the series should enjoy their ride.

Staff writer David Wilcox reviews video games for The Citizen. He can be reached at 253-5311 ext. 245 or david.wilcox@lee.net

If you play

Game: “Tony Hawk's Proving Ground”

Score: 70 out of 100

Parental rating: Teen for alcohol and tobacco reference, language and violence

Publisher: Activision

Platform: Wii, Nintendo DS, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 2, Xbox 360

Price: $49.99

Features: 1-2 players

Life span: 10 hours

The final boss: By including unique Wii controls and elaborate character and video editors, “Proving Ground” presents a fun skating title that goes beyond the board.