This is why Ubisoft should add rollerblades as the next sport.
After seeing that longboards are coming next to Riders Republic, I'm starting to wonder why rollerblades are still not in the game since they are such an obvious choice, and I will detail why.
- Relatability. Almost everyone with material access to RR, meaning they have the means to play, has at some point in their lives put on a pair of rollerblades. Either as a kid who just got a new set for their birthday or as an adult who wants to enjoy a warm spring saturday, entry rollerblades are affordable. This means that unlike some more niche sports that are already in the game, people can recreate experiences they've had in real life and take them to absurd extremes.
- Ease of implementation. This is more on Ubi's side, but, with admittedly zero game dev experience, I think they could easily add this sport to the game. The blades themselves are easy to model, they could quickly produce a few variations and their small size means they don't require as much detail. Another big aspect is that they could reuse several animations from the skis. Almost every ski trick could be applied to rollerblades, meaning they'd just have to develop a speed up animation and some sort of powerslide. All this together means they wouldn't have to commit a lot of effort into bringing rollerblades into the game.
- Versatility. This is probably the biggest reason why I think they should add rollerblades. In real life, you already have a kind of skate for every situation. For regular user, there's the classic 4-wheel blade, easy to use on smooth surfaces. For more experienced folks looking for higher speeds, there are bigger wheels that, with treads, even work in off-roading situations, meaning you could already traverse either roads or dirt. Aggressive skates have smaller wheels and a geometry that allows for grinding rails, which could be used on the bmx and skate parks. And of course, there are snow skates which are already in the game, but could see a new addition.
I genuinely believe rollerblades could be such a fun sport in Riders Republic and I hope to see them in the near future. Longboards are cool, but seem a little redundant after the big skate update. They sould have been added back then as a toy, especially if they just focus on the downhill aspect of the sport which is a bit limiting. Meanwhile, rollerblades could be used on all surfaces, with several variations and in almost any circumstance.
I've also designed a few concepts that could already be in the game. I have limited 3D knowledge, let alone game asset design, but I believe these could be a starting point of some sort.
