EA is taking a slightly different marketing tactic with Skate, as it’s been quite open about the game ever since it started development. We’ve regularly been seeing early footage, and this pre-pre-alpha gameplay from a recent insider test is the best yet. While the title’s clearly still years away, we’re beginning to see the bones of a sandbox take shape.

If you missed the previous announcement, the new entry in the popular extreme sports series will be free-to-play, and will have a constantly evolving online open world. The idea is that you’ll be able to place ramps and other objects in the world collaboratively, and then use them as jumping off points to perform tricks.

Despite the free-to-play format, EA says it’ll only sell cosmetics, and there’ll be no “pay-to-win” here. You can actually sign up to participate in the ongoing insider tests if you’d like to, but it’s currently only available on PC as development is still very early. We’re sure, however, access will eventually expand to consoles as the game gets closer to release, and we’ll update you when we know more.

[source youtube.com]