Skateboard

Lore & Background

The Cooper gang has always favored tools that let them move fast and vanish just as quickly. The skateboard fits that philosophy perfectly: low to the ground, quiet enough to slip past a security camera, and fast enough to cross a city block before the alarm finishes its first beep. It is the vehicle you reach for when the level is all rooftops, half-pipes, and tight alleyways — places where a helicopter would be a liability and a submarine is simply absurd.

Across the series, the board sits alongside the gang's other vehicles as a terrain-specific option. Where the helicopter handles aerial stretches and the submarine covers underwater sections, the skateboard owns the street-level and park environments. It is not a weapon and does not carry a grappling hook; its entire purpose is momentum. You kick, you ride, you vault, and you are gone before the security detail has finished squinting at the camera feed.

The board's design language in the games leans into a casual, slightly battered aesthetic — nothing sleek or military. It reads as a tool a raccoon thief would grab off a sidewalk, not a piece of high-tech equipment. That grounded, scrappy feel is consistent with the Cooper gang's overall presentation: clever, a little sloppy, and always ready to bolt.

In Their Own Story

The neon hum of the city bled through the gaps in the alley. Sly kicked the board flat, felt the wheels bite the wet concrete, and pushed off with one foot. The board surged forward, carrying him up the ramp and over the chain-link fence in one fluid arc. Below, two guards were still arguing about whose shift it was. By the time they looked up, the only sign he'd been there was a faint scuff mark on the asphalt and the distant *clink* of a stolen gem catching the streetlight as it tumbled into a satchel already on his hip. He hit the next rail, popped a small ollie, and was three blocks gone before the first guard even said his name.

Reader's Guide

The Skateboard is a traversal vehicle used in urban, park, and street-style levels. It is not a combat tool; its sole purpose is fast movement across flat or rolling terrain.

Activation: In levels where the board is available, approach the marked spawn point or pickup. Sly (or the active companion) mounts the board automatically. Control scheme mirrors the standard vehicle inputs — forward/back for acceleration and braking, left/right for steering, and the jump button for ollies or small hops over obstacles.

Who rides it: Sly Cooper is the primary rider. In co-op or companion-assisted sections, Bentley or Murray may take a turn, depending on the level design. The board is single-rider.

Obtaining / unlocking: The skateboard is typically available as a default vehicle in levels designed for it. In some entries it may be tied to a specific chapter or area rather than a global unlock. There is no separate shop purchase in the standard flow.

Upgrades / variants: Across later entries, the board may appear in slightly different visual skins or with minor speed tweaks tied to a level's difficulty, but the core mechanics (kick, ride, ollie, dismount) remain consistent. No weapon attachments or heavy modifications are added; it stays a pure traversal tool.

Tips: Momentum is everything. Chain small jumps into rail rides to maintain speed. Avoid sharp 90-degree turns at full velocity — the board will slide and you'll lose control. Use the board to reach otherwise inaccessible ledges in park levels.

Did You Know?

• The skateboard is one of several terrain-specific vehicles in the Sly Cooper series, sitting alongside helicopters, submarines, and hovercrafts as a way to match mobility to the level's environment.
• Unlike the gang's other vehicles, the skateboard has no weapon system or grappling hook; it is purely a movement tool, reinforcing its role as a street-level escape vehicle.
• The board's design in-game leans into a worn, casual aesthetic — scuffed deck, basic wheels — consistent with the Cooper gang's scrappy, non-military presentation.
• The skateboard is a single-rider vehicle; only one gang member is on the board at a time, even in sections where companions assist nearby.