Skate 3 takes place in the town of Port Carverton. After a failed trick, "The Legend" starts his goal to become a skating mogul. The player works to create a team of skaters that compete against other teams, with a goal to sell a million skateboards.
Players can customize the name of the team and choose a preset logo at the start of the game. Once chosen, the player can change their appearance, clothing, and board. Later in the game, purchases unlock more clothing and board options.
The player uses the right stick on the controller to do ollies and tricks. Ollies are the basic way to jump; by pulling back on the stick and flicking it forward, the player can lift off the ground. By controlling the direction of the flick, the player can flip the board. A combination of buttons while in the air modifies the trick even further.
There are various challenges to complete. Some notable ones include:
"Hall of Meat", where the player will bail from their boards to break and get as many points as possible by breaking bones, distance, air time, etc.
"Own the Spot/Lot", both similar in which the player completes a trick (or series of tricks) to a predetermined amount of points to own the spot/lot. The difference being Spot is solo and Lot is using the player's team.
"Photo"/"Film", where the player has to complete either a predetermined or the player's choice of trick(s) on the object(s). After completing "Photo", the player can choose which photo to use for the front cover of the magazine. "Film" doesn't have this option.
skate.Create:
This tool allows players to create custom content for both private or public use.
skate.School:
This allows players new and old to learn and hone their skateboarding skills.
skate.Park:
This tool allows for the creation of custom maps.