The sixth-generation ports of the game (PlayStation 2, Xbox) as well as the PlayStation Portable version utilize the engine of the previous installment, Tony Hawk's American Wasteland, and the games that proceeded it. However, the seventh-gen versions (PlayStation 3, Xbox 360) feature a completely new engine and gameplay to accommodate the more advanced hardware (while too released on the Xbox 360, American Wasteland remained largely the same on that console).
For the seventh-generation versions, Project 8 features an open world, which contains various skate parks and hidden sections. The open world is linear and visibly connected, in contrast to the loading tunnels in American Wasteland. In the sixth-generation version, the levels are separate and have to be manually selected. There are 45 skaters in the game, including unlockable characters, who each have a unique mo-cap style, providing a different experience and no recycled animations.