I've Jak-ed and I've cummed... err uh, up with this Jak 3 review right here.
Written: Dec 14 '04 (Updated Nov 16 '08)
Product Rating:
Pros: Cool new weapons; cool new abilities; cool new Jak world. Get ready for Jak-off!
Cons: A bit shorter, a bit easier, and a bit more Jak-ie Chan than Jak.
The Bottom Line: Jak 3's the culmination of the epic platforming saga, giving players the chance to attack enemies in more ways, and grants Jak a balanced arsenal of new powers as well.
ChromeKiller's Full Review: Jak III for PlayStation 2
All good things in life must come to an end. The Matrix trilogy. Growth spurts. All that you can eat specials at Red Lobster. Sony's Jak and Daxter franchise. Yes, it's time. Decided earlier this year, Naughty Dog Entertainment president Jason Rubin stepped up to the podium and made a statement that would go on to shock many gamers. He mentioned both the end of Jak and Daxter as we know it, and his resignation as the lead of the talented development team that he helped founded. As announced, his departure wouldn't remove him from dedicating his time to the last project that he would help the company draw to its conclusion, in Jak 3. So, here we are at the end of 2004. Jak 3 has made its arrival. Known as one of the PlayStation 2's greatest platform series, and one of the most innovative and inventive games ever, we dive into the resolving story of Jak and Daxter one last time to absorb every lasting minute of Sony's and Naughty Dog's monumental game franchise before we send out our fond farewells.
Never has Jak had life so easy. From the moment that he and Daxter encountered the boiling vat of Dark Eco to the strenuous years that he himself was transformed into an agent of unnatural powers, Jak has been kicked around a lot for a hero such as he. When we last left Jak and Daxter off at their prior mishap, Jak had saved his new home of Haven City from an evil that tried to conquer it using an invasion of Metal Head forces (e.g., alien-like wretches). And what does Jak get for saving the livelihood of the city? A bag of cash? A hundred 1-ups? A date with Tad Hamilton? Not even! He gets his butt tossed out in the desert wasteland for conspiring with those who sought to corrupt the city without prior knowledge. Oh yeah, and Pecker (the talking monkey-parrot) and Daxter, Jak's best bud (the orange varmint always on his shoulder) went along with him. So where does our hero go from here? Found by wandering marauders, Jak and friends are introduced to Spargus, the city outside of Haven's walls, built and lived in by these nomadic people. Now with a second chance and a fresh beginning, Jak's going to start all over and complete his path down the road to whatever destiny lies ahead.
Last year was that year when different games were starting to go Grand Theft Auto-crazy. True Crime: Streets of L.A. came out with the impressions of Rockstar's tour de force in their mega-million-selling franchise. Spider-Man 2, another one of Activision's borrowers to sell their game with the "GTA gimmick" in mind, saw a new evolution in gameplay mechanics this year with the tight-wearing hero soaring above the city in an open-ended design, the likes of Rockstar's trademark. But where most credit was deserved was when Sony and Naughty Dog enhanced the sequel of Jak II. In a way like no other platform title before it would be brought unto, Jak II stole the show last fall with a Grand Theft Auto-esque world, where Jak could accept missions in a much grander climate. Stealing futuristic hover vehicles, and able to kill civilians and Krimzon Guards alike - Jak had it made like the bad boy that he was meant to become. Taking that Grand Theft Auto world and reapplying it to their third and final Jak saga, Naughty Dog takes the ways of old, and reconstructs many new elements for the finishing touches of its third Jak installment.
First of all, unlike in Jak II, Jak 3 makes transportation a lot easier than before. Where in Jak II getting from place to place around the enormous Haven City was difficult in having to avoid Krimzon Guards in an overcrowded hub, Jak 3 cleans up the skies and the streets for the better by giving Jak leniency throughout his next city escapades. Out of dissembling Haven City as the regional majority, now pops up two residential territories in Jak 3: Haven and Spargus. Plotting the game through these differential divisions, Jak starts his adventure in the smaller, yet sizable city of Spargus. At first it seems that getting around Spargus is a bit slow without any vehicles to board. But, there is a new formation of ride that easily makes travel through the sectors of the city more manageable than a destructible vehicle any day. Called Leapers, these chicken-like lizard things are positioned at various points around the city's blocks. They can jump, they can fly momentarily, and they can even head butt breakable jars and also gulp up the street's critters whole. The only problem with these Leapers, is that they're not as readily available as vehicles were to Haven in the last game (in other words, you'll have to track them down). Advancing through Spargus, though, eventually brings Jak to the desert outskirts outside this city, where another new type of vehicle awaits in the form of many of up to eight different models of dune buggies. Yeah, dune buggies. Traversing the desert is no simple task when you'll find out that multiple marauders in their own laser-blasting bugs patrol these wastelands searching for treasure and death of their own - namely yours. Each of the eight buggies, which over time can be unlocked, have their own particular style of handling. Whether you're someone who enjoys leaping vertically and bombing enemies with grenade shots, or favor a more grounded, maneuverable and machine-gun toting affair of events, there's a very nice selection of machines that each make desert driving, dodging, and destroying a blast.
Of course, it's impossible to officially jack Jak from returning to where his last triumph occurred in Haven. Eventually Jak's going to go back there, and find a changed city. No longer governed by the dominant thumb of Baron Praxis, Haven is now overrun with the alien Metal Heads, in addition to a new robot army. Revisiting Haven reveals how some parts of the city have become suspect to disarray and locked in never-ending war. Other areas remain intact, where fewer inhabitants hover in flying jets and gentler blue-suited Krimzon Guards now patrol the streets (as opposed to the irritable red ones from before). And what I mean by that exactly, is that you're not going to get hunted by a brigade of Krimzon soldiers every time that you start attacking random people and Krimzon Guards in the streets, or crashing into the Krimzon ships in the sky. Jak 3 is a kinder teddy bear. Krimzon cruisers that used to roam the airways with their laser guns are gone. There isn't any manhunts to address anymore. It's a more forgiving world, as the fight has turned its attention to the streets where swarming parties collide with the blue Krimzon protectors. With cleaner and clearer pathways, and without the added worrisome of making it from point A to point B and not turning one accident into a full-fledged war against yourself, reaching your destination through Jak 3 is appropriately made more suitable now rather than stressful.
And where that destination lies, like before, is posted on Jak's mini-map. Pictured in likeness to the circular map that you'll find in the Grand Theft Auto series, Jak's map indicates a triangular icon for Jak and certain images that read the way for Jak to head to next. Once there, Jak's next mission will commence. Jak's objectives are once again sorted through all kinds of interesting and differentiating innovative venues that mix and match uses for his unique abilities. Amongst these missions exist variations of genres too, where in some cases Jak will get to race the Leapers and dune buggies. There'll be other times where Jak must work with jumping or guns (or both). In one scenario, Jak's being shot out of fuming plants in order to destroy objects placed at the top of each standing platform high above a river bed of some bubbling toxic substance below (along with added hoverboard grinding elements and defeating Metal Heads on the side). In another scenario, Jak needs to infiltrate a robot factory and blast bots, crash through barred walls (and yes... through robots, too) using a plow-like dune buggy that's stationed inside, and in the process take control of Daxter, Jak's pet. I meant pal, PAL! Yep, Daxter's back as a playable character. This time around he's given more chances to show the enemy that it's not the size that counts, but the skill and smarts that you have on your side. Although Daxter can spin and jump like Jak can, his main attributes in gameplay rely on him getting through key moments by monkey-barring his way under grated tiles and past lava, heated, and electrical hazards, with a little enemy butt-kicking on the side.
It's where the real meat and potatoes are contained in Jak that this duo survives, however (no offense, Dax). Jak's got all the goods. He's got the weapons, he's got the Dark (and now Light) powers, and he's got the moves. Before I get to the Light properties, let me just point out that Jak's tightly knit move set consists of his usual spinning (circle), slide punching (square), and jumping (X) applications. He can crawl/roll (L1) and make a long jump combined with 'X', and with a weapon equipped he can fire with 'R1'. Pressing 'R2' unleashes his trustworthy hoverboard that lets Jak perform skateboarding-like maneuvers, such as grinding and hopping in the air much farther (and lets him float over water, too). Lastly, pressing 'L2' releases Jak's immeasurable power embedded inside of him to become an unstoppable force. While Dark Jak, Jak can perform special moves like slamming the ground to defeat enemies on all sides. But more so than anything, Jak's Dark properties will find their way into puzzle pieces, like in one temple that temporarily turns Jak invisible to bypass automated security spikes. Elsewhere, he'll be breaking open blocked passage ways with a charged bolt of Dark Eco energy. Otherwise, the puzzle elements are left up to Jak's other half that serves as a balance between the two inherited qualities embedded inside of Jak. This Light Jak, as he's called, gives to Jak time-stopping, shielding, and healing abilities. What's more is Jak can now grow wings and flutter across lengthy distances. Both light and dark properties drain Jak of these powers the more usage that he puts into them, just like the dark leakage process was handled in the last game. When this does happen, Jak can either step over an energy well that secretes either of the specified powers, or just nab fallen dark (or now light) goblets from fallen enemies. In all of his picking and using, the only unfortunate thing about having a Light and Dark Jak is that even though becoming both is extremely cool, Jak 3 doesn't feel like it has much of a purpose for either when Jak's last commodity is essentially more useful in more places than any.
Some portions of Jak II displayed battles of an epic scale. Jak had to fend off dozens of Metal Heads and Krimzon Guards at a time. That's really where Jak's Dark purpose was served best. Here, it's more platform and puzzle-based. This in itself is interesting, but just not as useful when you have up to twelve different kinds of weaponry tactics to annihilate your enemy with. Back in action is Jak's interchangeable Morph-Gun, which instead of just upgrading to larger ammo slots, now it entirely transforms with up to two extra incarnations. Press up, down, left, or right on the D-pad once or up to two times in a row, and a new weapon type will eventually be revealed throughout the course of the game when received after completing a specific mission. The shotgun-type Scatter Gun now becomes a Wave Concussor (forming a ring of red energy around Jak), and then into a Plasmite RPG that lobs balls of explosives at enemy groups. That laser sight-equipped Blaster from before now enhances into a Beam Reflexor that can fire ricocheting bullets off of enemies, and thirdly into a Gyro Buster that deploys a remote airborne device, spinning and shooting all enemies gathered around it. Jak's Vulcan Fury, the machinegun, first changes into an Arc Wielder (or an energy ray spewing weapon), and then into a heat-seeking Needle Lazer after that. And the mother weapon of them all, the electricity bolt firing Peace Maker, now dresses up in one Mass Inverter phase that suspends all enemies into the air momentarily, while in the second Super Nova phase it places a destructive energy blast to eradicate anything and everything in all its white-blurring glory. Having a sufficient amount of item boxes with health and weapon refills (and usually enough ammo dropped behind by enemy forces), the challenge of Jak 3 is toned down somewhat when you've got fewer enemies to fight and more options to beat them with.
Playing Jak 3 though isn't just about surpassing the game's action and platforming elements. There is a boatload of reason in the fact that like most any platform game, you're going to commit your time to a collect-a-thon. Previous Jak and Daxter games gave gamers' the chance to rack up to 100 Precursor Orbs (or secret bronze eggs), and 286 in Jak II. Jak 3's overwhelming total is 600. Locating these Easter eggs by cracking open certain vases, searching behind objects, or platforming your way across rooftops (like in a couple of Spargus spots) is one way to suck up these tricky bastards. The other method is by completing as many tasks assigned by the game's stationed kiosks as you can or want to. Defeating Metal Heads relinquishes gold orbs that are placed inside of their heads. Each kiosk asks that you pay a certain number of these items in order to process the objective that is given. With enough Metal Head orbs, you'll come across numerous and a lot of times difficult requests, such as tracking down an egg in an unspecified (although pictured) location before the clock runs out, to racing through a bunch of checkpoints in time, or a few times killing a certain number of foes, like Metal Heads or dune buggy marauders. Though the diversity between the goals isn't that great (there is only about five or so ways to go about getting your orbs), the setting for each objective is different and tough. For those who have the smarts and skill to grab all 600 orbs, they will also earn themselves the chance to unlock a large number of secrets: from weapon and vehicle upgrades, to game concept art, and even cheats (e.g., unlimited ammo, invulnerability, unlimited Dark and Light powers, etc.).
Surprise, surprise... at how little surprise Jak 3 continues the tradition its franchise started in showcasing a most savory aptitude of graphical aspects that you can just marvel at forever. Distinctive and detailed coloring has always fleshed out the characters and the world of Jak games in a way that gives a bright, and yet roughened kind of cartoon tone to its art. Despite being that Jak 3 hasn't noticeably advanced much visually from last year's Jak II offering, there is much new to see (and old) in Jak's oversized and interwoven world. Spargus is a city of those forgotten people, wandering men and women each carrying a weapon on them. Geckos and Chihuahua-looking rat things graze the grass-rooted streets where steps line up to the porches along the sandy stone-paved alleys below. Natural lighting sets into this Spargus, as the bright of day dims into night, where flames above home entrances are lit a roar in a dazzling, gaseous spectacle. Step outside Spargus, and you'll enter the garage where all dune buggies are parked and waiting to be driven into a massively perilous desert. Sands howl through the wind and collide against Jak's ride when the storm turns from bad to worse. Mountainous hills, rocks, and river beds reside in this rich and yellowy brown expanse. Caverns littered with tiny Metal Heads can be explored here as well. And when Jak's not sticking his feet in the dust, he's able to hop on the one-way express into Haven. Returning to the source, Haven is of a picture-perfect resemblance to how it was in Jak II - except for the newfound rubble and armies forcing their way into certain sections of the city. But wherever you are, wherever you go, just know that Jak 3's crisp, clean, and connected (that's right, a gigantically robust environment that looks this good and has no load times whatsoever) world is drenched in an overabundance of mesmerizing goodness right down to the last drop.
Sticking out and looking awesome like they always do, Jak and Daxter ace their graphical exam once again. Jak appearing buff and fit like a hero should be, with his striking blue shirt strapped with leather buckles, red scarf, and an orange Daxter clinging to his shoulder hasn't failed to impress yet, and doesn't fail now. Down the road, Jak will attach to his clothing brown armor plating that not only looks perfect on him, but enhances his ring of life to boot. And when the time does draw through the middle of enemy territory, it rolls speedily as a fast track highlight as in any of the Jak games. Seeing the Metal Heads pounce and slither through their black and gray-covered bodies, whilst Jak can react with a whirlwind twist (and Daxter going flying with him) always looks neat. The new edition of enemy robots is even cooler though, particularly one type of armored foot soldier robot that wears a red casing. Fire enough bullets at it, and the wrapping will fall off to leave the opponent open for more target practice. With the guns intact, the battle ready situations are particularly what drive them that way. Whip out the Beam Reflexor, and you'll soon have dozens of yellow bullets beaming back and forth off of walls and enemies alike. Bust out the Arc Wielder instead, and a large swaying electrical beam will light up the party as it slices through any foe who gets caught by its deadly blue charge.
Guns aren't the only thing to see here. Dark Jak is back, and he's got a friend with him this time... himself. Illuminating the darkness within Jak like before spouts out a white-skinned Jak with a purple electrifying hue to go with it. Turn on Jak's "Light" lamp instead, and a blueish-whiteish fluorescent tint appears where Jak himself looks like he came from the Blue Man Group. Especially during Jak's winged stage, his flowing moth-like wings dragging behind him turn Jak into a pretty little bug able to traverse large openings in heavenly essence. Flying also has an amazing turn through the limited bursts of flaps that you get with soaring over people and object hurdles in Spargus, and outside in the desert outskirts with the dune buggies in tow. Physics play a large and important role in Jak 3, which effectively proves best when you're spinning and turning over in the sand where you've got an endless supply of marauder buggies hunting you in packs of up to about four or five at a time. When you're speeding up a hill top and flying head over the heels of laser-blasting buggies below you to make an imperfect landing, where you're bouncing all over the place, you know that the physics in this game work properly to make Jak 3 a well-rounded graphical achievement all over the place.
Both a story of comical hilarity and deep inflections, those same highly adaptable voice-actors who brought charm to the characters of the last couple of Jak games are back with a few new faces thrown into the mix: namely Count Veger, a strongly-voiced villainous chief character with a secret, and Damas, the raspy-accented leader of Spargus. Daxter's wily and smart *ss crackups return for a third time, delivering humorous genius mostly for the story segments, and at different points as tips during the missions. Jak's stern although appropriate pipes kick in during the tale also to add balance to Daxter's usual sly-witted self. The only thing missing from this third and final Jak and Daxter edition it seems is more Kiera. That green-haired elfin chick who was made into Jak's personal heartthrob the last game has but a few measly minutes in which to add her vocals to the storyline, or more importantly her body. That sexy, sexy bod: Hoo boy!
Well, naturally there is plenty of excellent things to listen to other than Kiera... like Jak 3's well-pitched synthesized songs. Treading along through non-enemy parts of the cities, there's a real nice adventuresome rhythm happening. When it comes to a brawl, with just Jak, Daxter, and the scum of their world, the music fastens up to a quicker beat. Otherwise, you've got a lot of noise in your head. Good... no, great noise. Jumping, running, spinning, and blasting kinds of sounds is here. These are the kinds of audible tracks that you absorb and accept as truth when the explosion from Jak's Plasmite RPG launches a tiny round grenade that you can hear click against the ground and burst upon impact, or when his Vulcan Fury's machinegun burst actually speeds up slowly, and then steadily the more your finger triggers the rate of fire. Even dune buggies roar and rampage with repeated machinegun and laser fire, Leapers leap and squawk as they soar, running along in their raptor-like ways. Then the hoverbikes and the hoverboard give their best realism effects, with speed and soaring sounds, in which all make for a believable platform environment in the multi-pathed, multipart universe of Jak 3.
Done. Finished. Over. No more. The end of the line. Not going to happen. The sequel to end all sequels. Jak 3 is the finale of Jak and Daxter's epic platform series. Its chapter book has been shut, and its characters will have to live on in our memories and in our hearts. But that doesn't mean that it's through if you haven't yet tried Jak 3 for yourself. You know who you are. You're that guy or girl still playing some other non-Jak 3 game. Yeah, you! Put down your controller, drive over to the game store now, and get Jak 3 as hurriedly as you can. And if you can't do it that fast, then you're a slowpoke. In all seriousness, however, Jak 3 really is this year's platform title to get. Compared to prior Jak-ings, it's better than Jak II in how it's simpler to move around from place to place. That's a plus. Its range of difficulty has diminished since Jak II. That's a bit of a plus and a minus. The game's more action-oriented than it is platform-based. That's a bit more of a minus than it is a plus. The overall length of Jak 3 will take you anywhere from around fifteen hours to twenty to complete the game. That's a minus when considering that you've had more missions and more story time in the other games. But with all minuses aside, Jak 3 has new inventions, new abilities, and tons of entertainment. If you haven't Jak-ed before, Jak-up with Jak 3 now - Jak-*ss!
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