Gex 64: Enter the Gecko

"Help me, mummy! I'm addicted to a bad game!"

Opening Statement
When I first saw Gex: Enter the Gecko sitting in its beat up case at Blockbuster, I wondered; good game or no? After a couple months, my friend lent it to me and boy was I glad I hadn't wasted my money...

Graphics - 6
Although the game has some pretty colours, the sharpness of everything is just too much. Gex's tongue is a rectangle...
The overall graphics in the TV worlds are pretty nice though. Sure, things don't really look realistic but it is a game.

Sound - 8
It's true, the sounds and music are pretty well done. Although the voice of Gex gets really annoying after a while, the music in the different worlds is nice and changes depending on the area of the level. The music in the 'frontier' parts of the Toon levels does go on forever though and repeats itself.

Camera - 2
Oh, please, no! The camera is so annoying! In the flat places of a level, it's fine but get anywhere else and it's twisting around everywhere, making it very hard to see. I have died because the camera has turned around at the wrong time. Yes, it's true... The camera is not my friend.

Gameplay - 4
At first, the game goes somewhat smoothly but after a while, the levels are very repetitive. The game has a few main themes to the levels so two different levels could look almost exactly the same inside.
The bosses are very easy and can be beaten within a matter of minutes. Meanwhile, the bonus stages are incredibly hard and may take half an hour to complete.
The collectibles, again, are fun at the beginning but it is so annoying to beat a level then find out that you only needed one more Toy Dinosaur to get that Silver Remote. Agghh!
The final boss is the worst. As well as delivering unstoppable blows, one doesn't actually figure out how to hurt him until one has died many a time. Anothing incredibly frustrating attribute to the game.

Replayability - 2
To say the least, after you've beaten the game once, I highly doubt that you'd want to play it again. Unless you really enjoy going insane that is...
You could always go back and get everything but since you need almost everything to beat the game anyways, there's not much point.

Audience Reaction
Even when the game first came out, no one really cared. Oh yay! A new Nintendo 64 game! They cried.
There wasn't much hype before the game came out and there wasn't much after. As much as some people would like to think, not a lot of people enjoyed this game...

Rent or Buy?
Well, I'd say rent but the game is so old and crappy that it may cost more to rent than to buy. Might I suggest the Bargain Bin at your local Electronics Boutique?

Closing Statement
All in all, I cannot tear myself away from my TV. It's sad but true. For some odd reason, no matter how much I scream at the camera for changing direction every second, I keep playing. Maybe it has a subliminal message planted in it?
Anyways, if you seriously want to spend days collecting random items and going insane over the camera and Gex's voice replaying the same message over and over again, then go ahead; I will not stop you.

Overall - 5

Reviewer's Score: 4/10, Originally Posted: 01/11/02, Updated 01/23/02