Ape Escape 2

"Gotcha ya Monkey"

Well I suppose you have read the reviews criticizing this game because it is to short. It is, it took me 7 days to complete the whole thing, but you should still buy it. Here is why.

Story 7/10

Ok, Not much has changed since the first one, Ok nothing has changed from the first one, it is still the same principle. The same monkey is aiming to take over the world and you have to try an catch monkeys. OK, it is the same as the first one but the Mario Karts are all the same. There really much story changes Sony could make anyway. There are also loads of unlockables over 150 but these are just mainly artwork and some bonus games. But it really lacks something new in this game, maybe in Ape Escape 3. So for this the story gets 7/10. It would have got 10/10 if it was an original story.

Graphics 10/10

Genius, Pure Genius. This game has some of the best graphics I have seen in a long time. It has wonderfully detailed environments and countless enemies. Then there are the monkeys, although they are nothing more but updates they still look amazing. There are also the bullets that come from the monkeys machine guns, you can actually see them leave the gun. The monkeys look different as well they each wear colored trousers and these decide what to monkey does e.g. if they are blue they are always hiding but if they are white they are very agile. But it is fabulous so it gets the full 10/10. It could be higher, bring on Ape Escape 3.

Sound 9/10

The sound is highly original and you will love it. Each level has different sound track the sounds are amazing. They are like Game Boy as all they are are beeps and some music playing on top of these beeps. The monkeys also make a brilliant sound which can get annoying. The monkeys also react to sound and run away when you start coming close. So the sound gets 9/10 due to them annoying Monkeys.

Gameplay 9/10

The Gameplay gets 9/10 as the game is quite repetitive all you do is run around and catch monkeys in nets,the same as the last game. There are loads of unlockables as well and also the gadget trainer which you use to train on the gadgets you recieve as you progress through the game. The levels are a bit linear as you have to go through some obstacles but after that you are free to explore and go back to a level whenever you want. I also like the idea that you don't have to catch all the monkeys to progress to the next level you only have to catch a few. There is also the feature of the monkeys having different stats. The higher they are the harder the monkey is to catch. So it gets 9/10 as the game is quite short.

Replay Value 7/10

The replay value gets a low score as once you have collected all 300 monkeys and unlocked everything you will only get this game out on occasions like when you have just seen a program about monkeys on TV. All though you will complete all over when you start playing again.

Final Thought

This game should be rented to see if you like it as you could probably complete it in the time you have rented it. But if you have played an loved the original and see it on offer you should buy it. As apart from it being a bit to short it is a brilliant game.

Final Score 8/10 Good Game but over to soon.

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 11/22/03