Jak 3

"Naughty Dog achieves redemption with Jak 3"

Wow, what an incredible game. Too short, but incredible. Naughty Dog has more than redeemed themselves with Jak 3. Gamers who suffered the hellish torture of Jak 2 will find a game much, much easier than its predecessor and far more enjoyable to play. The graphics are beautiful, the gameplay never gets dull, the story is fascinating (until the end), and there are tons of unlockables that you can actually have hope of unlocking, unlike Jak 2. Unfortunately, this gem of a game is too short. The fun was over long before I wanted it to be. But Jak 3 packs lots of replay value.

What struck me about the game most of all is how much easier it is than Jak 2. In fact...(dare I say this?) it's almost too easy. It's obvious Naughty Dog heard the cries of suffering gamers everywhere following Jak 2's release, because the difficulty has been toned down quite a bit. Each mission has multiple checkpoints, so there is no more starting an entire mission over when you die. Jak's health meter has been expanded, and he doesn't take as much damage from enemy hits as he did in Jak 2. Even the Orb Challenges, many of which were next to impossible in Jak 2, are much easier. You'll find yourself collecting Orbs right and left. What's even sweeter, Jak can now heal himself with his Light Jak power. That means no more praying that the next Krimson Guard crate will contain a health pack. Platforming sequences are a piece of cake compared to those found in Jak 2. I kept waiting for the part when the game would get extremely difficult and I would die a hundred times, but it never came. I kept waiting for that mission that was simply impossible to pass, but I made it through most of them without even dying once. For many, this lower difficulty will be good news, but those who liked the serious challenge that Jak 2 offered will probably be disappointed.

The story of the Precursor Legacy finally reaches its dramatic conclusion in Jak 3, but it's not a conclusion that many will be happy with. I was quite disappointed in the ending, although the story up until then is very good. What is otherwise a mysterious and fascinating tale takes an abrupt left turn and ends up becoming something quite ridiculous. I should have known: Naughty Dog has always found some way to piss me off, and this time they did it with the story instead of the gameplay. I won't give anything away here. Suffice it to say that I don't know what the hell they were thinking. In addition to the story's odd ending, several plot elements are left unresolved, and questions unanswered. That is my only real complaint about the game, and that's good when a player's only beef is with the story, because it's the gameplay that matters.

The world of Jak 3 is an adventure lover's dream. Even better than Jak 2, it brings this fantasy world alive to your senses. I had such a sense of wonder as I navigated the vast world around me. Better than any game I've ever played, Jak 3 succeeds in creating a beautiful, vivid, detailed world that makes you want to explore every part of it. I often found myself just looking at things. Even parts of the game like the sewers have their own distinct beauty. I don't know how Naughty Dog does it, but they can make a system of old, rusted underground pipes beautiful. And Haven Forest: holy crap, it's gorgeous! The art design is remarkable. Many of the areas Jak traverses actually look like part of a real world, with none of that artificially constructed "gamey" look to them. The frame rate stays nice and smooth even with lots of stuff going on. The game has a varied and rich color palette, and even gives you the option to adjust the brightness and contrast of the graphics. This is one thing I wish Jak 2 had offered, since that game so often had a washed-out look. Such beautiful graphics make the game a real joy to play.

But enough about the gorgeous graphics. The gameplay is the true star here. I never once got bored playing this game. The missions alone keep you entertained enough, but in addition there is a plethora of orb challenges and minigames to occupy your time. As stated earlier, the difficulty of these orb challenges and minigames has been toned down a lot, so they are actually fun to play this time. You can have hope of taking the Gold in almost any challenge in the game. Sure, some are harder than others, but none of them are on the verge of impossible, like so many of them were in Jak 2. The mission structure is still largely based on Jak 2's go-to-this-icon-on-the-map system, but many of the missions flow into one another this time, creating a much better flow to the gameplay and eliminating some of the tedious navigating between icons that plagued Jak 2. Another major improvement to the gameplay is you can now find health packs, ammo, and Precursor Orbs stashed in Haven City itself, not just in its outlying regions as was the case in Jak 2. And oh yeah, no more stadium races! Thank the Precursors for that one.

One great thing about the gameplay is the vehicle driving is so much better this time. Do you remember trying to navigate the streets of Haven City on your Zoomer in Jak 2? Do you remember how totally un-fun it was? Well rest assured, things are better now. The amount of Zoomer traffic has been drastically reduced, allowing you much more freedom in your travels through the city. The new Krimson Guard are far fewer in their number, and they don't have vehicles anymore. What's even better, you can now mow them down with impunity. No more alerts, no more frantically trying to evade their endless gunfire. Some of them will even run from you if you show a sign of aggression. Yeah, they're wimps, but it's all good. As far as vehicles go, the desert rides are the star of the show. These dune buggy/sand tanks will provide you hours of entertainment as you race from one end of the enormous desert map to the other. Their handling feels right on, with the exception of one buggy whose strength is speed and not handling. Anyway, why would you want to land on all four wheels after that 150 ft. jump when you can roll five times and then end up upside down on a rock? It's great fun. There are plenty of dune buggy/tank missions, but I didn't feel that they were overdone, as some have expressed. There is just the right balance between vehicle and on-foot missions, and this helps sustain the variety.

If there's one thing that felt a little off about the game it would be...oh dear, I just have to say this...it is too easy. Don't get me wrong--no one complained more than I did about the insane difficulty of Jak 2. I prayed that Jak 3 would be an easier game. The problem is, it's not just an easier game, it's a much, much easier game. I didn't get that sense of accomplishment and pride that I got in Jak 2 when I completed a mission. I almost felt like the game was giving me everything rather than making me work for it. This took away some of the appeal. I started feeling more appreciative of Jak 2's demanding difficulty. But after what I went through with Jak 2, I'll gladly take Jak 3's more forgiving gameplay. I've earned it, as have we all, I think.

One of the best things about Jak 3 is the new weapon upgrades. Jak has the same morph gun that he had in the last game, but this time there are three possible upgrades for each mode. And using them is so much fun. Wait until you use the Supernova--holy...crap. With all the weapon upgrades, Jak's Light and Dark Eco powers, and his melee combat abilities, you have a multitude of options for fighting enemies. Jak 3 even has it's own equivalent of the Titan Suit, but it looks much, much cooler and cannot be destroyed nearly as easily.

It may just be my imagination, but I thought I recognized Amy Hennig's influence on the game. Amy left Crystal Dynamics and her excellent Legacy of Kain series to join Naughty Dog on Jak 3. There are a couple of missions that are very Legacy of Kain-ish in their design. Jak's Light and Dark Eco powers are very reminiscent of Raziel's Light and Dark Reavers. I'm sure that's just coincidence, but it's fun to compare the two.

I was very pleased with the audio in the game. The voice acting, the music, the sound effects, it's all Hollywood movie quality. Daxter probably has more lines than anyone in the game, so it's a good thing he has a talented actor voicing him.

Naughty Dog made some welcome improvements to the control scheme. Jak's jet board now has an instant 180 degree turn maneuver, and also has an addition called the Jet Repulsor. When you hit the circle button, the jet board will emit a pulse which will knock away any creature or person who happens to be in your way. If you time it right, you don't have to worry about enemies knocking you off your jet board ever again. Also, Jak can now use the L2 button is his jet board stunts. I found the jet board in general much more fun to use this time around. And wait until you see the upgrade you can buy for desert boarding. Great fun! Although for the most part the control is great, it does still suffer a little from some of the problems it has had since the beginning. Jak's jet board still doesn't seem to know what to do on rough terrain. Jak still gets hung up on environmental objects when he's on foot, which can be the difference between completing and failing a challenge. There is still no snap camera button to put the camera behind Jak instantly, but for some reason it didn't bother me much this time around. I guess I'm just getting used to the way Naughty Dog does things.

To sum up, you can't go wrong with Jak 3. It's got it all: engrossing gameplay that never gets boring, beautiful graphics, an awesome story, great characters, you name it. Only a too forgiving difficulty level and a really, really bad ending to the story might cause some to complain. It's all the good things about Jak 2 without all the bad things.

Final Rundown:

Gameplay: 10
Graphics: 10
Story: Starts out at a 10, and then in the end, 3.
Audio: 10
Control: 9 (lost one point because the jet board still doesn't handle rough terrain well)
Presentation: 10
Difficulty: Low
Is Jak a stud: Yes
Is Ashelin hot: oh yeah
Should you buy this game: What the hell are you waiting for. Go out and buy it.

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 11/22/04