Jak 3

"Mad Max Jak"

While I've never been a fan of their Crash Bandicoot series, I will acknowledge Naughty Dog on making some seriously fun games. As we all know after leaving the Crash series in the capable of hands of Traveler's Tales, they begun to craft a very revolutionary game that we all came to know as Jax and Daxter. Revolutionary as it was the first game to have an enormous gaming world that wasn't broken into different levels and players could finish the game at their own pace. Granted the first game suffered from what we know as the fetch syndrome as you couldn't get to another area without a certain number of objects, it was good for replay value but only for the most patient. Jak 2 did away with this and, taking a page from Grand Theft Auto, added a darker edge and expanded on the go anywhere do anything formula to once again make a excellent game. However many fans complained that the difficulty in the game was very unbalanced being too easy in some cases or too hard in others. So now here we are at the third, and reportedly, final entry in the series and I must say it's a very nice swan song to original series. Yet while it meets my standards, will it sit well with long time fans, and more importantly, win over any newcomers?

Skinny: The last line in the second game, and I quote, stated, “Come Jak, the future awaits”. Well the future isn't looking too kind for our long eared hero as he being blamed for the war brewing in Haven City between the leaderless Metal Heads (the major enemies in the last game) and Krimzon Guards. Because of this, he is banished from the city and left for dead in the desert along with Daxter (who, as always, decides to tag along) and Pecker (from the last game sans the Oracle). Lucky for them, they're picked up by other banished people who call themselves the Wastelanders. Its from here Jax and Daxter begin yet another adventure that will decide not only the fate of Haven City, but their entire world and ultimately revel who the Precursors really are. A very interesting story that drives you to see what going to go down, unfortunenly some of the past characters (such as Keira, Samos, and Torn) get pushed into the background and theres a few plot-holes here and there but only for potential future games set in the JnD world if the folks at Naughty Dog so wish it.

Play Dials: Pretty easy to use for both regulars of the series and newbies. Control with the left stick, switch weapons with the d-pad, shoot with the shoulder buttons and use your up close attacks and jumps with the main buttons. As well as different combination attacks and mini-games as the game goes along. Nothing too complicated that you can't learn within five seconds.

Core: If you've played the last game, you'll be relived to know that the central hubs (the desert city Spargus and Haven City) have been trimmed down so it doesn't take forever to reach your destination and you have less obstacles to worry about to get in your way. But that doesn't mean the game is any less huge then its predecessors since most of the game involves driving around in the desert. Trust me, you'll be surprised how far it stretches and how long you can go. But other then that, its business as usual as you go to and fro different areas, completing a variety of missions that range from simple platforming to racing to arena battles to little mini-games such as gallery shooting, Leaper wrangling or going Pac-man in a computer system while gaining upgrades for your three guns. Needless to say this game will keep you busy for quite some time yet won't bored you with repeative missions due to its incredible replay value and play-at –your-own-leisure pace that allows you to explore these worlds The only downside I can think of is, unsurprisingly, the camera that can get in you way on a few occasions but only rarely and can be fixed. Oh and if your worried about the difficulty. You can relax; it's a lot fairer and balanced then the second game. So you should still have all your hair by the time you reach the end.

Eye-Candy: As always the visuals are superb. Worlds, as mentioned, are huge and extremely detailed with light effect and changing day times. And the animation, do I need mention are very well done. Heck it rivals most CGI movies when it comes to quality and that's saying a lot for just a video game. But then again it's just another step in the evolution of gaming.

Noise: Also good, the music really captures the tribal vibe of the desert land and has great timing when it time to cue up the dramatic stuff later in the game. As for sound, all the voice actors from the last few games return as well as with a handful of new one (one of which is “the next June Foley” Tara Strong) and once again do an excellent job with the characters and moving the story forward. My props to those VAs and all their hard work.

Final Call: The original trilogy ends on a good note as the third game is the finest in the series and anybody looking to buy it won't be disappointed (well maybe a little in the story department) though you can rent if you like. It's a shame the creator of the Jak and Daxter franchise is leaving the series behind but I understand his need to move on to something else after working on something for so long. If Naughty Dog does decide to continue, hopefully they keep the spirit of the first three games while moving into something different at the same time. I say this cause it would be a bad time to mess up now with such a fine resume. But if the Crash Bandicoot and the last Jak games are any indication, I doubt theres any need to worry.

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 01/03/05