So, here we go.
Jak 3 and the conclusion of the Jak and Daxter trilogy.
This part platformer, part action series has had plenty of surprises and changes along
the way, so time to see how it all ends.
There are two main worlds to explore in the game.
One is the large desert that lies outside of the City Of Haven and the other is the
city itself.
Now the wastelands aren't safe to travel on foot and so require a range of different buggies
and cars to get about in.
It has a Mad Max or even Judge Dredd feel to it, with a settlement of people living
in rough, warlike conditions after being exiled from civilisation.
It's up to you to prove yourself a worthy warrior to these people.
Driving around is enough to draw the attention of local bandits and marauders who relentlessly
chase and try and kill you- thankfully though, usually without any luck.
Even the city's changed.
War has broken out as the metal heads and a new robot threat cause chaos in the streets.
Although, in saying that, even with a battle on every corner, it's a much, much safer place
to live than it was in Jak II, mainly because there's a lack of other drivers to crash into.
It's nostalgic seeing all of these old locations again, but at the same time, interesting to
see how they've all changed.
You spend the game switching between the the city and the desert, helping out whoever needs
you at the time.
The new characters introduced, particularly from the wasteland, unfortunately don't quite
have the same fun personalities of some of the characters from the old games.
And a few old fan favourites, who do make an appearance, don't really have a lot to
say or do, which is a shame.
A lot of the missions involve racing- more so than they do platforming.
One nice addition is the introduction of some flying levels, which have a much bigger scale
to them.
Jak can eventually even fly by himself, using a new Light Eco ability.
That's right, as well as Dark Eco to turn himself into some kind of beast with powerful
attacking moves, he can also use the all new Light Eco to solve puzzles.
These are all nice moves, however they are a bit underutilised.
Puzzles are simple and towards the end of the game, if I'm honest, I sometimes even
forget that I have them.
Other of course, than the ability to heal- that always comes in handy.
Jak 3 is a lot easier than the second game and never really got as frustrating.
This is maybe disappointing for a lot of players, especially those hardened up by Jak 2.
The biggest difference here is that the levels have a much fairer checkpoint system.
So when you die, you don't have to go miles back and repeat the same sections over and
over again.
Sure it may sometimes take a bit of practice and it may require learning from your mistakes,
a lot like, say a turbo tunnel in Battletoads.
But while this decrease in difficulty, certainly improves the experience, as it makes you NOT
want to throw your PS4 out a window.
At the same time, it makes the whole thing less memorable.
By not having to repeat the same hard sections over and over again, means that you can breeze
through levels at a much faster rate.
Sure the pacing of the game is better, but there's not quite that same level of satisfaction
in completing anything.
And speaking of pacing, I do like how a lot of the missions follow on from one another,
meaning that you don't have to spend as much time travelling around the city, getting from
the end of one mission to the start of the next.
The guns are a lot more powerful, with a total of 12 of them- each coming in handy for different
situations.
Perhaps some of them are a little too overpowered.
It makes even Fallout's Fat Man or even Krypto's meteorite gun look weak.
Of course, the hover board can still be a pain.
This by far causes me the most annoyance.
On foot there is much more room for error when platforming.
Whereas the hover board requires greater accuracy, especially while trying to land a grind.
And I swear at times this thing has a mind of its own.
The bosses provide a lot of fun, each coming with some new imaginative ways of fighting.
You have to bide your time, dodging attacks until you get the opening you need to do some harm.
Completing the game rewards you with a more challenging hero mode.
You can also, if you want to, go around the world unlocking all of these small challenges
for you to do, to get extra precursor orbs.
These can then be spent in the menu, upgrading weapons, unlocking new moves and unlocking
cheats.
Plus, on the PS4, there's a full range of trophies, including a platinum.
Most of these you will get naturally by just playing through the campaign, but there are
some for collecting everything.
And it's also nice to see the game looking good in 1080p, although, maybe it's just me
but perhaps Jak II actually looks a little better than this one.
The Jak and Daxter trilogy is loved and remembered by fans across the globe.
They were games that players poured hours into, trying to collect every item and explore
every nook and cranny as there was always something more to see.
It was a series that matured as its audience did and never stopped surprising.
So thank you Naughty Dog for giving us another excuse to play these games.
My name's Alex A Madge.
And thanks for watching.