Full Review for Jak 3 by DeadWing

Introduction

The third and last game in the Jak and Daxter Trilogy. This game is a big improvement compared to the previous two. But, like all games, it has a few flaws.
This game provides excellent graphics, better-than-decent sound, a great but slightly annoying storyline, and nearly perfect gameplay. Continue reading the review for an in-depth look at Jak 3. You will find reasons for why you should buy it as soon as you can, if you don't already have it.

Graphics

These graphics provide such amazing detail. This detail shouldn't even be able to be done in any Playstation 2 game. It seems nearly impossible that a PS2 can handle such incredible detail, and amazing layout. The areas in this game aren't as overcrowded as the previous games. Haven City has been shrunk down in size, due to the war, and is not as difficult to navigate. Spargus City is small enough that it would be impossible to get lost in.

The graphics detail itself is excellent. Character animation is flawless and goes along with the sound. The terrain texture and detail makes it look almost like real life terrain. The water detail looks so real, you almost want to dive in and swim in it.

Menu animations are really good too. They are a little boring, but they don't have any flaws or glitches in them. Character animations match with sound perfectly. The characters move at the joints that the should, and they aren't abnormally flexible.

But, with these excellent graphics, frame rate had to be reduced. There are also a few glitches when you turn around suddenly. The glitches are so short that it's really hard to notice them though.

Sound

The sound does what it should. You hear it when you see something happening. Character voices are heard when the character's mouth is moving. Engine revving noises are heard when you accelerate. The sound quality itself is great.

One big flaw when it comes to sound is the fact that a lot of sound is recycled from the previous Jak games. If you've played the others, you will notice this. But, this is no reason to lower the sound score a lot.

Sometime the background music will skip a bit. The ambient noises also skip a bit, but not as much as music. Rarely, the sound will be off from the graphics or your button presses.

Gameplay

The gameplay is amazing. To progress through the storyline, you must complete missions. There are a lot of missions in the game, but some are incredibly easy. But, don't let your guard down when you do an easy mission. There are some amazingly difficult missions also.

The missions aren't set on any one topic. Some are racing, some are rescues, some are arena battles, and other things like that. The variability of the missions really improves the overall gameplay also.

The controls are relatively easy to learn. You have the most used move set to the easier buttons to reach. You shouldn't get confused by controls at all. In some parts, like the first race, you might take one or two shots before you can handle it. But, most of the game is all easy to handle.

There are a lot of new things in this game, compared to the previous one. For example, this one has more driving related missions. There are eight vehicles that you can unlock and drive in this game. There is the hoverboard again, leaper lizards, and zoomers (also from previous games) in this one also.

Another new thing is this game is the new weapons and abilities. There are the same four categories of guns, but this time there are three guns in each category. Each gun is an upgrade from the previous. As for abilities, not only is there Dark Jak, but also Light Jak. Each version of Jak (dark and light) has four abilities that it can do. Dark Jak is mainly offensive, things like a strong ground slam and a strong punch. Light Jak is mainly defensive, things like shields and health regeneration.

There are loads of secrets that you can buy in this game. You just need to find and collect the Precursor Orbs (golden, egg-shaped things). There are 600 orbs in the game, and you can buy secrets with them. These secrets vary from photo galleries, weapon/ammo upgrades, and fun stuff. When you get enough eggs, just go buy them at the secret shop, which is accessible from your start menu.

Lastability

Even though this game has a lot of new features (such as vehicles and weapons), the storyline itself is relatively short. A non-gamer can beat this in a week, and a serious gamer can beat this in a day. There are a load of missions to do, but most are short, and not very difficult. There isn't an online mode or a multiplayer/co-op mode either.

If you do beat this game, you unlock "Hero Mode". There isn't much point to this though, as you don't get anything new. You just start off with different items.

The secrets aren't very amazing either. Most are in-game things, and the ones that aren't (photo galleries, commentaries, etc.) are usually only things that you would want to watch once or twice.

There really is no replay value to this game. When you beat it, you beat it. The only thing that you might really want to go back into a completed game is to collect all of the Precursor Orbs and buy all of the secrets. After that, it's basically boring. It is a good game though, when you're playing it for the first time.

Overall

The graphics and sound both excel in their own ways. They both achieve things that you never would have thought a Playstation 2 could handle.

The gameplay is excellent. There are a lot of new features, weapons, and vehicles. The storyline is a little random and doesn't flow well, but with some comedic parts in it, and some great missions, it is worth it.

The lastability...maybe a month. If you are in love with the Jak series, this could last a lot longer than a month. But if you never became a big fan of the Jak series, or this is your first Jak game, I'd give it a month, tops.

Overall, this game has some great things with it, a lot of good things, and a few bad things. There aren't any horrible things about it. I'd recommend buying it if you like the other Jak games. If you have a friend that owns it, borrow it from them instead of buying it, if you aren't a Jak gamer.

Final Score: 92%