Monkey? Ape? Get 'em All!
Let's face it, I don't like new 3D platforming games, although Crash 3 was sorta 3D, I liked that. But Ape Escape, I though would be another cookie cutter 3D title, to go with the likes of Spyro and Gex. It's good to be wrong sometimes.
Imagine, if you will, that there is one cute little ape, seen him every time you went to the circus, and he did funny little things. One day, said ape comes around finds a intelligence boosting helmet and gathers a few of friends and they all have a little party. Not so cute anymore is he? Well, that's exactly what Specter does, and sends all his hairy cohorts to different periods of time, changing the course of time forever! But our hero Spike , along with some help from his friends, goes into the time warp and proceeds to deliver some cans of animal brutality.
Dual Analog: Necessary Equipment
Ape Escape is the first game to require you to use the Dual Analog controller, as every button on the thing is used, even the D-Pad. But it takes awhile to grow accustomed to the controls, but when it happens, you start to really appreciate the time that went into the controls. The left stick controls Spike while the right one controls his weapons and items. Each button uses an item, similar to Zelda. The D-Pad serves as camera control while the Shoulder buttons snaps the camera and allows you to jump. With this setup, the game feels so natural, so right. Especially with item usage. With the net or the rod, flick it quickly in a direction to launch the items, rotate to spin the items around and just about everything else in between. This game even makes use of the L3 and R3 buttons, on the sticks themselves, to make Spike crawl or hide.
Like So Many Before It
Ape Escape is set up similarly to Crash 3. There is one central area, where the game always starts off at. From here, you either go to the game, select your level and be off. Or you can come along and practice with the various items you've earned thus far. Better still, spend rare Specter Coins to unlock 3 very cool minigames. And let's not forget, head for the computer for some serious Memory Card management. However, this game, like Crash gets deep. Rather than the objective be to finish a level, you have a quota of apes to catch. Once that quota is fulfilled, Spike automatically is sent back to the time room to tally up the day's catch. Of course, energy chips lie all over the place, collect 100 and get an extra life. One thing that is unique, there are no level bosses. Once you've finished all the areas in a time period, a new period opens up. There are, though, enemies that block your progress and require many hits to defeat, but they are few and far between.
It's All About The Monkey
Spike's character is not all that exciting, but he doesn't need to be. The apes more than steal the show. They all have quirky mannerisms that set themselves up for some serious comedy. In particular, scare an ape, watch it run around a few times and then you should hide yourself. The ape breaths a sigh of relief. Now's the perfect time to catch them. The biographies of all 220 apes, though very brief, includes amusing one-liners describing them
Visual Thrills
One thing that's I'm hard on and that's 3D graphics. Only Crash 3 walked away in my book as a graphics powerhouse, but once again, Ape Escape manages to top it. The environments have a lush atmosphere and are filled with tiny details (One of the levels that take place at night, has a beautiful backdrop, complete with a full moon and shooting stars). The challenge modes are filled with flashy and jazzy effects, and the draw is incredible with no fog effects whatsoever. Even capturing a monkey is accompanied by an array of dazzling special effects. The only downside is the plainness of the characters, excluding the apes, of course. They're OK, but with the rest of the game looking so great...you just don't notice them.
Jazzed Instrumentals
One thing I really like about this game is the music. Sure, platformers have cutesy, catchy themes, but in this game the techno-synth is nothing short of incredible. If you got a sub, I recommend turning it up for some real wall shaking action. The bass line that accompanies the tracks is deep. There's never a theme that really makes you turn it down, and it is a nice change of pace from the usual platform themes we're all accustomed to hearing. Nothing like making that PCM chip work hard for your money, is it? As for sound effects, well Spike's voice is clear and the monkeys really sound like screaming simians. The voice acting isn't bad, but anyone expecting MGS will be a little disappointed I imagine.
It's So Deep You Might Drown
Ape Escape is a deep game. Even after "beating" the game, there are still numerous things to do, like going back capturing those that think they have escaped! Once you've capture all the monkeys in any given level, and find all the Specter coins. That level is considered 100% complete. This opens up a time trial, where you have a set time limit to bag the quota of monkeys. Then you receive an icon of your ranking: bronze, silver and gold. As well capturing all the monkeys opens up a true secret in the game. Nabbing Specter coins, gives you an opportunity to participate in one of three very unique minigames, accessible from the Game Center. What's neat is that with a little fleshing out, they would make cool games on their own. But they require the dual analog controls. In the first mini game (10 coins), you race on skis, but you use each stick to control each ski on a variety of course. Or the second is a boxing game where each stick controls the arms; ever wanted to backslap a boxer? Here's the opportunity.
Final Judgment
This game comes highly recommenced. Sure , it has cartoony themes, but this is one of the truly enjoyable games out there. You should almost pick a analog controller just to get this game. Everything feels so natural and intuitive. Plus this is a game worth playing even after you beat it. With so many things to do, it's hard to simply pass this one up.
|
