Ape Escape 3
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Ape Escape 3 (PS2)
Ape Escape is a very obscure title. Behind big-name Sony platformers like Ratchet and Jak, Ape Escape has always been unique and quirky, thanks to an ambitious control scheme, slick level design, and quirky tilt. After two platformers, a PSP port, and some spinoffs, Ape Escape returns to the PS2 with another platformer, Ape Escape 3. Does the third bring the same fun that the others did?

Graphics 8/10

Ape Escape 3 starts off with some well animated cutscenes featuring new and old friends from the Ape Escape world. With monkeys on the loose, the catching begins again. After watching the cutscenes, you’re gifted with viewing some incredibly clever levels. With Spector, the villain from past Ape Escape games, taking over the airways, net-wielding Kei and Yumi venture throughout movie and TV-themed worlds. Each time you enter a world, the theme will be instantly recognizable, whether it’s the Home Shopping Network or a thriller flick. Even more hilarious are the monkeys. The monkeys do attempt to blend in by wearing goofy outfits that match their surroundings. From a Cinderella-style chimp to a “Friday the 13th” monkey with a hockey mask and chainsaw, each one will make you laugh out loud with its cleverness and hilarious tilt. Character designs of Kei, Yumi, and the rest are decent, but nothing too stunning. There are occasional anime-style expressions, which make the wacky characters even funnier. The camera is a small problem, because it will get jostled and caught on objects. Also, the frame rate does get a bit slow at times. Overall, the graphics of Ape Escape 3 are generally smooth and always clever.

Audio 7/10

Nothing mind-blowing here. The voice-acting isn’t very good, but the level music is catchy and effective in each world. There is a surprisingly large amount of voiced content in Ape Escape 3 and some of it is good, but for the most part, the voice-acting is just adequate. Sound effects, especially those during capture, are loud and well-done. Most of the audio in Ape Escape 3 gets the job done, but nothing really else.

Gameplay 7/10

Ape Escape 3 takes place with the hyper-intelligent monkey Spector teaming up with the scientist Dr. Tomoki and releasing his monkeys onto public television. Spector is brainwashing the old heroes of Ape Escape, so it’s up to Kei and Yumi to save the day. With some help from their friend Aki, the two take off to capture the monkeys running amok. The story isn’t relevant at all, but does give a decent structure to the game’s basis.

Controls in the Ape Escape series have always been obscure, but that’s one of the quirks. Movement is used with the left analog stick. To use your weapons, you tilt the right analog stick in the selected direction. You can assign different items to the face buttons, and by pressing one, you switch off to that weapon. The R buttons are used to jump, and the L2 button is used to go to first-person. Resetting the camera behind you is done with the L1 button, which is pretty clunky and not as quick-to-use as a basic analog camera. However, if that was the setup, the whole attack scheme would be pretty useless. Coping with the camera is a bit of a hardship, but after a while, it becomes intuitive and smooth, just like the rest of the controls.

As one of the two protagonists, you are sent into a themed-world to find the many monkeys running about. There is a set number of monkeys in the world to catch, along with a goal number. Catch the monkeys and reach the goal to finish the level. Simple. However, after you reach the goal, you are immediately exited from the level, which can be a pain, as there are many other monkeys to find and catch.

Aki will give you some cool gadgets to use in each level. The net and club are standard and are simply used to catch and subdue to monkeys. Some of the items, like the Slingback Shooter or Monkey Radar are helpful and fun to use. Others, however, can only be used in certain situations, or are pretty much useless in basic combat. The game forces you to go back into the menu and reassign your face-button assignments to solve one simple puzzle. Sure, there are four different assignments, but some of the items you use you will use a whole lot, and having to reconfigure the face button assignments for one moment gets annoying.

One of the coolest gadgets in the game is the Morph Machine. Using it, you can change into different forms to aid in the capture of monkeys. The forms vary from a strong knight to a quick ninja. The different forms each have their own special techniques, strengths, and weaknesses. The complexity and cleverness in each Morph makes the concept strong and useful. Although sometimes you must use certain forms in certain situations, the game doesn’t suffer from it thanks to a solid interface and quick use (just press both R1 and R2 and select the form). You can even assign a Quick Morph so you don’t have to select from a menu. Even some of the less versatile Morphs are clever and entertaining enough to keep you interested.

Each world is based on some sort of movie or television universe. The worlds take advantage of the different titles by filling them with monkeys and cleverly poking fun at movie and television cliches. It’s hilarious enough just to see a monkey in each world, but when the monkeys start performing on camera, it really gets funny. Much of the odd “why is this happening?” humor can be compared to games like Katamari Damacy. The monkeys’ goofy humor is one thing that makes Ape Escape 3 unique and worth coming back for.

The best example of the humor is the boss battles, many of which put you up against top bananas of Spector’s crew. After mastering a morph, you will face a new monkey foe, each one crazier than the last. From a motorcycle-driving wild west monkey to a dancing superstar monkey girl, the bosses are all a treat to battle just to see what they will say or do next. Each boss has a decent amount of challenge and some clever methods are integrated into each battle. The different items and Morphs are used well in each boss battle, though they aren’t particularly hard to figure out.

I really cannot call Ape Escape 3 a platformer because, for the most part, everything that platformers are known for Ape Escape 3 doesn’t particularly do well. The jumping puzzles are annoying since the R buttons control them, and there is a significant bit of delay after execution. The camera is the serious flaw, especially in tight areas. Constantly pressing the L1 button just doesn’t cut it in such a fast paced game. The monkeys will run around quickly and you’ll always having to snap the camera back behind you gets tiresome quickly. The gameplay in Ape Escape 3 is still ambitious and entertaining for a little bit, but after a while, the charm begins to fade and you realize the problems in the game. The camera and sloppy platforming hurt an otherwise hilarious game.

Replay Value 7/10

The story is surprisingly long. Ape Escape 3 allows for you to catch up to 400 monkeys in the worlds, some of which must be unlocked by buying things in the shop. Time Attack offers replay of stages and bosses to see how fast you can complete the goal. Buying different things in the shop is fun, but really gets old quick. Ape Escape 3 has a lot to offer, but the gameplay problems and lack of diversity in the unlockables makes the experience less than stellar.

Final Verdict 7/10

Ape Escape 3 is fun, but the fun wears thin after a while. The capturing and puzzle aspects of the gameplay are good, but the things that platformers are known for just don’t do as well here. Messy jumping puzzles, an annoying camera, and boring unlockables keep the game from reaching its full potential. The humor in the game is simply hilarious and should definitely be a reason to check this game out. Sadly, the gameplay problems keep the game from being a must-buy. Ape Escape 3 has the style, but lacks the substance to be an excellent platformer. Rent it.