Review: Ape Escape - PSP
More fun than a barrel of monkeys ... wait, didn't we just use that joke template?
Monday, April 18, 2005
After a brief stint eluding Big Boss in Metal Gear Solid 3, the Ape Escape chimps are back in their native environment. While not an entirely new game by any means (it’s a slightly-updated version of the 1999 PSX title), it’s another fun addition to the PSP’s library.
The story is identical to the original, and is just as goofy as ever. An evil monkey named Specter has unleashed wily chimps throughout the history of time, attempting to change it so monkeys rule. It’s like some weird alternate Planet of the Apes storyline, only way more Japanese and colorful. You play Spike, a fairly generic spiky-haired protagonist whose job is to wrangle up all these mischief-loving apes. I’m not going to act like the story matters here, because it really doesn’t. It’s just an excuse to run around chasing monkeys with a net, and I’m not complaining.
One of the best aspects of Ape Escape has always been its’ unique sense of humor, almost always involving the monkeys themselves. A long standing comedy rule is that monkeys are naturally funny, and Sony apparently realizes this. Almost all of the apes’ actions are humorous, making even the loading screens entertaining. All of your captured chimps are logged in a “Monkey Book”, which chronicles names and individual characteristics.
The core gameplay doesn’t vary too much from level to level, and almost always involves you having to capture a specific amount of monkeys. There are a few instances where Spike has to face off against his nemesis Jake in footraces, but those are few and far between. There is a large variety of actions the monkeys will take when they spot you. Some will jump in a UFO and take off, others will hide in igloos, while others will just freak out and throw banana peels at you. It’s always funny, and there’s definitely a sense of satisfaction in netting a monkey after chasing him around a lake for 2 minutes.
Ape Escape does show its age a bit, especially when put up against more recent platformers like Ratchet & Clank. It’s hard to go back to gameplay this simple after exploring the huge worlds and possibilities of a game like R&C. On the Loose does attempt to keep things fresh from time to time by throwing in new gadgets. Almost all of the gadgets serve a legitimate purpose, and really do open up new gameplay opportunities (especially when going back to earlier levels). Gadgets allow you to run fast and hover through the air, amongst other things. They’re nice when traveling around, but your main tools for capturing monkeys are generally the Stun Club and Time Net.
Beating the story mode doesn’t quite give you 100% completion, and gives you a reason to go back. To fully complete the game, you have to capture every single monkey and collect all of the hidden coins. Hidden coins will also unlock some minigames which feature snowboarding, boxing, and ping-pong. They’re decently fun, but I can’t imagine most people will play them more than once or twice.
The biggest difference between the PSX version and On the Loose is purely a hardware issue. Sony’s Dual Shock controller was still fairly new back in ’99, and Ape Escape was one of the first games to truly utilize the possibilities of the analog control. Gadgets were controlled with the right stick, and movement with the left. It was one of the games’ most defining characteristics, and it’s lost in the PSP version. Fortunately, it’s not that big of a deal, as the gadgets function just fine with the face buttons. It just loses a bit of the novelty value.
Technically, the game is exactly as it should be. Colors are vivid and the character models look fine. The graphics haven’t changed much since the PSX version, but I’m not exactly looking for realistic textures and water effects in a game that primarily features you hitting monkeys with sticks. The in-game music is upbeat and catchy, and the sound effects fit the game perfectly.
Each world is split into three sub-levels, and this is great for portable gaming. It’s easy to pick up your PSP, play one or two of these short levels, then save and quit. Eight or nine hours will finish off the main story mode for most people, and you can always go back to previous levels to get 100%. Later levels start to get fairly monotonous as the monkey-catching gameplay starts to wear a bit thin. As long as you don’t expect a full-on sequel (or anything particularly revolutionary), On the Loose is a fun portable that’s worth checking out.
Graphics: B-
Sound: B
First Play: B
Last Play: C-
Gameplay: B-
Overall: 78% C+
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