Jak 3
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| Jak 3 | |
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 North American box art |
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| Developer(s) | Naughty Dog |
| Publisher(s) | SCEA |
| Designer(s) | Jason Rubin (Director) Andy Gavin (Lead Programmer) Hirokazu Yasuhara (Game Designer) |
| Composer(s) | Mark Mothersbaugh Josh Mancell Larry Hopkins |
| Series | Jak and Daxter |
| Aspect ratio | 16:9 / 4:3 |
| Native resolution | 480p (EDTV) 480i (SDTV) |
| Platform(s) | PlayStation 2 |
| Release date(s) | NA November 9, 2004 EU November 26, 2004 |
| Genre(s) | Platformer |
| Mode(s) | Single player |
| Rating(s) | ESRB: T (Teen) OFLC: G8+ PEGI: 12+ USK: 6 |
| Media | DVD |
| Input methods | DualShock 2 |
Jak 3 is a video game for Sony's PlayStation 2 console developed by Naughty Dog. It is the final game in the main Jak and Daxter trilogy, but it has inspired a further spin-off in Jak X: Combat Racing, as well as PlayStation Portable title Daxter. Jak 3 was completely localized and dubbed in Japanese, but was not released in the country due to Jak II's poor sales.[citation needed] Japanese, however, is selectable on the Korean release of the game and will play on a Japanese PlayStation 2.
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[edit] Setting
[edit] Location
Like its predecessors, Jak 3 takes place in an un-named fictional universe created by Naughty Dog specially for the games. Specifically, it is set in the New World, its time frame placing it around 500 years after the events of the first game. Jak 3 largely focuses on the Wasteland, a large desert only briefly referred to in the previous entry in the series as being completely uninhabited and inhospitable.
Spargus City, a large settlement within the Wasteland bordering the ocean, is where the game officially begins, and serves as a hub for the player, where new weapons and upgrades can be earned, and most missions are given out. Later on, the plot shifts focus to Haven City, a sprawling metropolis which was the central locale in Jak II, though the size of the area is only a fifth of the Wasteland.[1] Some levels from the previous game are radically altered or removed entirely, while others are added, branching off from Spargus and the Wasteland rather than from Haven.
[edit] Characters
As in the games before it, Jak 3's two main protagonists are Jak who is 18 years old and his best friend Daxter the 'ottsel', which is a fictional cross between an otter and a weasel. Jak's mechanic friend Keira returns in this game. There is also Ashelin, the Governor of Haven City, who was previously involved with Torn, the now-commander of the Freedom League. Daxter's love interest Tess returns as a weapons designer; and Keira's father, Samos, also makes appearances through the game.
A new character, Damas, is first introduced here. He is the king of Spargus City, and is later revealed to be Jak's father, though he dies just when Jak discovers this. More minor but returning characters include Sig, a spy of Damas back in Haven City who becomes the new king of Spargus after Damas' death; Onin, a blind and mute soothsayer, and Pecker, Onin's translator and adviser to Damas in the early parts of the game.
Few of the original antagonists from Jak II reappear in Jak 3. A new secondary villain is Count Veger, a self-absorbed Haven City aristocrat who banishes Jak to the wasteland at the beginning of the game. The player later finds that Veger wishes to journey to the core of the planet and gain the power of the Precursors. Even as he attempts this, a species known as the Dark Makers begin to invade the planet, seeking to destroy it. The Dark Makers are Precursors who have been corrupted by Dark Eco, similar to the antagonists of The Precursor Legacy.
The main antagonist is the former Krimzon Guard commander Erol, first introduced in Jak II, renamed Errol. He is a cybernetic version of himself, as he was badly wounded in Jak II when he crashed into a month's supply of Eco barrels trying to run over Jak after he won the class one race. Sometime before the start of Jak 3, he restarts the manufacturing of newer Krimzon Guard Deathbots, whose original factory was shut down during the events of the previous game. Errol launches a war against Haven City in tandem with the remaining Metal Head monsters, and later forges an alliance with the Dark Makers. He obtains a massive Dark Maker terraforming robot at the end of the game, with which he attempts to destroy the planet. The Terraformer, with him in it, is then destroyed by Jak as it advances through the Wasteland towards Spargus City.
[edit] Plot
The game opens with Jak and Daxter being banished into the Wasteland by the tyrannical Count Veger for supposed crimes against Haven City. As they begin to succumb to the heat of the desert, they are rescued by a group of desert-dwellers, who take them back to the city of Spargus.
Upon their arrival in Spargus, Damas, the king, demands that Jak serve him in return for allowing Jak to remain in the city and to repay the debt for saving his life. During one of Damas' missions, Jak is found by Ashelin, who begs him to come back to Haven City to defend it from the Metal Heads and the new Krimzon Guard Deathbots. Still embittered about being exiled, he refuses to return. Ashelin leaves him, but later, Jak changes his mind and makes the journey via transport to Haven City. Jak and Daxter help reunite the resistance in Haven and give them hope that they can beat back the Metal Heads and KG Deathbots.
Partway through the game, Jak and Daxter start to encounter strange creatures. A Precursor telescope in the outskirts of Haven City reveals that the beings are Dark Makers, who were once Precursors, but exposure to Dark Eco transformed them into twisted beings. Jak finds that a purple star in the sky is actually a Dark Maker space ship, and it is nearing the planet. The only way to stop the ship is to activate the planetary defense system situated at the core of the planet. During an attack on the Krimson Guard War Factory, Jak finds that Errol, a character thought to have been killed in the previous game, survived as a cyborg and is leading the Deathbots. It's also revealed that Errol is the one calling the Dark Makers. Jak destroys the KG War Factory, but Errol manages to escape. With the destruction of the Metal Heads and Deathbots in Haven City, Jak and Daxter begin their trek to the Planet Core.
They are aided by Damas, who helps them break through the Metal Head territories. Damas is killed in the attack, and with his dying breath he unintentionally reveals that he is Jak's father; he also reveals that Jak's true name is Mar, named after the founder of Haven City. They are then ambushed by Count Veger, who is detained by a small group of Precursors, revealed to be Ottsels like Daxter. The Precursors send Jak and Daxter to the Dark Maker Ship to slow it down while the planetary defense system charges. The mission is a success, but Errol, who boarded the ship using a Warp-Gate, takes a Dark Maker Vehicle and pilots it down to the planet's surface. Jak follows, and after a battle, the robot and Errol are destroyed.
After a celebration in Spargus City, the Precursors bid farewell to the planet and go out into the universe to combat the Dark Makers. Jak is offered a place in their ranks, but he declines.[2]
[edit] Gameplay
Like its predecessor, the gameplay of Jak 3 is a blend of platforming, driving, and gun combat.[3] The player is led through the story as they complete missions, assigned by the various characters in the game. Missions can consist of anything from defeating particular enemies, reaching a specific location, or completing a puzzle. With the exception of timed or otherwise linear missions, the player is free to explore the game world as they see fit. Special machines set up around the levels also assign short, non-plot-related tasks; completion of these goals will reward the player with currency-like Precursor Orbs, which can then be used to purchase cheats.
Cheats, made available as the player progresses, can upgrade weapons, flip the game world around into a mirror image of itself, or grant the player invincibility.[4] After the game has been completed, the Hero Mode option is made accessible, which, when purchased, allows the player to re-play the game at a harder difficulty level. As Precursor Orb count is not reset, and the orbs are regenerated at their original locations, the player is able to regather orbs that he or she had already collected the previous time they played through the game. Collecting all 600 Precursor Orbs has some cosmetic effects on Jak's appearance, but has no effects other than this. In Hero Mode, Jak also keeps all twelve of his weapons. [5]
There are some differences between Jak 3 and Jak II. Most notably are the changes undergone by the Haven City environments. While Jak II provided the player with four different types of guns, Jak 3 expands on the concept with two additional modifications for each type, ending with a total of twelve weapons. Also, the 'Dark Jak' form, introduced in Jak II, which allowed the player to transform into a more powerful version of Jak, is countered by a 'Light Jak' form[6] that mainly focuses on defensive abilities.
[edit] Development
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[edit] Reception
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Jak 3 received overwhelmingly positive reviews, such as an 8.6 out of 10 from Gamespot,[7] a 9.6 out of 10 from IGN[8], and a 9.25 out of 10 from Game Informer magazine. Its average review score is an 84 out of 100 from Metacritic.[9]
[edit] References
- ^ Jak 3 for PS2 at GameZone.com
- ^ Jak 3: Jak (to Daxter): With all our adventures ahead, you wouldn't last a second without me.
- ^ PS2 Games > Jak 3 Preview
- ^ Jak 3 for PlayStation 2 Cheats - Jak 3 Codes - Jak 3 Cheat Codes, FAQs, Walk-Throughs, Hints
- ^ Jak 3 Cheats, Codes, Cheat Codes for PlayStation 2 (PS2)
- ^ Jak 3 (ps2: 2004): Reviews
- ^ Gamespot Jak 3 Review
- ^ IGN Jak 3 Review
- ^ Metacritic Jak 3 score
[edit] External links
- Official North American website
- Official European website
- Naughty Dog's Jak 3 site
- Jak 3 at MobyGames
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