Ape Escape

[specspi]

Has anyone ever played any of these games? the one i've manly played is #2. it really is fun to go around places and catch monkeys when some could be very easy tto catch and some could be very hard.

[Dr. Daedalus]

I own the first game. It was revolutionary for its time with using two joysticks to accomplish tasks, but it hasn't aged well. Graphics don't hold up even to some other PS1 games (slowdown; ugly textures; blocky character designs), and the music is either really forgettable or obnoxious. There are a few OK tunes in the game but nothing hummable or memorable in the sense of placing melodies to specific levels.

Also, I was never a fan of only being able to store four items in your inventory at a time, thus making it tedious to go to the menu and swap during gameplay. They should've just made the "change weapon" button Select, so you could cycle through all of them on the fly.

The monkeys can be a pain to catch, thanks to the not-so-forgiving hit detection on touching them with your net and their ability to jump around while you're not nearly as agile. In fact, compared to some other 3D platformers, Ape Escape feels slightly sluggish.

Then, of course, there's the replay value. Similar to the Spyro games, once you collect the various items in a level (in this case, monkeys), they're just not as fun to play through the second time around, as it'll be empty aside from the enemies and those triangles.

The camera sucks, too. Too often, you're either too close to the camera or it's obtrusive, and the camera re-adjust button isn't very helpful.

So overall, I'd rate is as average today.

[Kevin the Geek]

I have Ape Escape 3 for the PS2, and it's great.

In Ape Escape 3, you can play as either a boy or a girl. So far, I have beat the game twice, and have played as the boy and girl in both games (Played as the girl on my first game, then played as the boy on my second game).

Also, you can unlock transformations for your character (Knight, cowboy/cowgirl, etc.). These transformations will make it easier for you to capture monkeys, not to mention being quite helpful during boss battles. Be careful though, as the transformations have a time limit to them. Once the transformation gauge is empty, you won't be able to transform again until the gauge reaches full power.

[MegaJ]

Played Ape Escape and Ape Escape 2. Ape Escape 3 I'm currently slogging through.

I actually liked the first one over the last two, nostalgia may be fogging my mind but I thought it was a top notch platformer. The second one was too easy for my taste, even though technically these are games for children. The third looks like they're finally adding some challenge, I freaked out when a monkey took my net.

[Tora Yakari]

The original was the first console video game I ever owned. In my life time I've gotten 100% completion 12 times.
I briefly rented Ape Escape 2 but never beat it. It failed to keep my interest as much as the previous. The gadgets weren't as cool, I think is what threw me off.
I LOVE Ape Escape 3 though, the option for 2 playable characters and the transformations feature made it super fun. I love Yumi/Sayaka's final transformation, Princess Ace, she looks like a magical girl! I wanna play Sailor Moon music whenever I have her transform into it! XD

[PC!]

I think each Ape Escape greatly improved on the last. The only reason the original is still my favorite is because of my great memories playing it way back in 1998. But taking off the nostalgia goggles, it really is pretty bad compared to the sequels, I think.