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Ape Escape 2 Preview
Chris Leyton
10/12/2002
We take on those simians once again as Ape Escape 2 drwas near its European release...
Released alongside the Dual-Shock controller; Ape Escape was an excellent PSOne title that made innovative use of the new controller. Despite the innovative features and the inclusion of hundreds of crazy monkeys, the game was criminally overlooked and passed by without many people noticing.
Undeterred the developers created a pseudo-sequel which was only released in Japan, and started work on a true sequel for the Playstation2; we recently took hold of a near complete version of the European build and have once again been smiling like cheeky monkeys.
For anyone that didnāt catch the original, the game once again places you with the sole task of rounding up and capturing a batch of monkeys through levels with the use of a range of cool gadgets. The game bucked the trend formed by the likes of Mario 64 and invented itās own control system, which confused and put-off many people to begin with; however those that persevered found a gem that rivaled even the mighty Mario 64 in the platform genre. Instead of using the typical control system, Ape Escape and itās sequel make excellent use of the Dual Shock controller; in the way that Mario could only be played on a N64/Gamecube controller, Ape Escape and its sequel can only be played on the Dual Shock.
Using the right stick to manoeuvre the character, the right stick allows you to use the variety of gadgets in 360 degrees of motion; whilst the face buttons allow you to map different gadgets to them for a completely intuitive control system. The shoulder buttons are then used to jump, switch to a first-person view and finally centre the camera behind you. To begin with youāll be swearing and blinding as you instinctively press X to jump and find yourself standing there, whilst trying to adjust the camera and watch bewilderedly as your character swings left, right and centre; however within no time at all youāll become accustomed to the controls and begin to see the true beauty of the game.
Tying the game together is a story that could only have come from Japan; fans of the original will be disappointed to know that the hero from the first title, Kakeru has gone missing as players now take on the role of Hikaru complete with his special pet Pipotchi, a strange looking creature which resembles a small monkey with wings!
Despite the change in main characters, the game has many links to the original title; the Professor and his assistant return, whilst Specter once again provides the main threat. Leaving Hikaru with one task when heās away on a vacation, The Professor asks Hikaru to transport a large delivery of monkey pants to Monkey Park. Hikaru accidentally manages to include a number of Peak-Point Helmets with the pants. Peak Point Helmets and monkeys donāt mix: they increase their intelligence and give them ideas above their station. Needless to say, as soon as Specter, the monkey leader, puts a Peak Point Helmet on, he starts hatching plans for world domination, to make a society fit for monkeys to live in, and declares war on humans. Meanwhile several other monkeys also don the helmets and escape from Monkey Park. Hikaru is scolded for allowing this to happen, and ordered to catch all the monkeys.
The basic gist of the game requires you to go mano-a-mano against the primitives, ultimately using your net to swipe them up and capture a certain amount per level. To begin with this simply requires you to swipe your Monkey-Net in their general direction, however as you progress through the game youāll see that these monkeys have quite a few surprises up their sleeves; weāve seen monkeys in black suits sporting black shades and mini Uziās in an obvious homage to Tarintino,
Whilst each monkey is unique, they all fit into different categories depending on the colour of their āpantsā, certain ones are easy to capture, whilst those wearing blue pants are deceptively fast and require the use of a certain gadget to catch them. The formula is wonderfully simple and sheer gaming bliss, a standard platfomer becomes a game with commendable levels of depth and strategy; yet set in a world populated with crazy monkeys, itās a winning equation.
Three new gadgets have returned along with the nine that featured in the original; itās the humorous and excellent execution of these that make the game what it is, for example using the monkey radar sees you circling the stick in a rotary manner whilst the catapult requires you to pull back the stick and let go in a realistic manner. Hyping a games control system may sound a little daft, but like Mario 64, this game is all about an intuitive and rewarding system that is enjoyable to use.
A brilliant reward system compliments the game design, by picking up gold coins throughout the level youāll be able to use the Gotcha Box, which works in a similar manner to those devices which dispense toys in plastic balls. A wide range of unlockable goods is available to collect; ranging from pictures, information about the game development, movies, monkey novels, soundtracks and even corny jokes! Itās a great system that rewards the player through each level and sustains interest throughout the game. Weāve also been told that after completing the games 20 missions, you can then play through a second time with the HikaruScope ā“ a device to highlight secrets that you may have missed the first time around ā“ once youāve done this youāll then have the chance to go through the game with Kakeru, the hero from the first game!
