Reviewed: April 16, 2005
Reviewed by: Mark Smith
Publisher
Sony Computer Entertainment
Developer
Sony Computer Entertainment
Released: March 24, 2005
Genre: Action
Players: 1-2
ESRB: Everyone
7
7
7
8
7.2
Supported Features
Screenshots (Click Image for Gallery)
Ape Escape is one of those enduring series that got its start back on the original PlayStation in 1999. Flash forward four years and a new system later and we got the obligatory sequel which packed in more fun than a…err…barrel of monkeys, and just last year we got the third installment, Pumped and Prime, which was finally starting to show its age in the light of all the new competition within the genre.
But now we have a new system, the PSP, and even though we have more launch titles than you can shake an overpriced handheld game system at, the line-up is notably weak in the platform arena. Ape Escape: On the Loose hopes to capture that niche before more PS2 platformers make the leap to the new system.
On the Loose isn’t entirely new. It is basically a remastered version of the very first PS1 game, so if you have forgotten how that one went or simply never played it (like me) then the premise should be just a fresh and the gameplay just as wacky and original as ever. You play a chimp named Spike who is trying to stop the evil Specter from trying to take over mankind. He has unleashed 200 troublesome monkeys into various time zones and it’s up to you with your trusty arsenal of inspector-gadgetry to capture this simians.
The big hook of the original Ape Escape and its subsequent spin-offs was the incredibly original control scheme that put those twin sticks of the Dual Shock to excellent use, not only for movement and action but for some skill-type puzzles and action scenes like trying to row a boat using the analog sticks as oars. This simple premise is obviously lacking on the PSP where your control inputs are limited.
I’m still getting the hang of the A-Pad, but I am pretty sure I’m not the only one who feels more than slightly uncomfortable with this new analog input device. It just seems overly twitchy at times and it was the cause of more than just a few deaths, especially during some of the more difficulty jumping puzzles or tricky navigation along narrow strips of land.
The lack of the right analog stick now forces you to use the face buttons as an action key that you must now combine with the movement of the analog pad to use a gadget. It’s works well enough but it is also suitably different enough that it might throw off fans of the previous games. You can still assign any of the eight wonderful gadgets to a quick-access hotkey (one of the three top face buttons) for instant access. The X button is reserved for jumping.
Nonetheless, On the Loose is still great fun with plenty of challenging gameplay. There is a slight learning curve to the control scheme but it never becomes part of that challenge. The camera works well enough considering the only real control you have is either centering it or switching to first-person when the situation requires it. Targeting in this view seemed overly forgiving and I would nail chimps with my Slingback Shooter even when it looked like I had missed. My only complaint with the camera is that the left trigger is used for both centering and first-person depending on whether you tap or press, a distinction that isn’t as clear as it should be.
On the Loose packs in some moderately interesting mini-games like snowboarding, boxing, ping pong, and racing, and the multiplayer capabilities of the PSP allow you to challenge another player for some intense action. You unlock these games by collecting coins during the main game, and while they all offer some slightly original gameplay elements, none of them truly stand out as excellent. Most suffer from haphazard gameplay and clumsy controls that put your success in the hands of fate more than skill.
While the graphics are quite good for an Ape Escape game they are merely above average when compared to some of the other titles in the PSP line-up. The colors are bright and cheery and the game definitely maintains a comical (even anime) style about it with exaggerated character designs and wacky gadgets.
There are some stylish anime-style cutscenes, fluid animation, and nice special effects like water and lighting, that all come across with crisp detail on the PSP screen. The textures are still quite basic, perhaps even a bit flat, but this is more of a throwback to the original graphics. It basically looks like a visually remastered version of the original, which in essence is what it really is.
The level design is impressive, both from a scale and a design perspective. The aforementioned camera problems are more an issue with the PSP than the actual game, but they still exist. The gameplay flows by at slick framerates, which only accentuates the control issues.
The music in One the Loose is typical cartoon stuff you’re likely to hear on any contemporary show, especially one from Japan, on Nick or Cartoon Network. It’s upbeat and cheery and not only energizes the player, but can’t help but put them in a better mood than before they started playing.
The voice acting is surprisingly well done, not only for a platform title like this but also for a PSP title where I am just happy to have speech. This is usually one area that gets skipped when creating a game for a portable system.
Sound effects are subtle but every one is in place from the squeak of slipping on a banana peel to the grunts of getting spanked by a monkey. The gadgets all make interesting and original sounds and there are plenty of environmental and ambient noises to bring the levels to life.
It could take you several days of dedicated gameplay to capture all 200 monkeys, and the mini-games will offer some additional challenge, especially if you have a friend with a copy of the game and you can go head-to-head using the Wi-Fi support.
Expect at least 15-20 hours of fun and challenging action, and when you break that up into the smaller gameplay sessions associated with handheld gaming, that is considerably long, unless you are traveling cross-country.
Personally, I had a blast with Ape Escape: On the Loose, but then again, I never played the original so this was a great way to catch up on a missed game from the past. Sony has done an admirable job of working around (or perhaps I should say “with”) the PSP control scheme, so while it’s not entirely true to the original, it does offer a great deal of fun once you get past the 15-30 minute learning curve.
The bright colors and cheery graphics design make this platform title as much fun to look at as it is to play. Kids and adults will find the gameplay addictively fun, and with relatively no competition in the genre at this time, I can safely recommend this title to any PSP owner who enjoys catching mischievous monkeys in a net.