Jak and Daxter: The Precursor Legacy (PS2) Review

After the Crash Bandicoot series on the PlayStation, Naughty Dog parted ways with the franchise and created a new IP for Sony. In opinion, this was their best decision yet. The end result is the Jak and Daxter series. The first game in the series, Jak and Daxter: The Precursor Legacy was released on the PlayStation 2 to critical and commercial success. More than ten years later, the game still holds up remarkably well. Why, you may ask? Let's delve deep into it, shall we?

Story and Characters

Two troublemaking boys named Jak and Daxter go to Misty Island against the wishes of Samos the Green Sage. Over there, Daxter accidentally falls into a pool of Dark Eco and gets transformed into an Ottsel (hybrid of otter and weasel). Desperate to change back to normal, Jak and Daxter go on a journey to find Gol Acheron, the Sage of Dark Eco. Little do they know that there is an evil plot that could threaten the world and they are the only ones to stop it.

Not much can be said about Jak other than the fact that he is a mute. Well, not completely; he grunts, giggles, and screams, but he doesn't really speak. His facial expressions make up for it, though. Daxter, his sidekick, is the real show stealer. He's loud, obnoxious, impatient, cowardly, and flirtatious. You might think he'd be an annoying character throughout the game, but he's actually pretty funny. Already being a light-hearted game, he provides a lot of comic relief.

Samos is, what many would say, a fatherly figure towards Jak and Daxter. He may be grumpy and sometimes doubtful to the boys, but in the end, he cares for them. His daughter, Keira, is not only hot, but also very likeable. She's smart, and able to resist Daxter's flirty chit-chat (and also because she's an obvious love interest for Jak).

The villagers in the game, while we don't see them much throughout the game, they are all full of personality.

Gameplay

The game is very similar to 3D platformer games like Super Mario 64 and Banjo-Kazooie. You have this non-linear world where you can travel anywhere, making it up to you on which order you can collect the power-ups. The game feels like one whole level, hence why there are no load times in the game, which was quite an accomplishment back then.

Jak's moveset contains melee attacks such as punching, uppercutting, slamming,  and spin kicking a la Crash Bandicoot. He can also jump and double jump in the air, while spinning while jumping can give you extra air. Throughout the game, you can ride vehicles like the A-Grav Zoomer and the Flut Flut to reach areas that Jak can't. It's too bad Daxter isn't a playable character, though. All he does is take part in Jak's melee attacks, but that's it.

A Power Cell

The main collectible in the game are Power Cells, which are the equivalent to the stars from Super Mario 64 and Jigsaw Puzzles from Banjo-Kazooie. You will need a certain number of Power Cells in order to progress through the game. A great thing about collecting them is that Jak and Daxter do a little victory dance every time they collect a Power Cell, which makes it feel very rewarding.

Additional collectibles in the game are Scout Flies and Precursor Orbs. Scout Flies are the equivalent of the Jinjos from Banjo-Kazooie (forgive me for comparing these two games very often) in which there are seven in each area of the game and collecting all seven gives you a Power Cell. Precursor Orbs are the main currency in the game. You use them to trade a certain number to a character and they will reward you with a Power Cell.

Eco is the life force of the universe of Jak and Daxter. There are four main types of Eco in the game: green, blue, red, and yellow. Green Eco can restore your health. There are small clumps, in which you must collect fifty in order to restore one unit of your health back, and big clumps that instantly restore one unit of your health. Blue Eco can make Jak move fast, attract Precursor Orbs like a magnet, break crates when you're near them, and activate Precursor machinery. Red Eco gives Jak enhanced strength for a limited time. Lastly, Yellow Eco lets Jak shoot fireballs, necessary for taking out enemies or obstacles. There is also Dark Eco, which serves as a hazard to Jak. Touching a Dark Eco crate can harm the player, while jumping in a pool of dark eco can cause instant death.

Klaww, one of the bosses in the game.

Boss fights in the game are reminiscent of the Crash Bandicoot series, where you have to follow a series of patterns before finding the right time to strike at them. There aren't that many bosses, to be honest; there are only three, with two of them being mandatory to fight. I will say, however, that the final boss in the game was pretty exciting, despite the fact that some of their weak points were pretty obvious.

Graphics and Design

For a game that came out in 2001, The Precursor Legacy is pretty darn amazing to look at. Everything from the scenery and architecture, it feels like I'm in another world. The game also features a day-night cycle in which the game goes from, obviously, day to night, and this all occurs in real time. The cutscenes you watch may take place during the day or night, it all depends. Heck, that lava particle in the cutscenes taking place in the Fire Canyon or Lava Tube might not be there in your next playthrough, which shows how much life there is in this game.

Just look at that architecture!

There is a great amount of level variety, containing villages, temples, basins, beaches, et cetera and each are beautifully designed.

The character and enemy models are all fine and dandy. Each one has their own distinct appearance so you can tell them apart. All the human characters have long ears, which make me wonder: should we call them humans or elves? The main enemies in the game are Lurkers, and they all come in different shapes and sizes. The only way to tell they are Lurkers are their tursks and yellow eyes, which only shows how much variety there is in the enemies.

Music and Sound



Devo co-founder, Mark Mothersbaugh and Josh Mancell, who both composed the music for the Crash Bandicoot series, team up again to compose the game's score. The score adds to the light-hearted tone the game was going for. It also features an interactive soundtrack for each area, a la Banjo-Kazooie. What I mean is that if you're in Sandover Village, the default music plays, but when you're in, say, the Mayor's house, a new instrument is added.

The sound effects are top notch. When you hit crates or enemies, you feel like you hit them. I especially love the sound effects for when you're powered up with Eco, as well. The voice-acting is also great. All the characters sound right. Also, Kevin Conroy, the voice of Batman, voicing the Fisherman? My mind is blown.

Final Conclusion

If I had any problems with the game, I just wish that Daxter was a playable character to add more variety in the game. Also, I wish you could look up and down with the game's camera, rather than having to resort to using first-person view. And the game could have used more boss fights. But, those are all nitpicks.

Jak and Daxter: The Precursor Legacy is an amazing game and one of the best 3D Platformers of all time. It borrows elements from Super Mario 64, Banjo-Kazooie, and a bit of Crash Bandicoot but enough to prevent it from being called a "rip-off" of these games. It's charming, beautifully designed, has excellent controls, replayability, loveable characters, and great music. It also happens to be one of my favorite games of all time; it's that good.

Tune in next time as I review Jak II.

*Jak and Daxter: The Precursor Legacy is also available on the PS3 and PS Vita under the Jak and Daxter Collection.