PixlBit

I suppose it's just a result of my generation, but platformers have always been my favorite genre. I started out with them, and grew up with them, until they were outcasted in this current generation. One in particular that held a special place in my heart was the original Jak and Daxter for the PS2. It had everything I loved about platformers: humorous characters, a ridiculous storyline, a bright colorful environment, plenty of things to kill, and something that I could collect. After the first, the series was taken in an entirely different direction, adding missions and guns to the formula, while removing the melee action and heavy collection elements.

I was one of the few who was greatly disappointed as the series was changed, feeling as though it was intentionally "bad-assified" to satisfy this generation's thirst for shooting at things. The latest entry into the series, Jak and Daxter: The Lost Frontier promised a bit of a different approach; it seemed to be trying to combine elements from the first and its predecessors, in order to create the first true mainline Jak and Daxter title in over five years.

There's no point in holding it back: I was utterly disappointed by The Lost Frontier, to say the least. The title is a mediocre addition to the series, one full of glitches, eye-roll inducing humor, and bland, repetitive gameplay.

I can’t say it’s all bad though, the game’s graphics are excellent. While it’s not great on the big screen unless you’re playing the PS2 copy, on the PSP that game looks fantastic. The colorful environments full of charm that were found in the first game are back here, replacing the darker presentation of both Jak 2 and 3.

However, that's really the only nice thing I can say about the game. For a title that once again puts focus on platforming, I haven't experienced such stiff controls since playing an SNES title. Normally in modern games, when a character jumps, they smoothly travel in an arc to the desired destination. Here, Jak jumps in one direction: up. To simply cross a fairly short gap, players must not only double jump, but perform an additional action to increase his jump length. Jak has apparently forgotten how to grab ledges though, as the smallest miscalculation will cause him to smash his face into a ledge, forcing players to start that particular section over.

Combat is no better. The combination of buttons and directions on the D-Pad required to perform an action create an annoying combat system. Players have three different types of attacks; melee attacks, as well as guns and Eco abilities, of which Jak will acquire several throughout the game.

In order to cycle through guns, players must hit up on the D-Pad, to switch through Eco abilities, players must hit left or right on the D-pad, and finally, to use an Eco ability, players must press down on the D-Pad. Now, the problem with this system comes from the fact that the joystick is right beneath the D-Pad, so for players to switch their weapons or Eco abilities (which is convoluted enough as it is) they must stop moving for a moment, switch their weapon, and then continue moving onward. Now imagine doing this when there are several enemies trying to rip you apart… not fun.

Air combat is one of the game's passable features, and thankfully there is a fair bit of it throughout the game. Much of it is pretty standard, with players shooting down enemy ships, or chasing one in particular while avoiding obstacles. Quick time events are a fairly common theme in these situations, as Daxter is launched onto an enemy's ship and through specific button combinations, can rip the ship apart. Other parts of the game also feature quick time events, however, they feel unnecessary when all you are doing is knocking over a rock to create a bridge, or opening a door.

Ground and air combat pretty much comprise the entirety of the title, as players will land somewhere, complete an objective, go back in the air, and repeat. While this formula seems standard to many other combat/platformers, there just isn't very much substance to Jak and Daxter: The Lost Frontier. The platforming never gets more complicated, and the weapons all feel exactly the same. Throughout the whole game I felt as though I was replaying everything I had already accomplished.

One of the only unique parts of the game involves Daxter being transformed by dark Eco. Players will encounter this early on in the game, and are forced to escape a tunnel solely as Daxter in his mutated form. Although these sections give players a break from the monotony, they control extremely poorly, and feel like a sloppy copycat of Clank's solo campaigns from the Ratchet and Clank series.

Of everything that bothered me about this title, none were worse than the constant errors I encountered throughout the game. The frequency of both clipping errors and glitches I encountered throughout the game was absolutely mind-blowing. To name just a few of the common errors: I could see through walls, fell through the geometry, had the music turn off, sent the camera spinning in a frenzy, and was only able to shoot straight into the air.

It didn’t take long for me to grow completely sick of Jak and Daxter: The Lost Frontier. I expect more from platformers nowadays. It’s simply inexcusable for a game released this generation to feel as if it would fit in well with the PS1 catalog. I suppose gamers desperate for a platformer, or loyal fans of the Jak and Daxter series, will be willing to overlook many of this mediocre title’s glaring issues. However those who have come to expect a solid experience from the genre will undoubtedly be turned off.