If you've read my previous reviews for the Jak games, you'll know that I'm a huge fan of the series. I was anxious to see how a racing game would turn out, but it has surpassed my expectations in many ways. Despite the fact that there's no platforming, it truly feels like a Jak game, from the very moment the camera swoops in over Kras City. All the characters you've come to know and love have returned, and there personalities (or voices) haven't changed one bit. Eco plays a large role in the game, almost like a throwback to the original. I've always been a big racing fan, but always shied away from combat racers, so this is my first time. Aside from a few hiccups here and there, I loved every engine-screaming second of it.
If you're like me, there's a good chance you bought this game just to see how the story unraveled, and what was happening with the old gang. Well, if you remember back to Jak 2, there was a Gang Boss you worked for named Krew. By the the end of the game, Krew was taking a long dirt nap. Taking place after the events of Jak 3, Jak and the gang are invited to Kras City by Rayn, Krew's daughter to hear the reading of his will. At the ceremony, they are tricked into drinking poisoned wine, one last trick from Krew. In order to get the antidote, they must compete in this season's Combat Racing circuit, and win the whole damn thing. You'll get some help along the way, mostly from the returning characters like Torn, Ashelin, Sig, Kliever and a few others I won't spoil. As they begin to win races, Jak realizes that Combat Racing is being controlled by the crime boss Mizo. He has to win the championship, and take down Mizo to have any chance of surviving.
This game is all about the racing, but never fear, the game-play has been fine tuned a bit since Jak 3. The controls are good enough, and typical of the genre, so everyone should be able to jump right in and have a good time. X is for the gas, Square is for braking, Circle is for power-sliding, and Triangle is for the rearview mirror, which quite frankly, wasn't even necessary. There are only a few times you'll need to look back, I don't think I used it more than 5 times throughout the entire game. R1 fires your weapons, while R2 allows you to release a turbo boost to gain speed. L1 fires a mine to deflect missiles and slow down other drivers, while L2 allows you to jump. Jumping is slightly less useless than the rearview. As you drive around the track, or arena, you'll notice there are four kinds of pick-ups. These are the Eco power-ups. True to the original, Blue ones give you turbo, Yellow gives you weapons to shoot, Green heals you, and Red Eco gives you a mine. Ok, so Red Eco let you punch harder in the first game, but you won't be punching anyone here. There are typically two types of cars: Light, fast cars; and heavy, slow cars. You'll want to pick wisely for each event, although I found it easier to just stick with one car and max it out.
There are a lot of events in Jak X, much more than you're probably expecting. The two most popular events are circuit races and death-matches, but there's so much more to be fun. My favorite has you collecting and charging up power cells in order to send them blasting. At the end of the race, whoever blasts more is the winner. These races are generally extremely fast and very intense. Death Races have you flying around the track trying to take down a certain number of cars within the time limit. This is where you really see your Dark Jak meter fill up, allowing you to release some rage with a boost to your weapons systems. Freeze Rally's have you stopping the clock by hitting certain icons to get around the map in the lowest possible time, and Rush Hour has you swerving into oncoming traffic to try and take out as many cars as possible. The arena games are also cool, and can be very intense if all the cars end up in the same area. Artifact Races have you trying to pick up an artifact before anyone else does, much like the missions in Jak 3. It can get very competitive. Another of my favorites is Capture, which is basically a team Capture the Flag game. The Adventure mode just a good job of mixing these events all up, so no event seems to come too often or not enough.
There are a few things that hold this game back. Firstly, the defensive weapons are no match for the stronger offensive weapons. Sure, you can block the first set of missiles, but you're helpless to the second and third barrage unless you're in the perfect spot to turn a corner or pick up another mine. Every time you crash, you're set back a little from the spot where you actually crashed. This can get extremely annoying, especially when you're inches from the finish line and someone tags you. You're set back, allowing the entire field to pass you, leaving you with a last place finish that should have been a first place. These types of events are more prevalent in the later races. Some weapons can either make or break a race if used at a proper time. It's almost like using a cheat. The overall difficulty of the game isn't nearly as severe as the last few games, so even newbie racing fans should be able to beat it with a little practice.
Like all Jak games, this one is a looker. The explosions are phenomenal, watching cars fly through the air after you light them up is sometimes amazing if they manage to hit the right environmental debris. The race venues are very cool, and hopefully you'll recognize a few of the areas. Haven City and Spargus return, as does the Forbidden Jungle from the first Jak game. Kras City and the Icelands are two new areas, and they feel right at home in the Jak Universe. The cars themselves can be quite detailed, especially since you can repaint it and add different parts that you win or buy. I must say that the cutscenes are a very high point for this game. Improving even more over Jak 3, the characters are richly detailed and have their own quirks. Jak has a new outfit and a new hair-do to illustrate the fact that he is growing up. Razer, a bad guy racer has a slick trench coat and he always seems to have a cigarette in his hand. The music is very good, although a bit of a departure from the stuff we've all been used to. It's mostly rock n' roll tracks, but the music fits the game amazingly well. As I said, all the voice actors have returned, and they're great as usual. Hearing their little comments during the races can be very funny. Judging from the sound effects, there's no doubt this is a racing game. Tires squeal, engines roar, and you can hear the flames from the turbo boosts. The weapons sound excellent as well, just as you would expect. There's more than one coat of polish on this game, that's for sure.
If you're a Jak fan, this game is a must have. Even if you don't like racers, the story alone is practically worth the price of admission. But if you're like me, and you enjoy both racers and Jak, then you'll be in for a real treat. Once you beat the game, you can go back and get all gold medals, max out all your cars, and then earn a bunch of orbs and unlock everything in the secrets shop. This will take quite a while, but it's generally worth it. You can unlock characters, new vehicles, parts for your cars, concept designs and even some videos and documentary stuff. And once you've done all that, you can take it online and bring death to your opponents. After playing the game, I'm glad Naughty Dog chose this route instead of making another direct sequel that could interfere with the overall story. As usual, Jak is a badass and Daxter is a smartass. What's not to love?