Monkies bent on world domination. This may not appeal to people that aren't monkey or anime fans.
Ape Escape 3 is, as you may have guessed, is the latest installment in the Ape Escape series. I may be new to it, but not much has changed since the previous Ape Escapes. So, don't worry, I can review this. This game has colorful, fluid, bouncy, and anime-style graphics and an anime attitude. The music is just as bouncy and lively as the graphics. Voice acting, however, could be better. After listening to it for a while, I felt as if I was a 5 year old again.
The storyline isn't hilarious, but it IS amusing. The monkies are once trying to dominate the human race under the command of the head banana (corny, I know), Spector. How are they going about it this time? By taking over our TV. They are airing shows so terrible, so incredibly lame that it's turning human minds to mush. You must go into each TV program, catch all the monkies, cancel their shows, and take down Specter and his partner, Prof. Tomoki. Charming. I was kind of hoping for monkies rampaging through the streets, pummeling innocent humans with poo. But this is still very amusing, original and somewhat satisfying enough to keep anyone that loves quirky storylines interested. You'll get to see exactly what they're airing eventually, so no worries.
Gameplay is addictive and entertaining, although somewhat frustrating. You will get a number of gadgets used for monkey catching. You have your monkey net for capturing monkies, the stun club for clubbing monkies and taking out robots, the monkey radar for locating monkies, the monkey camera for zooming in on located monkies and getting their personal info, and so on. Yes, most of the gadgets in the game have "monkey" in them, which adds a bit more charm to the game in a way. There are also plenty of items to collect and many odd little features in the game that will keep you occupied for some time. What makes gameplay frustrating though, is using some of the gadgets. The gadget controls aren't as tight as they should be causing you to miss your monkey A LOT. Also, there are some irritating camera issues that make things even more frustrating. You only have but so much control over your camera which makes things a little difficult.. However, these flaws are not so unbearable that they can't be overlooked. Yes, the rest of the game is just that charming. Another problem, though, is that for some reason, you can't catch all the monkeys in one TV program the first time you play through it. You'll have to go back and catch the rest. It's not that big of a deal, but it raises questions.
From what I've read, and what might be a problem for old Ape Escape players, is that not much has change from the past games. I know that I like to see new things every now and then, especially in sequels. So, if you don't mind playing the same game again with a few differences, then don't worry too much about it. I just thought I'd point that out for you. This is my first time playing Ape Escape, which is why I didn't deduct points from gameplay because of that.
Conclusion:
I don't know if it's because of the whole "monkies bent on world domination" thing, or because this game has so much energy, style and personality, but I enjoyed playing this game. There are 400 monkies to catch in all. Yes, after a while, most people may get bored with it after a while. And that is very understandable. After a while, it DOES start to feel like just another platformer. Also, this game will only appeal to a limited audiance. However, the cuteness, style, and energy of this game appealed to me and the hidden parodies made it even more entertaining to play. If you enjoy anime like Pita Ten or BoBoBo, or if you just like silly monkies, you will take a quick liking to this game. So, I suggest renting it and give it a try.