JAK 3

'''Jak 3''' is a video game for Sony's PlayStation 2 console developed by Naughty Dog. Although touted as the final game in the ''Jak and Daxter'' series, it has inspired a further spinoff in '', as well as PlayStation Portable title ''Daxter''. Due to the release of the PlayStation 3, it is presumable that this is the last title to be released for the PlayStation 2.

Contents

Gameplay

Story

Plot

Characters

Protagonists

Antagonists

Locations

Reception

Asian release

External links

Gameplay

The missions in ''Jak 3'' are generally either platform-based or driving-based. The platform segments involve Jak jumping from platform to platform battling creatures along the way. For these segments, he is also provided a rifle, the functionality of which changes with the kind of ammunition being used. The car driving segments usually involve Jak racing against time to complete a mission, while defending himself against other cars or giant Metal Heads. When not on a mission, Jak wanders the streets of either Spargus or Haven City, searching for someone to assign him a mission.

Story

Plot

One year has passed since Jak and Daxter saved Haven City from the Metal Head armies, yet Haven still finds itself consumed with chaos as three separate groups fight for control of the city streets. Amidst the chaos, rumors surrounding Jak's involvement with Krew, the late crime lord in Haven, and Kor, the leader of the Metal Heads, begin to spread, and concurrently a general distrust of his dark powers grows to an all-time high—the citizens of Haven now blame Jak for the turmoil their city has found itself in.
After a surprise attack on the city's palace, Count Veger, the leader of the High Council, banishes Jak for life to the unforgiving desert island outside the city’s protective walls called the Wasteland for supposed crimes against the city.
Daxter follows Jak into banishment, but in short time both succumb to thirst and the desert's harsh heat. Their lives are spared when a search party prompted by a locating beacon provided to Jak by Ashelin, a friend in Haven City, finds the group and brings them back to the Wasteland city of Spargus.
Safely inside the city, Damas, King of Spargus, orders Jak to prove himself worthy of staying among the inhabitants of Spargus or face exile back into the desert. To prove that he is worthy, Jak must compete in a gladiatorial battle arena against several foes. Despite worries by Daxter, Jak defeats every warrior that comes against him. Impressed, Damas awards Jak the right to free passage in and out of the city, and explains that after some more tests Jak will earn his citizenship to Spargus.
After several tasks, Jak is called once more to the battle arena, where Damas commands Jak to fight one last time to earn his citizenship. During the battle, Jak encounters Sig, a wastelander who aided Jak and Daxter eliminating the Metal Heads throughout most of the events of Jak II. Neither is able to bring himself to kill the other. Damas is angered by this, but allows Jak and Sig to try to redeem themselves by doing him more favors. After finishing one of these tasks, Jak is found by Ashelin, who begs him to come back to Haven City to defend it. Jak, still bitter about being banished, refuses to return. Ashelin, deciding that she couldn’t change his mind, gives Jak a jetboard that his girlfriend, Keira, made for him, and departs for Haven City.
Later, Jak changes his mind and returns to Haven City. They are met by Keira and Samos, Keira's father, behind a white shield barrier. They tell Jak that he needs to make his way to the resistance headquarters on his side of the shield. Jak fights his way through robots and Metal Heads to reach the resistance headquarters, which is commanded by Torn, another friend from Jak II. Torn says that they need to destroy all of the shields in order to reunite with the rest of the resistance. Jak is able to help with that, and Torn and his men link up with the main headquarters.
Back at the main headquarters, Jak is ordered to lead an assault on the factory producing the robots that had been plaguing the city. After a large battle outside the factory, Jak begins to make his way through the factory. Several miles of ground and hundreds of destroyed robots later, Jak finds the one controlling the robots - the former Krimzon Guard Commander-in-Chief, Errol, who had supposedly died in a horrible crash during a hoverbike race with Jak during the events of Jak II. A fight breaks out between them, but Errol manages to escape. Soon after, Jak starts to encounter hideous twisted beings.
A Precursor telescope in the outskirts of Haven City reveals the identity of the beings – Dark Makers. They were once Precursors, but exposure to Dark Eco turned them evil. What Jak sees in the telescope is a Dark Maker spaceship, and it is nearing the planet. The single way to stop the ship is to activate the planetary defense system situated at the core of the planet, which can only be accessed through the Precursor Catacombs. Before he is able to enter the catacombs, Jak hears reports of Dark Maker attacks in the Wasteland. When Jak checks them out, he discovers that Spargus is under attack by Dark Makers. After Jak manages to fend off the invasion, Damas grants Jak citizenship to Spargus as thanks and gives him a beacon that Jak can use to call for help should he need it. When Jak returns to Haven City, he, Sig and Torn are sent to assault the Metal Head nest. As they explore the nest, destroying any Metal Heads they see, Jak finds Errol with a bomb. Errol destroys the Metal Head nest with the bomb, but Jak and his friends manage to escape before it is destroyed.
With the Metal Heads gone, Jak and Daxter finally can begin their trek to the Precursor Catacombs, the path to which is infested with Dark Makers. Jak uses the beacon Damas gave him, which causes Damas to arrive in a tank-like battle cruiser. The three proceed to the catacombs, shooting Dark Makers along the way. As they reach the entrance to the catacombs, a stray missile flips the car and throws Jak and Daxter clear of the car. Damas is pinned under the car, crushed by its weight. As he lay dying, Damas asks Jak to find his long lost son. The description Jak gets matches that of the Kid from Jak II, who at the end of that game was revealed to be Jak. Damas dies before Jak can tell him that he is his son. This is when Count Vegar arives and shows his amusement at Jak’s suffering before going into the catacombs. Jak and Daxter follow into the Catacombs, and when they arrive at the center of the planet, a Precursor entity offers to turn Jak into a Precursor, but Count Veger is given this gift instead. The group then learns that the Precursors are Ottsels like Daxter, much to Veger's horror, as he then turns into an Ottsel.
The Precursors send Jak and Daxter to the Dark Maker ship to slow it down while the planetary defense system charges. The mission is a success, but as the ship is breaking apart, Errol, who had traveled to the ship after destroying the Metal Head nest, takes control of a gigantic, spider-legged Dark Maker robot and decends to the planet. Jak and Daxter follow in a transporter, and all three land just outside Spargus. After a climactic battle, the robot is destroyed, taking Errol with it.
The Precursors thank the people of the Planet for their help in defeating the Dark Makers, and ask Jak to come help them in the War against the Dark Makers. Jak asks that they refer to him as Mar, his father's name for him. This prompts many in the game to theorize that Jak is the ancient hero, Mar, though this is still unclear.

Characters

Protagonists

★ 'Jak' - Main character. After being abandoned in the Wasteland by Count Veger, he feels that Spargus City is now his home. But when Ashelin pleads for him to return to Haven, he has no choice but to journey back to the city that has forsaken him.

★ 'Daxter' - Jak's mouthy, self-centered friend/sidekick. He claims that he's the hero, but he doesn't do anything except run his mouth off. A majority of the humor in the game comes from this character's dialogue and actions.He calls him self orange lighting

★ 'Keira' - A friend of the duo, daughter of Samos and Jak's love interest.

★ 'Samos' - A sage that travels with Jak, Daxter, and Keira to the city. He is infamous for his easily-irritated and hot-tempered attitude.

★ 'Torn' - A former Krimzon Guard. He now works as the commander of the Freedom League.

★ 'Tess' - Daxter is in love with her, and she is, oddly enough, in love with him. She is the only one who believes Daxter's heroic tall tales are true, and is transformed into an ottsel at the end of the game.

★ 'Onin and Pecker' - Onin is an old, blind Soothsayer who helps Jak on his quest. She cannot speak, but talks through motions and gestures that are translated by Pecker. Pecker accompanied Jak and Daxter into the Wasteland and now works as Damas' advisor.

★ 'Sig' - A veteran Wastelander, skilled Metal Head hunter, and friend of Jak since ''Jak II''. Jak has to accompany him on several Metal Head hunting missions.

★ 'Ashelin' - A member of New Haven and the new ruler of Haven City.

★ 'Vin' - Haven City's top engineer and power guru. He works with New Haven, but due to an incident, he is now only a hologram.

Antagonists

★ 'Count Veger' - a very self absorbed character that is the cause of Jaks banishment to the wasteland. Although never faced directly in the game, there were interesting cut scenes where Veger and Jak would have verbal fights.

★ 'Dark Makers' - Precursors that were turned evil by exposure to Dark Eco. They travel from planet to planet, destroying all that they see.

★ 'Errol' - Thought to have died in Jak II, he is now a cyborg bent on destroying the world. He seeks to contact the Dark Makers.

Locations

Most of the game is spent either in Spargus or Haven City, venturing into the surrounding areas to complete assigned missions. Spargus is located in the middle of a desert, and is inhabited by those banished from Haven City. Haven City is a modern metropolis that, in Jak 3, is in the middle of a civil war.

Reception

Asian release

In Asia, ''Jak 3'' was only released in Korea.The reason for this may have to do with the success of ''Jak II'' in Japan, which was heavily criticized, with reviews claiming it to be a ''Grand Theft Auto'' rip off.
The Korean release contains a selectable Japanese audio track not present on any other region release. The audio track is located but unselectable on the disks.

External links

★ Official North American website

★ Official european website

★ Naughty Dog's ''Jak 3'' Site

★

★ Into the Light - A Jak and Daxter Fansite

★ The Dark Ottsel - An Unofficial Jak and Daxter Fansite

★ Undying Heroism - A tribute to the Jak and Daxter Legacy