The Jak and Daxter series for the Playstation 2 was the work of the zany developers Naughty Dog who had previously been known for creating one of the original Playstation’s biggest franchises, the Crash Bandicoot series. The four Playstation 2 Jak and Daxter titles have given players varied gameplay, wacky characters and graphics that have pushed the console to its limits. Bringing the franchise to the PSP seemed like a no-brainer, but considering the PSP’s current library and the fact that development wasn’t being handled by Naughty Dog, it would be understandable to cast a bit of doubt. This game manages to be a departure from the series in that it’s titled after and stars the wonderfully witty ottsel sidekick, Daxter. Gone is the heavy emphasis on big guns, light and dark eco powers and Jak’s tough guy attitude. What we have left is a wonderfully balanced platform game that has Daxter squashing bugs, catching a ride on cranes and trying to rescue his best buddy Jak in the events that led up to Jak 2. Not only has all the doubt vanished, but with Daxter, newcomer Ready At Dawn studios has managed to put together one of the best PSP titles to grace store shelves since the shiny black handheld launched. 

The events of Daxter take place shortly before Jak 2. Jak has been captured and Daxter has to survive without the help of his best friend. Daxter is offered a job by a critter hunter named Osmos, who specializes in bug extermination. Bug infestations have started to overwhelm Haven City and Daxter seems to be the perfect ottsel for the job. Equipped with an electric fly swatter and an insecticide sprayer, Daxter’s mission is to clear out the bugs from various locations and eventually find some way to rescue Jak. The story has all the wit and charm of the previous games, although a little lighter considering the game doesn’t pull along the Teen rating that both Jak 2 and 3 were nailed with. Voiced excellently by Max Casella, Daxter proves to be an excellent leading video game character and it’s surprising how well he works on his own considering that he’s simply been a sidekick tool in the other games reserved for making quick nipping jokes.



The gameplay can simply be described as being identical to the basic gameplay of the standard Jak and Daxter games minus the fluff. Take away the heavy emphasis on gunplay, racing, escort missions and eco powers and you are essentially playing the original Jak and Daxter. This is definitely a plus as it seems likely a portable version of the series’ recent entries may have turned out to be a cluttered fare that would stand only to prove how its gameplay should have stayed on the consoles. Daxter travels through many different environments and can use both an electric fly swatter and bug sprayer (which are both upgradeable) to take out his enemies. The fly swatter is considered the primary weapon that Daxter can use to swat away at nearby enemies pulling off simple combos along the way. Considering how fluid the controls are, maneuvering Daxter around swatting at enemies and switching between them feels simple and natural. Daxter is truly fitted for the analog nub, more so than many other games as of late. Daxter’s second weapon is the bug sprayer which can be used to weaken (or eliminate) enemies that aren’t taking much of a beating from the swatter. The sprayer is also a tool which Daxter can use to hover and propel him over gaps for a short period of time. A lot of the typical hopping and bopping that highlight most platform games are replaced by heavy usage of the sprayer in most levels. It’s quite easy to control and being forced to keep an eye on its meter (which can be replenished by collecting orbs) help the feature add quite a bit to the game. Daxter also gets to use a few vehicles, namely the Zoomer and scooter. The Zoomer is used in a few missions that have you tackling fast paced objectives and the scooter is for Daxter’s usage when he is traveling around Haven City. Yes, the switch to a portable hasn’t eliminated the ability for you to travel around the game’s world freely, but Haven City is definitely more compact and restricted than in the other games, which is of course to accommodate the story’s more linear nature. Daxter can tackle side objectives but the story is fairly straightforward so it’s wise not to expect too much depth on that end.

The enemies you face are all of the typical dumb platformer variety and they all have a specific weakness. Some enemies have to be weakened by spray before the swatter can be effective, while the smaller critters can be subjected to the torture of your choice. The boss battles are quite fun and often maintain the scope of the previous games. There are a few frustrating fights, but compared to some of the mind numbingly difficult missions from Jak 2, nothing here is impossible. The biggest star of Daxter though isn’t its weapons or enemies, but its levels. Every level is catered to the spry abilities of Daxter and you will find yourself hopping, climbing, sliding, swinging and clinging for a great deal of the game, which essentially makes every level a big playground for you to explore. As for length, Daxter clocks in a bit shorter than the other games, but it’s still of a healthy length when compared to other games in the genre. 

As Daxter collects the precursor orbs scattered around the game world, (each area has a set amount which you can check when paused) special “Dream Sequences” will become available. The sequences are a set of mini games that focus around timed button presses. Each one has a different theme that revolves around a particular movie like the Matrix or Indiana Jones. They are fun for sure and they can improve Daxter’s abilities, but a little more variety could have helped. Another feature set aside from the main story is the ad-hoc multiplayer that was included called “Bug Combat”. Using the combat bugs that Daxter finds during the story mode, you can use the bugs in a rock, paper, scissors type game that includes choosing one of three attacks, powering up a meter to maximize your bug’s strength and defense and then seeing who manages to make the attack. You can also influence the result of the battle by using battle tokens that can have various effects like increasing your own bug’s defenses or reversing the attack of your opponent’s bug to change the tide of a fight. It’s simpler than it sounds and overall it’s a small addition to the game, but anything extra to complement an excellent story mode is more than welcome.

From a visual standpoint, Daxter is one of and probably is the best looking PSP game to date. Its worlds are colorful and meticulously detailed and the same can be said for its wonderfully animated characters. More than any other game, Daxter truly feels like it is something we could see ourselves playing on a home console. There is a bit of slowdown in some levels and especially in the Haven City hub, but overall the game is mostly smooth sailing. There really isn’t much one could complain about as it has all the proper particle effects, lighting and animations. Even the load times are quite amazing for a PSP title. The game manages to load up quite fast and when loading a saved game, it rarely ever exceeds five seconds. On the audio side of things, the voice acting is excellent (especially for Daxter) and the music is as great as we have come to expect from this series. The environments are filled with ambience and the sound effects overall are superb. 

If Daxter can be faulted for anything, it’s a slightly finicky camera, but this is something that plagues all platformers to some degree and once you get the hang of maneuvering it, there is little else to nitpick. Daxter truly is an excellent handheld game and one that proves the PSP can produce some excellent games if the right effort and energy is put into it. Daxter stands up with the rest of the series and it’s almost impossible to tell that it was made by a different development studio, which is simply a testament to how well the material was treated by Ready at Dawn. Fluid controls, excellent animations, charming humor and great platforming action make Daxter a must buy for almost any PSP owner, fan of the genre or not. For those of you feeling a little let down by your purchase of the PSP, now is the time to dust it off and have a little fun.