PSP Game Review: Ape Escape: On The Loose

 Ape Escape: On The Loose came to the PSP in 2005 following the successes of Ape Escape and Ape Escape 2 on the preceding Playstation consoles. There was a lot of anticipation for this game to do well on PSP as well (it later came out on PS4 and PS5 through the store.) However this game was a flop on terms of ratings and sales overall.  For a recollection of what I think it did well and not well, here it is below.

Positives: 

1. Graphics- It's a good graphics game. Everything flows well together but they did well on the graphics overall I felt for this game. Really every level looks good and is done well from a graphics standpoint.

2. Linear Story But it Works- Story is straight forward, much like Ape Escape 1 and 2, but it works here too. Sometimes Linear works for a story and missions, and it works. For this game, it works as well!

3. Short Load Times- This is crucial for the PSP. There was so much lag on this system that it became rough to deal with. However with this game it was pretty crisp overall and you didn't deal with long waits like other PSP games.

Negatives:

1. The Luster Fades Here- Yeah, the novelty of Ape Escape just seems to fade a lot here. It just doesn't seem to be fun like other games and feels more like a chore than anything to complete this game overall. I wasn't overall thrilled this game felt that way. If you enjoyed it, that is great! I just didn't feel much enjoyment overall with it.

2. Controls- This was a major issue on the PSP. The controls were either very slick or very rough in responsiveness. It's fine with one or the other, but not both.  Even then, you prefer them to be slick because when they aren't responsive, you aren't going to be doing anything good. And these were major issues overall.

Overall rating:

Ape Escape: On the Loose gets a 7 out of 10 from me. Wasn't a great game, the controls were rough and it felt like a chore to complete rather than fun.  Some good things to come of it, especially on the graphics and smooth nature of the game.  However if you like the series and want to play it.. go ahead!