Turns out that it was a big false alarm. The mini-game mess that was Academy was clearly a simple misstep. When the series sticks to its platforming roots, it's still A-OK. The original Ape Escape title for PS1 was specifically designed to show off the capabilities of the then-new Dual Shock controller. All of the action and your character's abilities were focused around the Dual Shock's twin analog sticks and the result was a terrifically fun game that played rather differently than any other game at the time. Toss in a delightfully goofy premise (you're trying to capture escaped monkeys, of course), and you had a franchise in the making.
Which brings us to Ape Escape 3. This time around, the evil monkey Specter has taken over television in his latest bid for world domination. What that translates to is that each stage is influenced by different genres of TV shows and movies. There are fun worlds like a Western stage ("A Fistful of Bananas") and a horror stage ("Monday the 16th: A Nightmare on Ape Street") as well as parodies of Titanic and Indiana Jones.
The gameplay is, as you might imagine, once again built about the PS2 controller's dual analog sticks. The left stick moves your character (you can choose either a boy or a girl) around while the right stick is used to swing your current weapon a full 360 degrees. This gives you a fantastic amount of control over your attacks and when you swing a net around to your side and snag a monkey that's attempting to flee, it's a very satisfying feeling. To make your character jump, you just need to press the R1 button, and the Dual Shock's face buttons are used to instantaneously switch between the different gadgets that you'll earn along your adventure.
Like the previous games, you'll have several tools to help you out -- these monkeys are too crafty for just a net. Gadgets like a slingshot, a propeller, a radar tracker, and an RC car are just some of the cool toys that you'll have to use to both catch monkeys and traverse environmental hazards. Each of these gizmos has their own unique way of being manipulated via the Dual Shock and add some variety to the gameplay. The RC car, for instance, can be controlled independently of your character. You run around with the left analog stick while steering the car with the right stick.
Henshin Ape-Go-Go!
For as cool as the gadgets are, they're nothing new to the series. The biggest addition in Ape Escape 3 are the transformations. As you progress, you'll unlock seven new forms that your character can adopt for a limited time. Become a cowboy and gain the power to shoot nets at the monkeys, capturing them from long range. Become a genie dancer and take control of a genie that causes enemies to boogie down. The way-fun-to-play-as ninja can run on certain walls, capture monkeys from a distance, and create helper spirits that triple your attack capabilities. Although there are stages specifically set up to take advantage of each forms skills, you'll find many of the abilities useful throughout the game.