Daxter

Rating ESRB: Everyone Genre adventure Publisher Sony Computer Entertainment External Links Official Daxter Website

Daxter the ottsel retur... wait, what the hell is an ottsel? According to the packaging of Daxter, an ottsel is "Half Otter, Half Weasel - All Trouble;" a.k.a.: orange, fuzzy, and obnoxious. Anyway, everyone's favorite (only) ottsel is back in Daxter, a 3D platformer that spans the distance between Jak and Daxter: The Precursor Legacy and Jak II. The series is a rare breed: it has been both a critical darling and a cash cow for Naughty Dog and Sony. Can newcomers Ready at Dawn Studios transfer that success to the small screen, or will Daxter make this ottsel obsolete?

Daxter finds the title character in Haven City, talking big about his adventures, but secretly longing to be reunited with Jak, his imprisoned pal. In an attempt to seek information and form a plan, he takes a job as a bug exterminator, a move that sets this game apart from previous entries in the series. Daxter is outfitted with an electric bug swatter and a spray gun, which gains several modifications as the story progresses. These accessories make the game more akin to Super Mario Sunshine than a standard platform title; the spray gun also allows Daxter to hover across large gaps.

Though it seems bizarre at first, the use of the spray gun becomes second nature pretty quickly. Many missions find you exploring sprawling landscapes, eliminating all sorts of creepy crawlers and collecting the gems they leave behind. There are also one-thousand Precursor Orbs scattered throughout the game. Be sure to collect these; they unlock hilarious movie-spoofing mini-games that will enhance Daxter's abilities. Other missions find Daxter manning a Zoomer vehicle, which is often used to chase down monstrous, flying bugs. These missions are few in number, but add a welcome bit of variety between the standard missions.

Daxter is truly a beautiful game - typically, when such a statement is made, it is made in relation to other games on the same platform. Such is not the case with Daxter: this is a game that would look great on the PlayStation 2. Brilliant colors fill every inch of the screen, with crisp characters and detailed environments. The levels themselves are often shockingly large, and with barely any loading times. Only in Haven City did I experience any slowdown, but you will only spend time there between missions. Great voice acting solidifies this cinematic experience, with contributions from Max Casella and Phil LaMarr.

Wireless ad-hoc gameplay and a link to Jak-X: Combat Racing on the PlayStation 2 only sweeten the deal - the 10+ hour adventure of Daxter is more than enough to justify its purchase. Daxter is an excellent title, regardless of platform. The fact that it is on the PSP only sweetens the deal, as it is the first of its kind for the system that is actually worth a damn. Sony should take a cue from Rockstar Games and port this to the PlayStation 2 later this year. Daxter is one of the best games currently available for the PSP, and one of a growing number of titles that make the system worth holding onto.