This will be a very lengthy blog entry. Please take your time reading this if you're interested enough.
Hello everyone I'm XboxClown89, this technically going to be two related reviews in one. I confessed through two different emulators. I fully done an 100% completion to all three Gex games. I did try waiting for Gex Trilogy to come out. I'm sure by this point I'm not the only one doing that.
I will be reviewing Gex Trilogy later in a future entry. For right now I felt I'll start with giving Gex 1 a more proper review. Of course, I'll link my previous review of the game. I still wanna add some stuff to the newer review. Then I'll review both it's 3D sequels afterwards. This is going to be a rather fun review blog.
Also doing this notably shortened the actual Gex Trilogy blog. I still going to link a few entries. So you don't felt somewhat lacking about the actual review when it's done. Likely going to do better than Duke Nukem Forever which isn't even that bad of a game people!!! I just felt to make that clear before I do Gex Trilogy review eventually.
Gex 1 (1995)
More recently I carefully followed an YouTube video to locate all five bonus areas. Some of these were well hidden I didn't even notice they were there at all. Less than half of them can be access through a few levels within the same worlds. Also recently I revealed the top 5 things I wanna see in Gex Trilogy.
I further stand by they need to do something about that. I finally gotten to play the bonus world called Planet X. I'm so used to Looney Tunes with Duck Dodgers taking on Marvin the Martian cartoon. I'm talking about the one where both goes over board destroying most of a planet. Planet X surprisingly has the most levels in the entire game.
Also going by my recent top 5 Gex blog. This world also suffers from rather inconsistent level designs. We have a rather confusing maze level that almost has no enemies. I say that because one of a few exits has a secret joke mini boss. One of the developers digitized themselves. The closest to an actual boss you'll face in the world.
Just in case anyone was wondering yes they were planning to do an actual boss fight. For unexplained reasons they cut that boss fight from the game. There's a few videos showcasing that boss fight. This world also sci-fi theme which my wife would love. I'm a bit selective how I like that genre myself.
The last level you have to find an VCR tape. Usually they give you temporary passwords. In this particular case this tape gives you a secret ending among beating the game. More recently, The Angry Video Game Nerd on his web show joked about that ending. I previously forgotten to mention a particular level that's missing.
Knock! Knock! from New Toonland from the art work really reminds me of Rocko's Modern Life. I always remembered that cartoon show. I even seen the Netflix film a few years ago. This is among the most tedious regular levels within the trilogy by far. You have to figure where to go with so many doors. More doors than the famous doors scene in Killer Klowns from Outer Space movie.
They really played on swapping level designs mechanic. Thankfully there's nothing major to collect here. This level is among my most least favorites in the series. I even felt if you could consider a level as a boss due to you can't rush it. You got no choice but simply try finishing it. Then in that logic this would rival the final boss Rez to a degree.
My two favorite worlds are Cemetery and New Toonland. I'm a huge horror fan for a long time it's no surprise I absolutely loved Cemetery. I also grew up heavily watching cartoons. Although some stuff within that world could also played on superhero concept as well. You got a particular flying enemy as well as a parody of a superhero character as the boss.
I previously discussed that boss in details. I also felt these were the most balanced worlds. Partly due to having more levels than the other main worlds. But also due to they didn't attempt too much in comparison. Let's put it this way you got to adapt on the fly later on. The levels do get trickier as well as more difficult.
Which you do want in a decent video game. Otherwise it becomes too boring for being way too easy or turns you off altogether from being way too hard. Then again there's some hardcore gamers that welcomes such challenge. Gex 1 is notably easier than Crash Bandicoot PS1 trilogy by far.
You can take a few hits by default. Power ups are mostly just there. Although sometimes they could help you get through some tricky situations. They also count as additional hits you can take before you start losing health. This mechanic also in the sequels as well. I also gotta say playing this on an emulator with save states currently the way to go.
At least I can do a proper save as well as quickly pick up where I stopped. Otherwise you gotta take a chance with using passwords. Again this isn't an issue in the sequels. I will say Gex 1 is a little better than I realized when I first reviewed it. Personally it's not my favorite within the Gex Trilogy.
Gex: Enter the Gecko (1998)
A while back through a website's emulator I fully played this Gex game. Before I say anything major what a huge improvement over the original. It was quite a move to change things from 2D to 3D. Which was a notable growing trend in that era. The main Gex team focused on the PS1 versions of the series. Originally it was 3DO with the original Gex before plans quickly fell through.
As previously stated there's an actual save feature. Sure you have to actually wait to use it. You get this follow it animation leading up to the feature. It takes a few minutes but I actually love the sight seeing. I don't mind it very much honestly. I'm sure some older gamers remembers how some PS1 games has save feature.
Which directly mimics how your saves works on memory cards. A lot of newer games likely won't be aware of this at all. I'm just thankful I can save my process. Thus I can easily pick up where I left off without emulators is a rather nice touch. I do like the title that differs between a few versions. Some region versions adds 3D into the title.
On Nintendo 64, the classic 64 in a lot of titles trend. I know some people are very particular about don't call it Gex 2. Here's how I view it Gex: Enter the Gecko is the second Gex game. Even if I don't call it Gex 2. It's still the sequel to Gex therefore you're ignoring the obvious as well. I could respect to not call it Gex 2.
At the same time, Gex 3 also exists. Obviously you won't confuse em since the handheld games are alternative versions of some Gex games. It's easy to call it and not call it Gex 2 for a few reasons. No matter what it's right in the middle of a trilogy. I don't see a problem with either sides of that. Except for bias people that's rude about it.
I know a lot of build up before I even discuss the actual Gex game. Depending on versions you either get an proper intro mostly the PS1 version or a near lack of an intro in other versions. The PS1 intro explains why Gex is back while parodying stuff in the process. Officially Gex agreed to go back into the Media Dimension as a spy.
You can tell they weren't taking the concept seriously. Which works wonders for this Gex game. Inspired by Super Mario 64 that came out a few years prior. Gex gets to move around a hub world. Which is broken up into several sections with a few levels each. Yes this includes the bonus levels as well.
They simplified the remotes designs from the original Gex game. They reused a particular design that's colored with three variations. Red remotes are the main remotes in the game. Golden remotes are usually given out among beating most bosses as well as finishing the bonus levels. Silver remotes either from maxing out collectibles within the levels or find hidden remotes.
Unlike most Gex games, each world has different sets of stuff you can collect. Among maxing out a set transforms into the next set. This process occurs twice in a level. Personally this was a surprisingly awesome feature for it's time. Otherwise you would mostly be collecting fly related stuff. This further ties perfectly within each world as well as themes.
Bonus levels are much easier to find. When you get certain amount of red remotes. They show up in many locations. Also thankfully they are much friendly in comparison. You get plenty of time to adapt to what's going on. It's mostly collect a lot of stuff within the time limit. They do get quite creative with this.
There's three secret levels are that well hidden. All three of them are close by each other. They are meant to be more difficult related levels to a few worlds. Excluding Planet X from the original Gex. There's five main worlds in comparison to Gex: Enter the Gecko's seven main worlds. Unlike Gex 1, these levels are split up between the hub section.
Don't expect all of them in one section of the hub. This kinda works in it's favor to help spice up the game. Every boss has their own televisions. Which becomes available from having enough red remotes. I also need to explain most main levels has two or three red remotes you can go for. This is directly inspired by Super Mario 64.
I should point out the hub world vastly empty. Overtime TVs around fills it up that works enough to get the job done. Don't expect it to the degree of Super Mario 64 by any means. It's not terrible either just lacking altogether. I will say I still prefer it over the original Gex's map screens. Simply being able to directly move yourself to another level is a rather interesting experience.
There's a giant animal head in one spot that has a few levels inside. There's also platforms leading to particular sections. You could fall to end up in another section of the hub not dead by the way. I still welcome they went for the concept. It's not what I would call rushed out by any means. At the same time, it could've stand out more if the team had more time.
Basically you can replay the levels to finish em differently. It also allows you to fully experience the levels through playing them a few times. Some might consider this being tedious. It actually works amazingly well for this game. Also unlike the original Gex, you have more freedom about choosing the levels.
This was something I also didn't like about the original Crash Bandicoot either. Although that's a better platformer than Gex. I do prefer Gex: Enter the Gecko over Crash 1 though. Gex gets dress up a lot within the levels including bonus ones. This was something missing entirely in the original Gex. The levels were notably much better balanced as well.
Sure some can be a bit lengthy or rather tedious depending objectives. The game somehow never over stays it's welcome. The levels were notably more fun overall. The jokes they went for mostly landed I felt. Some may disagree when it comes to the voice overs. You had to knew Gex loves to talk a lot. Of course, several lines will inevitably repeat during the game play.
I actually don't mind those voice overs. Sometimes it comes out when I don't expect them. Suddenly affects the mood I'm feeling while playing the game in a good way. You actually can fully explore the levels. Which was tricky to do in some levels of the original Gex. I confess the camera system needs a bit work at times.
The camera ends up being your biggest issue. Like trying to jump some spots but you can't seem to see much. You often fall off which could result in death or simply falling down. In some spots falling down to not die. Simply takes a little time to get back up. Again power ups aren't much. Just I felt the original Gex had a more interesting selection.
Just simply came off as an after thought. Sometimes having some of the power ups causes particular lines to be said. Secret levels also has a secret collectible. These film items unlocks secret cut scenes. This concept later gotten reused in Gex 3. I felt the variety of worlds differs more than the original Gex. A few themes from the original returns simply done differently.
Toon TV is the successor to New Toonland. This is more directly inspired by Looney Tunes. You even dress up as Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck funny enough. Hunter enemies are obviously inspired by Elmer Fudd. It's more notably cartoony easily making it among my favorite worlds in the game. There's two levels of that world that plays out vastly differently.
It's among the lightest in tone worlds in the series. I love the falling randomized hazard concept. In particular somewhat checkered spots. If you're moving across em, a few things could drop onto you. Such as fat ladies, an washing machine or an anvil. This felt like you were actually in classic cartoons. I deeply enjoyed playing these levels.
Scream TV is the successor to Cemetery. Unlike Cemetery that's mostly set in cemeteries. Scream TV takes place within an haunted mansion setting. Which really worked well for the game. Easily among my favorite worlds in the entire series. They were quite creative with the theme. PS1 & PC has an exclusive level called PolterGex.
The name a parody of Poltergeist series. You get to explore such creepy locations. They picked the perfect enemies to fit the theme well. Just don't expect The Addams Family as well as The Munsters though. There's some rather nice surprises as well. One of the secret levels is from this world. Even the bonus level pulled from it was fun to a degree.
The same bonus level played off the famous go through a door to suddenly end up there door joke. Which was somewhat confusing during the game play to memorize. A few themes are exclusive to the bonus levels like a particular one is a parody of many spy franchises. Some levels can be a bit confusing to figure where to go or how to go about some objectives.
Rocket Channel is the successor to Planet X. This is more directly space theme. The aliens from Planet X cameos too. Rocket Channel often involves limited oxygen. Easily one of the most annoying obstacles in the series. You quickly rush through sections while completing objectives. You are given a few methods to save your life.
Either defeat a particular enemy, destroy a particular object or go inside a machine to refill your oxygen. Yes this does come off a bit tedious at times. It was quite impressive what they pulled off. Such an ambitious concept they went for. They didn't hold back I respect that. I deeply prefer Rocket Channel over Planet X too.
Kung-Fu Theater is the successor to Kung fuville. Which again I prefer the later world on the same them. These worlds are vastly different from each other. Kung-Fu Theater is more directly parodying martial arts movies like Bruce Lee or Jackie Chan to name a few. I actually prefer the enemies more as well.
The locations notably stands out more with the right level of challenge. Yes one of those levels notably heavy platforming with little room of error. At the same time, it's satisfying to complete the level. I simply felt I was getting much more with the theme in comparison. Especially how they went about it here I actually wanted more.
Rezopolis makes a return that I ended up liking much more. You still still expect some challenge in a few ways. One of the secret levels takes place there. This really felt like Rez running the place to me. The odds you quickly felt are against you exactly what you want. Some of these levels are more complex than you expect.
My favorite among the newer themes is The Pre-History Channel. Obviously a title parody to History Channel. This is dinosaur theme again before Conker does the concept. You face several dinosaurs while doing the objectives. I actually love the theme song to these levels. I know a few people that would enjoy these levels more than myself.
Yes I'm looking at you, Simoun O'Brien lol. I bet you weren't expecting a surprise shout out lol. I also greatly appreciate they make it even easier to tell what walls you can climb on in the game. You also got these plants notably different from the hammer swinging flowers of Toon TV. Indirectly this ties into a hidden character in Gex 3.
The bosses is more notably balanced from the original. Sure most of them are on the easier side. Let's be honest the huge stand out surprisingly isn't the final boss. The third boss is Mecharez whose the boss of Gexzilla vs. Mecharez level. The title being a parody of Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla. You can bet they went all in on parodying Godzilla.
Suddenly Toxic Turtle from the previous Gex game pails in comparison. I actually grew up with two Rampage games as well as the first King of the Monsters game. I felt right at home with this boss fight. Mecharez also holds the record for the most health for any enemy within the franchise. I am not kidding Mecharez has a huge health bar.
My favorite aspect is you get to destroy buildings often. I'm glad they went for that parody concept all the way. Easily among my favorite boss fights in the entire series. Of course, Rez also stands out as the final boss. Don't expect the same boss fight as last time. I actually prefer this boss fight more. He's much easier to read in comparison.
Now there's two phases that plays out differently. They also gave Rez more of a voice this time around. At times you heard him among doing the other boss stages for the first time. The ending was quite risky for it's time. Gex prepares for an one night stand with Nikki from Pandemonium! series. I really wish I was joking too.
If you done everything you'll get concept arts during the ending credits. Honestly this was way more fun than the original Gex. I wasn't expecting the amount of concept to notably increase like this. Especially after a more recent replaying of the original Gex. I am deeply impressed this is a proper video game sequel.
Gex 3: Deep Cover Gecko (1999)
The perfect way to describe this is hands down the greatest Gex game I ever played!!! I simply can't explain in words how damn good this truly was. Similar to Gex: Enter the Gecko was to the original Gex. This was what I call a proper video game sequel. Easily one of the greatest 3D platformers ever!!! Especially considering it came out a little over a year after the previous one.
It's mind blowing everything they were able to pull off. Again depending on versions you may get different intros as well as endings. Gex 3 was a rather interesting case for that. In the PS1 version, Gex watching the news until an transmission interrupts with Agent Xtra. Yes she's played by a digital actress. The fact they went for that in a video game where mostly kids playing it at the time.
It sure bags a lot of questions lol. She convinces Gex to go after Rez to save her. In the N64 version, we have Alfred narrating with some quick pictures to explain the story. Which also involves Agent Xtra gotten kidnapped. I'll discuss the endings later on you don't wanna miss that. Right away you quickly notice what an huge improvement over Gex: Enter the Gecko it is.
You get a rather unique hub world inspired by Banjo-Kazooie. This predates Banjo-Tooie by over a year. Once again sections of the hub world are broken up. However each section has a different theme as well as their own collectibles. Which this game is a huge collectathon. Collection almost all the Paw Coins max out your health to double.
Basically you can get up to eight hits by default before you die. You'll need bonus coins to play the bonus levels. Among completing them gives you passwords if you were doing no save runs or lack memory cards. A better password system from the original Gex. Save feature is hands down the best by far it's not even close.
You automatically given the option among pausing your game. I did notice a flaw that sometimes when you just done after saving may not stay done after resuming your save. Otherwise it's a very well done feature. You also get Features or Stats in the N64 version that tells what percentage. Each section including the hub world areas what you need to do.
Unlike Banjo-Kazooie series, you get a few objectives with particular giant TVs to complete the levels. Some of those are even more well hidden than in the previous game. Sometimes you might freak out where to find em. Thankfully TVs with the theme logo on them represents objectives you completed. Obviously the TVs not turned off is the ones you need to do.
As for the hub world itself I simply loved they treated aspects of it like the actual levels too. We went from a map system similar to Super Mario World, Crash 1 and Donkey Kong Country trilogy. Into a somewhat lacking but still interesting hub world. Eventually leading into a rather well done hub world more on lines of the first two Banjo-Kazooie games.
Gex 3 is notably easier than those games. Plus they are more heavily collectathons that could over stay their welcome to a degree. Not to say it isn't fun to try by any means. Just felt done right like Saints Row IV to me. You got exactly what you need in a very fun game to go about em. You quickly put your worries away as you're heading towards heaven!!!
Gex gets even more outfits with majority of them standing out well. They even made power ups helpful in some of the levels. Secret levels requires virtually nothing to play. They're just simply well hidden within each section of the hub world. So we went from being too well hidden to simply being there. I prefer simply find em that's it.
Especially how massive this Gex game turned out to be. Instead of the first two Gex games, Gex 3 each world just one huge level. They actually felt like you're in a world with the insane level of detail that went into em. None of the themes repeats except for bonus & secret levels. Just the main levels we're talking eleven worlds this time around.
Like Banjo-Kazooie trilogy, the levels kept getting notably bigger. I do prefer the later full world experience than breaking it up into a few levels. Obviously breaking them up leaves to the overall experience being not consistent. It simply works mind blowing well here. These levels are packed with some great surprises too.
The fact we gotten this a little over a year from Gex: Enter the Gecko wow!!! Gex also gets to ride some rather interesting stuff mostly animals as well as a tank. Yes Gex before Conker does rides around in an tank!!! Conker's Bad Fur Day was almost two years after this. They notably improved the camera from the previous entry.
There's a few spots you may have a little problem. Otherwise the camera helps out a lot. It's easily the best among the Gex Trilogy. What's even crazier is majority of the worlds are newer themes. The closest to an old world is Superhero Show due to some of the references in New Toonland from Gex 1. Not only that each theme is vastly different from each other.
I do have three favorite levels I highly enjoyed. Army Channel, The Buccaneer Program and Anime Channel respectively. Not to say the rest of them sucks by any means. All of them are a rather unique experience you should give a try. You may end up with a different three favorite levels from me. Don't worry I'll explain why those are my favorites.
I'm quite funny how I like military theme stuff myself. Army Channel is truly amazing stuff. Each objective is a particular section of this crazy world. I actually felt all the objectives were quite fun to do. If I had to pick a favorite maybe you seen this coming. I mean come on Gex gets to ride a tank!!! He gets to blow up parts of buildings to smash crates.
A few bonus levels also includes an tank. Parts of the controls aren't that great though. It's not like Conker's Bad Fur Day where parts of that are notably improved on. The simple fact they went for it I respect a lot. The Buccaneer Program is a pirate theme world. Sure this was a notable trend in 3D platformers at the world.
I do like pirate theme stuff especially One Piece. Gex gets one of my favorite outfits here. Each objective felt like an adventure on a pirate ship. You get to fully explore a pirate ship is a huge selling point for me. I do appreciate seeing undead pirates that's skeletons among the enemies. I'm a sucker for skeletons within movies, shows and video games.
Anime Channel more recently gets hype up by YouTubers. Anime gotten a lot bigger since this game's release. More Otakus are finding out about this world in Gex 3. On one hand I should say don't expect much. But on the other it truly deserves a rather unique experience. Easily among my absolute favorite outfits Gex gets in the entire series.
He even can glide to a degree. He sorta reminds me of Gizmoduck from Darkwing Duck cartoon show. Each objective is in particular sections with all the main TVs in one location. This quickly ended up being my absolute favorite Gex level. The insane level of depth this one level had. I would even dare to say among the greatest 3D levels in an platformer I ever played!!!
Earlier I mentioned some levels puts power ups to use. I really wasn't kidding about that. A few levels has a temporary super strength form. Which allows Gex to destroy particular objects as well as push heavy pillars. Sure some stuff is strikingly similar to a degree. You also got to realize each world has a different theme.
I don't see a real reason to criticize that. The scale of these worlds is truly impressive for their time. Gex 3 is notably longer than Gex: Enter the Gecko. Which itself was much longer than the original Gex. One of my favorite forms is DracuGex a parody of Count Dracula. He even beats Conker to a giant crap mountain.
Yes you heard me correctly Gex 3 has a giant crap mountain you could find a level on. All of a sudden a particular comparison meme of Gex and Conker making more sense. Gex had to been ahead of it's time in some aspects. Also earlier I mention Gex gets to ride animals. We are talking Donkeys, an Camel, an crocodile and in a kangaroo respectively.
Two of these are exclusive to the bonus levels. I do like one of the secret levels is entirely an swimming level. Now I know most water levels or sections in games gets heavily criticize. I strongly felt this was among the best of them in my opinion. You do have to worry somewhat about oxygen. It isn't as close as rough as Rocket Channel from Gex: Enter the Gecko though.
This actually ended up being my favorite secret level. For mostly two huge reasons that helped it stands out. A notably longer time limit from the rest of them. The concept of an entire swimming level they sure given you a lot of space to work with. It also had the most interesting secret cut scene object placement.
This involves placing a giant battery. Then you simply use parts of the ship surprisingly functional to destroy a spot to gain entry to where it's located. Plus the actual location was quite nice to explore. The most annoying factor was some mines were closely placed to some of the collectibles. Otherwise a fun swimming level you should check out.
You also can unlock two hidden characters for the secret levels. To unlock Rex, in Holiday Broadcasting. There's a small section that has a huge block of ice. Simply push that block to the fire on the ground floor. To unlock Cuz, in Gangster TV requires an fire power up. You could rush it including just ate one a short cut to him or wait on eating that power up.
Until you're where Cuz located which is right by that giant TV. Considering rescuing him an actual objective in that level. As his name implies he is Gex's cousin. Rex was more of Gex's ancestor. In the previous Gex game went full in the stone age. It was a nice reference to those levels. Also the level Cuz in ends up being one of the absolute best in the entire franchise.
Unfortunately completing the secret levels as them does virtually nothing for the game. Not to mention, both of them plays very similar to Gex. as if they were altered skins placed over Gex or something. Basically they fail to differ enough from him. It pales in comparison to Sonic Adventure 1 and Crash Bandicoot: Warped.
Sonic Adventure 1 in Japan came out a couple months before Gex 3. If we went by US release dates Gex 3 predates Sonic Adventure 1 by a couple months. Crash Bandicoot: Warped predates Gex 3 regardless of release dates. Crash's sister Coco gets several game play styles in that game. This is excluding Crash Bandicoot N. Sane Trilogy where she's fully played in classic Crash trilogy there.
Bonus levels now requires bonus coins. A certain amount of bonus coins makes em become available. I will say all the bonus levels were a lot of fun. I felt the tank levels were the most strict among em. Besides they are all notably quick collectathons you could easily replay. Easily the most fun bonus levels in the series.
I also need to directly mention a particular secret level. Barveheartless the title actually a reference to the movie Braveheart and an game called Akuji the Heartless. Like Pandemonium! series, Akuji was another franchise Crystal Dynamics owned. Who are now owned by Square Enix. I actually grew up with Akuji the Heartless among many PS1 games.
For years I didn't know this secret level existed. It's also only in the PS1 version. In the N64 version, it gets replaced by Temple of Gloom that's parodying Indiana Jones. They mostly referenced Indiana Jones among the extra stuff in the series. This wasn't the only case among the secret levels either. Originally the first secret level was Dial "A" for Arson parodying rescue theme franchises.
It was replaced with Peg Leg Pola that takes place in The Buccaneer Program. The only secret level not requiring collectibles prior to finishing the level. One of the main levels also gotten swapped out too. Oddly both shares the same world name of Mythology Network. Originally you play a level called Unsolved Mythologies.
In the N64 version it was replaced with Et Tu Gecko? Both being Greek mythology theme sharing several stuff. It's kinda similar to two Sparkster games within Rocket Knight Adventures series. Two vastly different levels on a similar theme. Regarding Unsolved Mythologies it's among the most tedious levels yet.
You constantly need to get power ups to process in some areas. Either eat a particular power up fly to gain the ability to freeze skeletons. Which would act as temporary platforms you quickly jump up to difficult to reach locations. You also need HercuGex to break many pillars as well as push some heavy pillars to a degree.
Despite this it's still ends up being a fun level. Even for the more tedious aspects. It simply comes off being somewhat satisfying you complete the level. I should also point out some of the collectibles either difficult to reach or surprisingly well hidden. Some of the levels were nice enough to give you a power up that allows you to aim & fire em.
Sometimes they miss or don't reach the collectibles. This also prevents you from some not great situations too. As for the more hidden collectibles. The best two advices I can give is really check everywhere. Also You might need to get a little creative to find em. I'm impressed they went for Fairytales TV.
Of course eventually they had to do this some people likely thinking. Somehow it works amazingly well with this game. There's a nice size ground level with majority of the level being going up the beans tack. Yes there's a giant's home at the top thankful the giant isn't awake. You fall a long way down thankfully no instant deaths.
They did place mirrors that act as location check points. This is incredibly helpful to reduce the back tracking a lot. They referenced a few popular fairy tales. The fact this is mostly going upwards level was quite ambitious for it's time. You just don't expect levels like this back in the late 90s. It's also surprisingly easy to miss some of the objectives too.
Now I'm going to talk about the bosses. All three of them are vastly different from each other. This also ended up being the most fun boss lineup too. Sure even Rez comes off being notably easier from the previous two Gex games. It also could be due to the surprising themes they went for. The first boss is Rock Hard yes I know a sex joke let's move on.
You face Rock Hard in an wrestling match. Predating MediEvil 2's boxing boss match against Iron Slugger a little over two years. I actually prefer the boxing boss more. You got to realize back in the 90s wrestling especially WWF now WWE was a huge deal. Again my favorite cover for Gex 3 so happens to be the N64 version parodying wrestler Stone Cold Steve Austin.
Speaking of him, Rock Hard parodies both him and The Rock. Some of his quotes are parodies of stuff they used to say a lot in the 90s to early 2000s. There's a glitch of the camera revealing a surprise crossover with Tomb Raider's Lara Croft. At the time, Crystal Dynamics also making Tomb Raider series.
The second boss is Brain of Oz in a parody of The Wizard of Oz. The actual classic book series is in the public domain. I actually checked to this if The Wizard of Oz before Gex 3 done this. The Wizard of Oz as in the book series entered the public domain back in 1954. The classic film still copy righted however.
Gex gets dressed up as Tin Man. I won't go into controversial the classic movie had with the original Tin Man actor. I recently found out about but it's quite mess up with the studio done to him. Tin Man was among my favorite characters too. It makes sense this would become the next right hand man to Rez following Mooshoo Pork from the previous game.
You simply avoid his projectiles as well as some of the TV enemies. Wait for cannons to show up to attack Brain of Oz. I simply loved they went for the joke. The concept of this boss was referenced funny enough from the previous Gex game among the art works shown. I do deeply appreciate all Rez's boss fights being vastly different from each other.
This is no question the easiest Rez boss fight. He's even easier to read with only one phase again. He has a few attacks that's easy to avoid. It's more like the first boss encounter since only eaten power ups. You can temporary damage Rez to a degree. You still have to constantly go between bridges. This also has my favorite Rez appearance as in his actual look in the entire series.
Rez always had a rather interesting look to a degree. This particular one with two different numbered eyes stands out. Among getting defeated parts of him explodes revealing notable chunks missing. Before he officially gone from the game. Gex 3 never planned to be the conclusion of the series. It just unexpected happened following new management at Crystal Dynamics.
So we don't know if Rez might return or just gotten finished off for good. Once again Gex gets some action with a lady. People were funny with a human princess and Sonic. Even in Sonic 06 that felt uncomfortable. Here they went all in I can tell some people won't like this in today's world. Keep in mind this was the original PS1 ending.
It was changed in the N64 version notably. We get to see Alfred revealing Agent Xtra married Gex. The married couple went on a cruise while claiming Gex couldn't done it without him. He simply gave tutorial level advice nothing else. I could argue Gex done more than enough without him. Alfred also meant to be a parody of DC's Alfred as in Batman's butler.
I could see more people accepting the N64 version ending more. Although the joke in the PS1 version ending difficult to ignore. It's also surprising he had a girl friend considering how obsessed with television he is. Just imagine if Gex were to get a newer entry even a spin off. They brought streaming into this, Rez could become a god like being.
All the possibilities that could bring in. I highly doubt beyond Gex Trilogy Square Enix going to fully bring the series back to life. We're simply lucky to get Gex Trilogy at all. Gex 3 by itself is a truly amazing platformer. In most aspects truly deserves to be called the greatest Gex game ever made period!!!
You're getting the absolute best of everything imaginable. Even the notable criticisms isn't that bad to be honest. A very creative game for it's time. Oh I miss when games were this well made. They weren't rush out like it is now. After playing all of these you would think I'm done not waiting for the compilation.
No I actually want Gex Trilogy even more now. Where has this franchise been all my life? Gex 3 in particular was a huge blast of nostalgia. It also was quite a refreshing experience that heavily inspired me. This is what I personally call a game!!! They even made a collectathon game a truly enjoyable experience.
In a lot of games' cases that aspects really drags em down. Here you just gotta keep up playing em like no tomorrow. Also not because you suck like among many joke things the original Gex's secret ending says. It does test how well you adapt to many situations. A rather interesting variety of game play to keep it fun for hours.
The levels as a whole on all sides are the most fun by far. The bosses may be a little easier than expected. Still ends up being among my favorite bosses in the entire series. The closest to a real complaint I have is Agent Xtra cut scenes. Obviously you know Gex going to throw out references. She usually cuts to just come rescue me thing gets old fast.
Also considering she's a fellow spy that's sad. She virtually doesn't do anything at all. She comes off like your mom getting on you about not doing your chores. Even Princess Peach wasn't this annoying in the Mario games. She also gotten kidnapped a lot more times. Gex 3 really goes quite far with the concept.
You really couldn't ask for more than this. Just imagine if there were a sequel. Which Gex 4 gotten canceled for unknown reasons. There also was another canceled Gex game called Gex Jr. Actually was being developed by a different team. In more recent years footage of this gotten leaked. I'm personally not sold on this.
If this were to gotten release following Gex 3. Just imagine how truly disappointment that could've been. The best Gex game followed by the absolute worst Gex game. I think it was a great thing it gotten canceled. There's no way that could've been good. Gex 3 is the golden standard among Gex games. I highly recommend people playing that within Gex Trilogy.
You simply aren't living until you play this honestly. It's a surprisingly well done parody 3D platformer. Enough content to keep you busy for hours. Even with the constant voice overs repeating. You'll keep on going until you finish the game. It's so satisfying to get it done with an 100% completion too. The insane amount of work suddenly felt well worth all that effort.
Conclusion
The overall procession of everything is each Gex game gotten notably better than the last. Even with the original Gex being the worst among them. It really isn't a bad game just comes so close at being better than somewhat decent. A couple changes would've made it a much better 2D platformer. Personally the change from 2D to 3D really fit well with the franchise.
Both 3D sequels really improved every aspect imaginable. Controls were at their finest in Gex 3. Mechanics were simply done just right in Gex 3 as well. The level designs were simply too great in Gex 3. I personally felt the intros are notably better than the endings. None of the actual endings are bad though.
Characters like TMNT's Michelangelo, Conker and Gex were proof. The world needed character like Deadpool. People may get annoy by them to a degree. They usually are rather fun characters referencing pop culture. The Simpsons had a notable inspiration on the franchise. Considering the US voice actor for Gex, Dana Gould wrote for a few seasons of the show.
The Simpsons is a massively pop culture reference marathon. You could spent hours looking up as many references you recognize. You also could do the same after playing Gex Trilogy just saying. Humor is often said to be the best medicine. Which I strongly believe to be true. You would be amaze how laughter could save one's life.
The bonus & secret levels were hands down the best in Gex 3. The boss fights were the most balanced in Gex 3. The hub world is beyond words amazing in Gex 3. Gex 3 was a major step up from Gex: Enter the Gecko. Not only that I felt the most jokes lands the best in Gex 3. Some could argue some of the voice overs in Gex 1 being the best.
You also have a procession feature to keep track what you done helps a lot. Simply having the most direct save method by default. All the rememberable outfits within the levels. Everything about Gex 3 is done incredibly well. This is for sure I really want in my gaming collection. It's simply too good not to have in my opinion.
Just imagine the rewinding feature playing into that. Suddenly it's even a more replayable game than before. I know that feature included in the upcoming Gex Trilogy. Gex 3 really went the distance in every possible way. I know I'm really hyping it up here. But you just don't know until you play this!!! It's a truly fantastic game that everyone should play at least once in their life.
