It's 2023 and developers still haven't figured out how to top the personality in this games animation. Mind-blowing to think this game is over 20 years old when most modern titles feel so stiff and lifeless in comparison. The artists and engineers at Naughty Dog absolutely nailed the feeling of controlling a tangible character with a real sense of weight interacting with their environment. There's just so much charm in Jak's exaggerated cartoon-like movements as he leaps, bounds and flings himself through the varied platforming obstacles the game has on offer. Watching him raise his legs as he wades through shallow water and snow or how his body contorts and stretches when jumping and attacking to emphasize momentum and impact- it looks and feels fantastic and is still practically unmatched to this day. Even something as simple as Jak's run animation is so satisfyingly smooth and fun, weaving side to side, his clothes and hair moving and reacting dynamically with each step while Daxter bobs up and down, perched on his shoulder. It's the small details that really sells it and helps bring these characters to life.

Anyway, this is just about as perfect as a collectathon gets, featuring all the staples you'd expect from the genre but polished to perfection in typical Naughty Dog fashion. It really feels like a culmination of the lessons and skills learned from their time working on the Crash series, taken to the natural next level both artistically and mechanically, with its top class animation work, breezy, tropical island vibes and a focus on precise platforming challenges, only this time in a much bigger and more impressive sandbox to play in. Also worth noting that it's the first game to feature seamless loading in an open world, setting a new precedent for the time.

10 Precursor Orbs out of 10.