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Jak II
Jak II NTSC box cover
Developer(s)	Naughty Dog
Publisher(s)	SCEA
Series	Jak and Daxter series
Platform(s)	PlayStation 2
Genre(s)	Platformer, Action
Mode(s)	Single player

Jak II, subtitled Jak II: Renegade in Europe, is a science fiction platform game developed by Naughty Dog. Released for the PlayStation 2 game console on October 14, 2003, the game is the sequel to Jak and Daxter: The Precursor Legacy and the second game in the Jak and Daxter series. It was followed by Jak 3 a year later.

The game features new weapons and devices, new playable areas, and a storyline that picks up after the events of The Precursor Legacy. In the game, Haven City, a dystopia ruled under the questionable fist of Baron Praxis, is engaged in a war against a techno-organic group of organisms known as the "Metal Heads". As in the previous game, the player takes on the dual role of recurring protagonists Jak and Daxter. There are also a new array of characters such as Torn, Erol, Krew, Kor, Ashelin, and Sig, as well as some returning ones, such as Samos and Keira.

Jak II is the only game in the series in which the versions for English-speaking regions feature the Japanese and Korean voiceover track. The voiceover cast features many notable seiyūs, including Shotaro Morikubo as Jak. The other games in the series did not follow suit, leaving the voices to be exclusive to the Japanese and Korean regions. However, the Japanese track is not on the disk for Jak and Daxter and Jak 3. This is also technically the last Jak and Daxter game to be released in Japan. Jak 3 was completely localized and dubbed in Japanese, but was not released in the country due to Jak II's poor sales. Japanese, however, is selectable on the Korean release of the game and will play on a Japanese PlayStation 2.

Synopsis

Setting

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Jak II takes place in the same science fiction universe created by Naughty Dog for Jak and Daxter, though hundreds of years in the future. The plot largely revolves around happenings in and around Haven City, a dystopia ruled by Baron Praxis and his Krimzon Guard law enforcers. Gates in the city walls open into various different locations which the player is able to access as the game progresses.

Characters

The main player character is Jak, the subject of Baron Praxis' "Dark Warrior" project, who can also be transformed into a crazed beast-like human called Dark Jak, who wields a multitude of dark energy-based attacks. Jak's personality is very different from the first game, in which he was mute and much less aggressive. This older version of Jak has a much darker outlook on life, which contrasts with his friend Daxter's more enthusiastic persona and now speaks. Daxter, an otter-weasel hybrid known as an ottsel, is the game's comic relief. Other important characters include Torn, the second-in-command of the resistance movement known as the Underground; Sig, a Metal Head hunter; Krew, the gang lord; Tess, the barmaid; and Ashelin, the daughter of Baron Praxis who helps the Underground behind her father's back. Baron Praxis and the Metal Head's leader Kor are the story's antagonists.

Plot

The game takes place directly after the events of the first game. Jak, Daxter, Samos, and Keira just finished repairing the Rift Rider and Precursor Ring found in Gol and Maia's Citadel from the previous game. When the Rift Rider is activated, the group are thrown three hundred years forward in time and separated. Jak and Daxter end up in a dystopia called Haven City, where Jak is captured by the Krimzon Guard Commander, Erol, and sent to prison by Baron Praxis. Daxter escapes, however, promising to rescue Jak (setting the premise for the game Daxter).

Two years pass, and Jak has been used as a test subject for Baron Praxis's "Dark Warrior" program, involving Jak being injected with Dark Eco. Because of this, Jak, with enough Dark Eco, can transform into a destructive form referred to outside of the game as "Dark Jak". Praxis, however, deems the project a failure and tries to have Jak terminated. After breaking out of prison with the assistance of Daxter, Jak joins an underground movement, led by a former Krimzon Guard named Torn, that desires to overthrow Praxis and place the true heir, a young boy called the Kid, onto the throne.

Much of the game revolves around Jak aiding the Underground, running missions such as destroying ammo dumps and generally sabotaging Baron Praxis operations. While commanded by Torn, the mobster Krew, a hunter named Sig, and later Keira, who is working as a racing mechanic and allows Jak to participate in races for her team, he quickly catches the Baron's eye. As the plot progresses, it is discovered that Baron Praxis has been working with the Metal Heads to remain in control, and that the Kid, under the protection of a man named Kor, has the ability to open the Tomb of Mar, which contains the Precursor Stone. After successfully locating and passing through the Tomb after much hard work, Jak and Daxter enter the main room, which houses the Precursor Stone, and learn that the Metal Heads were responsible for destroying the Precursors. The Baron arrives and, despite Jak's efforts, manages to steal the Stone. When Jak arrives back at the Hideout, Torn reveals that he sold the Underground out after Praxis threatened to kill Ashelin if the information about the Underground and its operations was not divulged. It is also found that a younger version of Samos exists in addition to the older one, though this confuses Jak and Daxter, especially after they discover that the land they are in is their own land, but in the future. Through meditation, this younger Samos eventually discovers that Praxis plans to destroy the Precursor Stone, ignorant that this action would destroy the planet in the process.

Following this, Jak enters the Class One racing championship, and claims victory. After his loss, the ex-champion Erol attempts to kill Jak by running him over, but accidentally crashes into barrels of Dark Eco, apparently killing himself. As the winner gets a pass into the Baron's palace, Jak travels there and is ambushed by Ashelin, who believes that Jak is attempting to undermine her father's war with the Metal Heads. Jak tells her the the Baron is planning to destroy the Precursor Stone and she contacts the foreman Vin, who gives her all the proof she needs. Ashelin then reveals that Krew is building something for the Baron at a secret weapons factory, which turns out to be a bomb capable of destroying the Precursor Stone as well as the Metal Head nest. Jak then heads there, fights his way through the weapons factory and eventually battles Krew. Upon defeat, Krew attempts to detonate the bomb and kill them all, but Ashelin saves Jak and Daxter just before it detonates, leaving Krew to die.

When back at the city, which is now over-run by Metal Heads, Jak confronts Praxis at a construction site. They are interrupted by Kor, who demands the Precursor Stone from Praxis. When the Baron refuses, Kor takes on his true form, that of the Metal Head leader, fatally injures Praxis, and flies off. Before the Baron dies, he reveals a second Piercer Bomb that houses the Precursor Stone. Praxis tells Jak that Jak himself was the ultimate weapon and that he had the power to stop Kor. Following his death, Daxter actually manages to successfully disarm the bomb and recover the stone.

Heading to the Metal Head Nest, Jak and Daxter use the stone to power up Mar's old cannon and blast their way into the nest for a final confrontation with Kor. When they come face-to-face with Kor, they learn he has both the Kid and the Rift Ring. Kor then reveals that the Kid is Jak. He was sent to the Past to grow up and gain the skills to face Kor, but the Dark Eco contamination of the older, teenage Jak means that he cannot activate the Precursor Stone. However, Young Jak, not having been tainted by the Eco, can still release the entity inside. After a climactic battle, the Metal Head Leader attempts to flee through the Ring and crashes into it, decapitating himself and causing the Ring to begin breaking up. Young Jak touches the Stone, to release a being of Light Eco, believed to be a Precursor, who departs through the disintegrating Rift. Keira and the two Samoses arrive with the Rift Rider, which is used to send Young Jak and Young Samos back to the past. The Rift then implodes on itself, leaving the older Jak, Samos, and Keira to live in their proper time within Haven City. The game ends with a victory cinematic at Krew's old bar, now under ownership of Daxter, and re-named the Naughty Ottsel.

Development

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Reception

This game received generally very positive reviews from critics. It won Editor's Choice from IGN and GameSpot, was nominated for Best PlayStation 2 Game by GameSpot and received aggregate scores of 87/100 on MetaCritic and 88% on Game Rankings.

Jak II was added to Sony's Greatest Hits lineup on September 8 2004, signifying at least 400,000 copies sold in its first 11 months.

A common complaint among critics and gamers alike was of the often steep difficulty curve.

References

1. IGNPS2 Editor's Favorites 2003
2. GameSpot Editor's Choice listing
3. Best PlayStation 2 Game for 2003 on GameSpot
4. Jak II on MetaCritic
5. Jak II Reviews on Game Rankings
6. 5 New Titles Added To PS2 Greatest Hits

External links

• Official North American website (www.jakii.com)
• Official European website
• Naughty Dog's Jak II website
• Jak II (PS2) at GameSpot
• Jak II at MobyGames
• Into the Light - A Jak and Daxter Fansite
• The Dark Ottsel - An Unofficial Jak and Daxter Fansite
• Undying Heroism - A tribute to the Jak and Daxter Legacy

• 2003 video games
• Jak and Daxter games
• PlayStation 2 games
• PlayStation 2-only games
• 3D platform games
• Video games with time travel