Ape Escape Academy review

When the Ape Escape series first came out, it was to show off Sony's then-fancy new controller - which had not one, but two analog sticks. This little bit of history is important because when Ape Escape Academy hit our PSP, we were reminded of how long it's been since this series made us feel like a monkey with a banana. Instead, we're more in a throwing poop state of mind.

Essentially, Ape Escape Academy is a collection of around 40 mini-games, in which you train to become part of series villain Specter's hench-force. The problem is, most of them are about as pleasant as actual basic training. Sure, catching fruit on a sword is interesting, and using a slingshot to protect a giant, bonfire-roasting banana from hungry encroaching monkeys is always amusing. But too much of the other stuff: jogging along to a rhythm-action chant; winning a 100-yard dash; playing rock, paper, scissors - slips on its own banana peel. It's almost all been done before, and it loaded more quickly then. Even with multiplayer support for four players, this is tired.