Gex – yes, Gex, the '90s platformer series about a wisecracking gecko voiced by Dana Gould – is the latest vintage title to get the remaster treatment. For all the middling reviews the series got back in the day, I'm not sure anyone could've predicted we'd someday see a lavish, $200 Gex Trilogy collection complete with artwork from the legendary Yoshitaka Amano.
The Gex Trilogy launches digitally in June, complete with modernized analog controls and support for widescreen visuals. The package looks pretty well put-together, and runs on the Limited Run Games Carbon Engine, which has powered some solid remasters in the past.
It's just, you know... the Gex of it all. The original, 2D title got mediocre reviews in the 6-7 range, and while the first 3D entry, Enter the Gecko, fared decently with scores around 8 out of 10, the final piece of the trilogy, Deep Cover Gecko, was seen as pretty middling.
Yet it seems there's enough nostalgia for Gex out there in order to justify a $200 collector's edition, which comes complete with a 36" inflatable Gex doll and a 7" Gex statue alongside other goodies, all packaged up in a box illustrated by Yoshitaka Amano, who you probably know best for the absolutely gorgeous Final Fantasy art he's created over the years.
"You might know him from his work on a lesser known Square Enix franchise," the devs say in a Steam post, "so it made sense to finally give him the opportunity to illustrate their best one – GEX!" Well, at least they've got a sense of humor about the whole thing.
Listen, I love old games, perhaps even especially the mediocre and bad ones, but I find myself constantly bewildered by the remasters we're getting these days. But hey, if everything from Glover to Bubsy 3D can get a modern port, I guess we can at least count Gex as a step up from those games. I'm just having trouble imagining who's willing to pay $200 for it.
Sorry, Gex fans, he's not counted in our list of the best PS1 games.
