Ape Escape 2
Encyclopedia
Ape Escape 2 is a platform
video game developed by Sony and published by Sony in Japan
and Europe
, while Ubisoft
published it in North America
for the PlayStation 2
video game console
. It was first released in Japan on July 18, 2001, and was later released in Europe
on March 14, 2003, and in North America
on June 30, 2003. It was re-released in Japan under the PlayStation 2 the Best line twice - first on December 5, 2002, and again on March 10, 2005. It is the second game in the Ape Escape series, and is also used as the basis for the cartoon series
by Frederator. The game has sold 6.2 million copies worldwide.
Hikaru manages to capture all of the Freaky Monkey Five, except Yellow Monkey. Before his fight with White Monkey, Pipotchi, a baby monkey accompanying Hikaru, is kidnapped, in order to transfer the data in his Peak Point Helmet into a device called the Lethargy Laser. Rescuing Pipotchi, Hikaru makes his way through a monkey controlled military base, and confronts Specter, who is waiting for him with a hi-tech gunship. Before the two can battle, Yellow Monkey, now a giant monster thanks to an overdose on Vita-Z bananas attacks the facility. Specter flees, and Hikaru manages to downsize and capture Yellow.
Hikaru, the Professor and Natsumi then discover the purpose of the Lethargy Laser. By firing it at the globe, all humans worldwide will lose the will to fight back, making it easier for Specter and the monkeys to take over the world. Hikaru confronts Specter at his moonbase, who attacks him with a giant robot. Once defeated, Specter attempts to fire the laser, but Hikaru states that humans will never give up, and captures him. Jimmy and Pipotchi then flee the exploding moonbase.
Shortly afterwards, Specter escapes and goes into hiding. Hikaru then proceeds to capture all the remaining monkeys before the Professor discovers Specter's hiding place. Hikaru warps there, encountering Specter, and the two of them battle again. Specter loses and is once again captured. The game ends with Spike visiting the laboratory, which is destroyed when Hikaru accidentally crashes a spaceship into it.
Also introduced in this game is Pipotchi, a sidekick who can assist Jimmy in reaching ledges and occasionally revive him if he's knocked out. Also, the gotcha coins that spawn from enemies are used as currency for bonuses, and can multiply in worth if left alone.
Platform game
A platform game is a video game characterized by requiring the player to jump to and from suspended platforms or over obstacles . It must be possible to control these jumps and to fall from platforms or miss jumps...
video game developed by Sony and published by Sony in Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
and Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
, while Ubisoft
Ubisoft
Ubisoft Entertainment S.A. is a major French video game publisher and developer, with headquarters in Montreuil, France. The company has a worldwide presence with 25 studios in 17 countries and subsidiaries in 26 countries....
published it in North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
for the PlayStation 2
PlayStation 2
The PlayStation 2 is a sixth-generation video game console manufactured by Sony as part of the PlayStation series. Its development was announced in March 1999 and it was first released on March 4, 2000, in Japan...
video game console
Video game console
A video game console is an interactive entertainment computer or customized computer system that produces a video display signal which can be used with a display device to display a video game...
. It was first released in Japan on July 18, 2001, and was later released in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
on March 14, 2003, and in North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
on June 30, 2003. It was re-released in Japan under the PlayStation 2 the Best line twice - first on December 5, 2002, and again on March 10, 2005. It is the second game in the Ape Escape series, and is also used as the basis for the cartoon series
Ape Escape (cartoon series)
Ape Escape is a series of cartoon shorts developed by Frederator Studios, Hawaii Film Partners, Project 51 Productions and Showcase Entertainment for Nicktoons. It is based on the Ape Escape video game series, with the characters and designs based on Ape Escape 2 in particular, and focuses around...
by Frederator. The game has sold 6.2 million copies worldwide.
Story
This game takes place after the events in Ape Escape, where Kakeru (Spike in the U.S. version, named "Spike" in the original U.K. Ape Escape) stopped Specter from taking over the world. It is a few years later, and The Professor left for a vacation leaving his granddaughter, Natsumi (Natalie in the U.S. version), and Spike's cousin, Hikaru (Jimmy in the U.S. version), to watch over the laboratory. The Professor has left them with one task: deliver a load of monkey pants to the monkeys in Monkey Park. Hikaru accidentally sends not only the monkey pants, but The Peak Point Helmets as well. Specter gets a hold of one, and yet again makes an army of monkeys bent on ruling the world. Jimmy aims to capture all the monkeys and stop Specter. However, Specter has supplied five monkeys with Vita-Z bananas, making them stronger and more intelligent than the average monkeys.Hikaru manages to capture all of the Freaky Monkey Five, except Yellow Monkey. Before his fight with White Monkey, Pipotchi, a baby monkey accompanying Hikaru, is kidnapped, in order to transfer the data in his Peak Point Helmet into a device called the Lethargy Laser. Rescuing Pipotchi, Hikaru makes his way through a monkey controlled military base, and confronts Specter, who is waiting for him with a hi-tech gunship. Before the two can battle, Yellow Monkey, now a giant monster thanks to an overdose on Vita-Z bananas attacks the facility. Specter flees, and Hikaru manages to downsize and capture Yellow.
Hikaru, the Professor and Natsumi then discover the purpose of the Lethargy Laser. By firing it at the globe, all humans worldwide will lose the will to fight back, making it easier for Specter and the monkeys to take over the world. Hikaru confronts Specter at his moonbase, who attacks him with a giant robot. Once defeated, Specter attempts to fire the laser, but Hikaru states that humans will never give up, and captures him. Jimmy and Pipotchi then flee the exploding moonbase.
Shortly afterwards, Specter escapes and goes into hiding. Hikaru then proceeds to capture all the remaining monkeys before the Professor discovers Specter's hiding place. Hikaru warps there, encountering Specter, and the two of them battle again. Specter loses and is once again captured. The game ends with Spike visiting the laboratory, which is destroyed when Hikaru accidentally crashes a spaceship into it.
Gameplay
Gameplay is similar to the previous game. Movement is controlled with the left analogue stick and R buttons, and gadgets are controlled with the right analogue stick. Three new gadgets are added, the Electro Magnet, used for pulling metal blocks and clinging onto metal surfaces, the Water Cannon used for putting out fires, and the Bananarang, that can attract monkeys with a banana fragrance. A new feature is the ability to change the gadget loadout by holding down one of the gadget buttons and changing the gadget.Also introduced in this game is Pipotchi, a sidekick who can assist Jimmy in reaching ledges and occasionally revive him if he's knocked out. Also, the gotcha coins that spawn from enemies are used as currency for bonuses, and can multiply in worth if left alone.
Minigames
Like in the previous game, Ape Escape 2 features minigames, this time to get them you pay for them with Gotcha Coins collected through the levels via a vending machine called the "Gotcha Box" in the hub when you've got up to a certain stage in the game. The three minigames are Dance Monkey Dance, Monkey Soccer, and Monkey Climber.Types of monkeys (except for the freaky monkey five)
- Yellow pants monkeys
- Aqua blue pants monkeys
- Monkeys with all color pants
- Blue pants monkeys
- White pants monkeys
- Black pants monkeys
- Red pants monkeys
- Green pants monkeys