Gex (video game series)
Encyclopedia
Gex is a platformer video game series, developed by Crystal Dynamics
, that details the adventures of an anthropomorphic gecko
named Gex. Gex has a passion for television, which makes him a target for the cybernetic being, Rez, who is determined to overthrow The Media Dimension, the "world" of television. He has also served as the mascot of Crystal Dynamics, appearing on their company logo for several years. In the North America
n version, Gex is voiced by comedian Dana Gould
throughout the entire series; the United Kingdom
version features Dana Gould, Leslie Phillips
and Danny John-Jules
as Gex's voice throughout the series.
The games are largely inspired by American TV-culture. Gex also contributes to the games with wise-cracking remarks laced with media and pop-culture references, reminiscent to the catchphrases of Duke Nukem
and most notably those of Ash Williams
, the protagonist from The Evil Dead
films.
The concept of the Gex games (especially the main villain wanting to take control of the world through TV) was also reinstated into Ape Escape 3
(although in this case it was part of a master plan to split the Earth in two).
Gex also appears as an unlockable character in the North American and European versions of Hot Shots Golf 2.
The Gex series has sold a combined total of over 15 million copies for all platforms. Gex 3 is the best selling of the series, shipping over 6 million copies and also became the best-selling PlayStation
adventure game of 1999 with 3 million copies in that year alone.
, but was cancelled and never officially announced for unknown reasons. Several pieces of concept art from the project were leaked.
In 2009 Crystal Dynamics announced, that they are looking for a Senior Art Director to lead the development of "one of the most prestigious" game series. Due to the fact that they called the series "AAA franchise" many people believed, that a new Gex game is meant. Later, however, Crystal Dynamics announced that the referenced franchise is Tomb Raider
.
A few days before E3 2011 IGN's editor Greg Miller mentioned a game in development featuring a lizard, most likely as central character, in IGN's Game Scoop Podcast: "Lets just say, if you're a fan of Lizards… Oh, doctor.". Via Twitter
he later responded to a tweet from a Gex fan about this rumor and responded: "I like that rumor. Try to spread it.". Eventually, it came out that Miller was not talking about a Gex sequel, but of Sly Cooper: Thieves in Time
.
on the PEGI website a new Gex game has recently been rated for PS3. This however was for PSN re-releases of the trilogy.
, Hawaii
. His mother raised him and his three siblings while his father worked at NASA
. One day, Gex's mother got a phone call saying that Gex's father and his co-workers had died in a rocket explosion. Rather than grieving, Gex bottled up his emotions, and sat in front of the TV.
Gex's mother decided that it was time for a change, she told the whole family that they were moving to California. Week after week of Gex watching TV, his mother decided to take action, and sell the TV. This infuriated Gex so much that he decided to leave his home, and never return. For the next few months Gex slept in his friend's garage, and made money by doing odd jobs.
One day, Gex's mother found him and had fantastic news. Gex and his family had inherited over twenty-billion dollars from his late Uncle Charlie. With the money, Gex bought a mansion back in Hawaii and the largest screen TV in the world.
As seen in the game's opening, Gex was watching his enormous TV one day, when a fly buzzed by his head. Gex flicked out his tongue and swallowed it. Unknown to Gex, the "fly" was actually a metallic transmitter. Suddenly, Gex's remote jammed and the TV went blank. A huge hand shot out of the screen and grabbed Gex by his neck, and pulled him into the Media Dimension. The cold claw belonged to Rez, the overlord of the Media Dimension, who had intended to make Gex his new mascot and conquer the world.
Gex managed to find the hidden remotes in the strange, television worlds. Gex made it through a disturbing cemetery, an odd cartoon land, an enormous jungle, an ancient Chinese
village, the mysterious Planet X, and Rezopolis, the capital of the Media Dimension. Gex made it into Rez's inner sanctum and battled him head-to-head. Using one of his own mechanical bugs, Gex defeated Rez, and made it back home in time for his shows. Rez transformed into a ball of energy and escaped.
Two government agents show up at Gex's house, requesting Gex's help. Gex denies, saying he's already saved the universe once. One of the agents then beats Gex over the head with a crowbar, knocking him unconscious.
When he wakes up, he realizes he is in an interrogation room. The two agents ask Gex what he knows about Rez, Gex tells them everything. Once again they ask for his help, one of the agents reaches under the table and pulls out a briefcase full of cash, as well as a secret agent suit. Gex finally agrees to help them. The two agents give him a map, and say they want Rez to "disappear", instructing him to hide the body between Jimmy Hoffa's
and Spuds Mackenzie's
.
As Gex leaves the building, a beautiful female agent walks up to him, and introduces herself as "Agent Xtra", she wishes him good luck and leaves. Gex then leaves to the Media Dimension.
Once Gex is in the Media Dimension, he navigates through several channels. Toon TV
; Scream TV
; Rocket Channel
; Circuit Central
; Kung Fu Theatre; The Pre-history Channel
; Rezopolis
; and Channel Z. Once Gex navigates through Rezopolis and Channel Z, he fights the overlord again. By dropping a large TV on top of him, Gex defeats Rez. Rez once again transforms into a ball of energy, and is then trapped in the same TV Gex dropped on him. Rez begs him to let him out of the TV, he even bribes him, but Gex shuts off the TV.
Gex is last seen in a hotel room with Nikki, from the Pandemonium
video games.
to the Media Dimension, that he calls the "GexCave".
Gex navigates through all new channels. Holiday; Mystery
; Ancient Egyptian
; Army
; Western
; Pirate
; Greek Mythology
; Fairytale
; Anime
; Mafia
; Superhero
; and Channel Z. Once Gex collects all the remotes, he travels to an enormous Space Station above Earth, and battles Rez. Unlike the previous two times, Rez did not transform into a ball of energy, instead he exploded into several pieces, possibly meaning that he is truly dead.
Gex is last seen in a hotel room with Agent Xtra, who is telling him about her time in the Media Dimension. Alfred contacts Gex, saying there is an emergency, however Gex disconnects the computer and ignores him.
Crystal Dynamics
Crystal Dynamics is an American video game developer based in the San Francisco Bay Area and founded in 1992 by Judy Lang, Madaline Canepa and Dave Morris...
, that details the adventures of an anthropomorphic gecko
Gecko
Geckos are lizards belonging to the infraorder Gekkota, found in warm climates throughout the world. They range from 1.6 cm to 60 cm....
named Gex. Gex has a passion for television, which makes him a target for the cybernetic being, Rez, who is determined to overthrow The Media Dimension, the "world" of television. He has also served as the mascot of Crystal Dynamics, appearing on their company logo for several years. In the 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...
n version, Gex is voiced by comedian Dana Gould
Dana Gould
Dana John Gould is an American comedian and comedy writer born and raised in Hopedale, Massachusetts. His upbringing and his extended family lent themselves to his stand-up routine, which has been seen on HBO, Showtime, and Comedy Central, among other places.-Career:After high school, he studied...
throughout the entire series; the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
version features Dana Gould, Leslie Phillips
Leslie Phillips
Leslie Samuel Phillips, CBE is an English actor with a highly recognisable upper class accent. Originally known for his work as a comedy actor, Phillips subsequently made the transition to character roles.-Early life:...
and Danny John-Jules
Danny John-Jules
Daniel "Danny" John-Jules is a British actor, singer and dancer. John-Jules attended Rutherford Comprehensive School, Penfold Street, Marylebone, from 1972 to 1977. He is best known for portraying Cat in the television programme Red Dwarf.-Dance and song:John-Jules is a baritone...
as Gex's voice throughout the series.
The games are largely inspired by American TV-culture. Gex also contributes to the games with wise-cracking remarks laced with media and pop-culture references, reminiscent to the catchphrases of Duke Nukem
Duke Nukem (character)
Duke Nukem is a fictional character and action hero who has been the protagonist in over a dozen video games.The character first appeared in the 1991 video game Duke Nukem developed by Apogee Software...
and most notably those of Ash Williams
Ash Williams
Ashley J. "Ash" Williams is the protagonist in the Evil Dead horror film franchise, played by Bruce Campbell, and created by director Sam Raimi. Throughout the series, Ash has to face off against his loved ones inside an abandoned cabin as they are possessed by "deadites", the evil souls of the dead...
, the protagonist from The Evil Dead
The Evil Dead
The Evil Dead is a 1981 horror film written and directed by Sam Raimi, starring Bruce Campbell, Ellen Sandweiss, and Betsy Baker. The film is a story of five college students vacationing in an isolated cabin in a wooded area...
films.
The concept of the Gex games (especially the main villain wanting to take control of the world through TV) was also reinstated into Ape Escape 3
Ape Escape 3
Ape Escape 3 is a platforming video game published and developed by Sony for the PlayStation 2 video game console. It was first released in Japan on July 14, 2005, and was later released in North America on January 17, 2006, in Europe on May 5, 2006, and in Australia on May 18, 2006...
(although in this case it was part of a master plan to split the Earth in two).
Gex also appears as an unlockable character in the North American and European versions of Hot Shots Golf 2.
The Gex series has sold a combined total of over 15 million copies for all platforms. Gex 3 is the best selling of the series, shipping over 6 million copies and also became the best-selling PlayStation
PlayStation
The is a 32-bit fifth-generation video game console first released by Sony Computer Entertainment in Japan on December 3, .The PlayStation was the first of the PlayStation series of consoles and handheld game devices. The PlayStation 2 was the console's successor in 2000...
adventure game of 1999 with 3 million copies in that year alone.
Games
| Game | Year | Platforms | Developer | Publisher(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gex Gex (video game) Gex received mostly positive reviews. Aggregating review website GameRankings and gave the 3DO version 79.58%, the PC version 71.00%, the Sega Saturn version 69.35% and the PlayStation version 63.33%.... |
1994 1995 1996 |
3DO 3DO Interactive Multiplayer The 3DO Interactive Multiplayer is a video game console originally produced by Panasonic in 1993. Further renditions of the hardware were released in 1994 by Sanyo and Goldstar. The consoles were manufactured according to specifications created by The 3DO Company, and were originally designed by... PlayStation PlayStation The is a 32-bit fifth-generation video game console first released by Sony Computer Entertainment in Japan on December 3, .The PlayStation was the first of the PlayStation series of consoles and handheld game devices. The PlayStation 2 was the console's successor in 2000... Sega Saturn Sega Saturn The is a 32-bit fifth-generation video game console that was first released by Sega on November 22, 1994 in Japan, May 11, 1995 in North America, and July 8, 1995 in Europe... Microsoft Windows Microsoft Windows Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal... |
Crystal Dynamics Crystal Dynamics Crystal Dynamics is an American video game developer based in the San Francisco Bay Area and founded in 1992 by Judy Lang, Madaline Canepa and Dave Morris... Beam Software |
BMG Interactive Crystal Dynamics Eidos Interactive Eidos Interactive Eidos Interactive Ltd. is a British video game publisher and is a label of Square Enix Europe. As an independent company Eidos plc was headquartered in the Wimbledon Bridge House in Wimbledon, London Borough of Merton.... |
| Gex: Enter the Gecko Gex: Enter the Gecko Gex: Enter the Gecko is a platform game released in 1998. It is the sequel to the 1994 game Gex. The game involves collecting 3 types of remotes to unlock different levels, and to aid in the fight against Rez.-Story:Since his retirement from the public eye in 1996, Gex has resided himself to a... |
1998 1999 |
PlayStation Nintendo 64 Nintendo 64 The , often referred to as N64, was Nintendo′s third home video game console for the international market. Named for its 64-bit CPU, it was released in June 1996 in Japan, September 1996 in North America, March 1997 in Europe and Australia, September 1997 in France and December 1997 in Brazil... Game Boy Color Game Boy Color The is Nintendo's successor to the 8-bit Game Boy handheld game console, and was released on October 21, 1998 in Japan, November 19, 1998 in North America, November 23, 1998 in Europe and November 27, 1998 in the United Kingdom. It features a color screen and is slightly thicker and taller than... Microsoft Windows Microsoft Windows Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal... |
Crystal Dynamics Realtime Associates Realtime Associates Realtime Associates is an American video game developer and publisher. The company was founded in 1986 by David Warhol and a group of ex Mattel Electronics employees originally to create games for the Intellivision system... David A. Palmer Productions |
Midway Games Midway Games Midway Games, Inc. is an American company that was formerly a major video game publisher. Following a bankruptcy filing in 2009, it is no longer active and is in the process of liquidating all of its assets. Midway's titles included Mortal Kombat, Ms.Pac-Man, Spy Hunter, Tron, Rampage, the... Crave Entertainment Crave Entertainment Crave Entertainment is an American video game company. It was founded in 1997 by Nima Taghavi. Its headquarters is in Newport Beach, California... Eidos Interactive |
| Gex 3: Deep Cover Gecko Gex 3: Deep Cover Gecko Gex 3: Deep Cover Gecko is the last in the trilogy of Gex video games. Red Dwarf star Danny John-Jules provided the voice for Gex in the UK and European release, but comedian Dana Gould reprised the role for the American release, also starring the Playboy model Marliece Andrada as Agent Xtra, the... |
1999 2000 |
PlayStation Nintendo 64 Game Boy Color |
Crystal Dynamics Gratuitous Games Gratuitous Games Gratuitous Games is a now defunct video game developer. It developed games for the Nintendo 64, GameCube, Xbox, and PlayStation 2 consoles.-Games Developed:*Cruis'n Exotica *Gex 3: Deep Cover Gecko... David A. Palmer Productions |
Eidos Interactive Crave Entertainment |
Rumors about a sequel
A fourth Gex game was in development by Crystal Dynamics for the PlayStation 2PlayStation 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...
, but was cancelled and never officially announced for unknown reasons. Several pieces of concept art from the project were leaked.
In 2009 Crystal Dynamics announced, that they are looking for a Senior Art Director to lead the development of "one of the most prestigious" game series. Due to the fact that they called the series "AAA franchise" many people believed, that a new Gex game is meant. Later, however, Crystal Dynamics announced that the referenced franchise is Tomb Raider
Tomb Raider
Tomb Raider is an action-adventure video game developed by Core Design and published by Eidos Interactive. It was originally released in 1996 for the Sega Saturn, with MS-DOS and PlayStation versions following shortly thereafter...
.
A few days before E3 2011 IGN's editor Greg Miller mentioned a game in development featuring a lizard, most likely as central character, in IGN's Game Scoop Podcast: "Lets just say, if you're a fan of Lizards… Oh, doctor.". Via Twitter
Twitter
Twitter is an online social networking and microblogging service that enables its users to send and read text-based posts of up to 140 characters, informally known as "tweets".Twitter was created in March 2006 by Jack Dorsey and launched that July...
he later responded to a tweet from a Gex fan about this rumor and responded: "I like that rumor. Try to spread it.". Eventually, it came out that Miller was not talking about a Gex sequel, but of Sly Cooper: Thieves in Time
Sly Cooper: Thieves in Time
Sly Cooper: Thieves in Time , is the fourth title of the Sly Cooper series of platform stealth video games. Thieves in Time is a PlayStation 3 exclusive game set to release in mid-2012...
.
on the PEGI website a new Gex game has recently been rated for PS3. This however was for PSN re-releases of the trilogy.
Books
| Title | Author | Publisher | Illustrator | Year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gex: Official Game Secrets | Bill Kunkel Bill Kunkel (gaming) Bill Kunkel was the executive editor of Electronic Games Magazine in the early 1980s. More recently, Kunkel was editor-in-chief of Tips & Tricks magazine from January 2007 until August 2007 when it ceased publication... |
Prima Prima Games Prima Games, a division of Random House, is the largest publishing company of video game strategy guides in the United States. It is an imprint of the Random House Information Group, based in Roseville, California... |
1995 | |
| The Official Gex: Enter the Gecko Strategy Guide | Crystal Dynamics | 1996 | ||
| The Unauthorized Gex 3: Deep Cover Gecko Strategy Guide | Prima Prima Games Prima Games, a division of Random House, is the largest publishing company of video game strategy guides in the United States. It is an imprint of the Random House Information Group, based in Roseville, California... |
1999 | ||
| How to Draw Gex and the Gang | Michael Teitelbaum Michael Teitelbaum Michael S. Teitelbaum is a demographer at the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation in New York City.He publishes on immigration issues in both the popular and academic press and served as Commissioner to the U.S. Commission for the Study of International Migration and Cooperative Economic Development and... |
Troll | Ron Zalme | 1999 |
| Gex 3: Deep Cover Gecko Novelization | Michael Teitelbaum | Troll | 2000 |
Events in Gex
Gex and his family lived in MauiMaui
The island of Maui is the second-largest of the Hawaiian Islands at and is the 17th largest island in the United States. Maui is part of the state of Hawaii and is the largest of Maui County's four islands, bigger than Lānai, Kahoolawe, and Molokai. In 2010, Maui had a population of 144,444,...
, Hawaii
Hawaii
Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
. His mother raised him and his three siblings while his father worked at NASA
NASA
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration is the agency of the United States government that is responsible for the nation's civilian space program and for aeronautics and aerospace research...
. One day, Gex's mother got a phone call saying that Gex's father and his co-workers had died in a rocket explosion. Rather than grieving, Gex bottled up his emotions, and sat in front of the TV.
Gex's mother decided that it was time for a change, she told the whole family that they were moving to California. Week after week of Gex watching TV, his mother decided to take action, and sell the TV. This infuriated Gex so much that he decided to leave his home, and never return. For the next few months Gex slept in his friend's garage, and made money by doing odd jobs.
One day, Gex's mother found him and had fantastic news. Gex and his family had inherited over twenty-billion dollars from his late Uncle Charlie. With the money, Gex bought a mansion back in Hawaii and the largest screen TV in the world.
As seen in the game's opening, Gex was watching his enormous TV one day, when a fly buzzed by his head. Gex flicked out his tongue and swallowed it. Unknown to Gex, the "fly" was actually a metallic transmitter. Suddenly, Gex's remote jammed and the TV went blank. A huge hand shot out of the screen and grabbed Gex by his neck, and pulled him into the Media Dimension. The cold claw belonged to Rez, the overlord of the Media Dimension, who had intended to make Gex his new mascot and conquer the world.
Gex managed to find the hidden remotes in the strange, television worlds. Gex made it through a disturbing cemetery, an odd cartoon land, an enormous jungle, an ancient Chinese
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
village, the mysterious Planet X, and Rezopolis, the capital of the Media Dimension. Gex made it into Rez's inner sanctum and battled him head-to-head. Using one of his own mechanical bugs, Gex defeated Rez, and made it back home in time for his shows. Rez transformed into a ball of energy and escaped.
Events in Enter the Gecko
Two years later, Gex is still living in Maui and still greatly enjoys watching TV. Eventually, every day began to seem like the same one over and over again. Gex was on the verge of insanity. One day, the TV goes blank for a few seconds, then flashes Rez's image over and over again.Two government agents show up at Gex's house, requesting Gex's help. Gex denies, saying he's already saved the universe once. One of the agents then beats Gex over the head with a crowbar, knocking him unconscious.
When he wakes up, he realizes he is in an interrogation room. The two agents ask Gex what he knows about Rez, Gex tells them everything. Once again they ask for his help, one of the agents reaches under the table and pulls out a briefcase full of cash, as well as a secret agent suit. Gex finally agrees to help them. The two agents give him a map, and say they want Rez to "disappear", instructing him to hide the body between Jimmy Hoffa's
Jimmy Hoffa
James Riddle "Jimmy" Hoffa was an American labor union leader....
and Spuds Mackenzie's
Spuds MacKenzie
Spuds MacKenzie was a fictional dog character created for use in an advertising campaign marketing Bud Light beer in the late 1980s. The dog first showed up in a Bud Light Super Bowl XXI ad in 1987...
.
As Gex leaves the building, a beautiful female agent walks up to him, and introduces herself as "Agent Xtra", she wishes him good luck and leaves. Gex then leaves to the Media Dimension.
Once Gex is in the Media Dimension, he navigates through several channels. Toon TV
Cartoon
A cartoon is a form of two-dimensional illustrated visual art. While the specific definition has changed over time, modern usage refers to a typically non-realistic or semi-realistic drawing or painting intended for satire, caricature, or humor, or to the artistic style of such works...
; Scream TV
Horror film
Horror films seek to elicit a negative emotional reaction from viewers by playing on the audience's most primal fears. They often feature scenes that startle the viewer through the means of macabre and the supernatural, thus frequently overlapping with the fantasy and science fiction genres...
; Rocket Channel
Science fiction
Science fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...
; Circuit Central
Cyberpunk
Cyberpunk is a postmodern and science fiction genre noted for its focus on "high tech and low life." The name is a portmanteau of cybernetics and punk, and was originally coined by Bruce Bethke as the title of his short story "Cyberpunk," published in 1983...
; Kung Fu Theatre; The Pre-history Channel
Dinosaurs in popular culture
Since the word dinosaur was coined in 1842, there have been various cultural depictions of dinosaurs. The dinosaurs featured in books, films, television programs, artwork, and other media have been used for both education and entertainment...
; Rezopolis
Dystopia
A dystopia is the idea of a society in a repressive and controlled state, often under the guise of being utopian, as characterized in books like Brave New World and Nineteen Eighty-Four...
; and Channel Z. Once Gex navigates through Rezopolis and Channel Z, he fights the overlord again. By dropping a large TV on top of him, Gex defeats Rez. Rez once again transforms into a ball of energy, and is then trapped in the same TV Gex dropped on him. Rez begs him to let him out of the TV, he even bribes him, but Gex shuts off the TV.
Gex is last seen in a hotel room with Nikki, from the Pandemonium
Pandemonium (video game)
Pandemonium! is a platform game, for the PlayStation, Sega Saturn, Microsoft Windows, N-Gage, and iPhone OS. It features Fargus, a joker, and Nikki, who unwittingly casts a spell that destroys the town. The goal of the game is to reach the Wishing Engine, where they can wish the town back to...
video games.
Events in Deep Cover Gecko
After defeating Rez a second time, Gex retreats back to his mansion in Maui, which was looked after by his newly hired butler, a tortoise named Alfred. Gex is watching the news one day, when Agent Xtra contacts him through his TV. She says that Rez has kidnapped her, and she is trapped in Rezopolis. Gex uses a secret entranceto the Media Dimension, that he calls the "GexCave".
Gex navigates through all new channels. Holiday; Mystery
Mystery film
Mystery film is a sub-genre of the more general category of crime film and at times the thriller genre. It focuses on the efforts of the detective, private investigator or amateur sleuth to solve the mysterious circumstances of a crime by means of clues, investigation, and clever deduction.The...
; Ancient Egyptian
Egyptology
Egyptology is the study of ancient Egyptian history, language, literature, religion, and art from the 5th millennium BC until the end of its native religious practices in the AD 4th century. A practitioner of the discipline is an “Egyptologist”...
; Army
War film
War films are a film genre concerned with warfare, usually about naval, air or land battles, sometimes focusing instead on prisoners of war, covert operations, military training or other related subjects. At times war films focus on daily military or civilian life in wartime without depicting battles...
; Western
Western (genre)
The Western is a genre of various visual arts, such as film, television, radio, literature, painting and others. Westerns are devoted to telling stories set primarily in the latter half of the 19th century in the American Old West, hence the name. Some Westerns are set as early as the Battle of...
; Pirate
Pirates in popular culture
In American and British popular culture, the modern pirate stereotype owes its tradition mostly to depictions of Captain Hook and his crew in theatrical and film versions of Peter Pan, Robert Newton's portrayal of Long John Silver in the film Treasure Island, and various adaptations of Sinbad the...
; Greek Mythology
Greek mythology
Greek mythology is the body of myths and legends belonging to the ancient Greeks, concerning their gods and heroes, the nature of the world, and the origins and significance of their own cult and ritual practices. They were a part of religion in ancient Greece...
; Fairytale
Fairy tale
A fairy tale is a type of short story that typically features such folkloric characters, such as fairies, goblins, elves, trolls, dwarves, giants or gnomes, and usually magic or enchantments. However, only a small number of the stories refer to fairies...
; Anime
Anime
is the Japanese abbreviated pronunciation of "animation". The definition sometimes changes depending on the context. In English-speaking countries, the term most commonly refers to Japanese animated cartoons....
; Mafia
Crime film
Crime films are films which focus on the lives of criminals. The stylistic approach to a crime film varies from realistic portrayals of real-life criminal figures, to the far-fetched evil doings of imaginary arch-villains. Criminal acts are almost always glorified in these movies.- Plays and films...
; Superhero
Superhero film
A superhero film, superhero movie, or superhero motion picture is: action, fantasy and science fiction film; that is focused on the actions of one or more superheroes, individuals who usually possess superhuman abilities relative to a normal person and are dedicated to protecting the public...
; and Channel Z. Once Gex collects all the remotes, he travels to an enormous Space Station above Earth, and battles Rez. Unlike the previous two times, Rez did not transform into a ball of energy, instead he exploded into several pieces, possibly meaning that he is truly dead.
Gex is last seen in a hotel room with Agent Xtra, who is telling him about her time in the Media Dimension. Alfred contacts Gex, saying there is an emergency, however Gex disconnects the computer and ignores him.
Characters
- Gex is a smart alec, wise-cracking geckoGeckoGeckos are lizards belonging to the infraorder Gekkota, found in warm climates throughout the world. They range from 1.6 cm to 60 cm....
. Gex lives with his family in MauiMauiThe island of Maui is the second-largest of the Hawaiian Islands at and is the 17th largest island in the United States. Maui is part of the state of Hawaii and is the largest of Maui County's four islands, bigger than Lānai, Kahoolawe, and Molokai. In 2010, Maui had a population of 144,444,...
, HawaiiHawaiiHawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
. He spends his days with his friends, surfing, playing the ukulele and throwing poi parties down on the beach with the local lady lizards. After his father dies, he begins watching mass amounts of TV to get over the tragedy. He eventually inherits over twenty billion dollars from his deceased uncle, and buys the world's largest television. He has his own island hideaway called the GEXCave located in the South PacificOceaniaOceania is a region centered on the islands of the tropical Pacific Ocean. Conceptions of what constitutes Oceania range from the coral atolls and volcanic islands of the South Pacific to the entire insular region between Asia and the Americas, including Australasia and the Malay Archipelago...
. His catchphrase is "It's tail time!". Gex is voiced by Dana GouldDana GouldDana John Gould is an American comedian and comedy writer born and raised in Hopedale, Massachusetts. His upbringing and his extended family lent themselves to his stand-up routine, which has been seen on HBO, Showtime, and Comedy Central, among other places.-Career:After high school, he studied...
in North AmericaNorth AmericaNorth 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...
. The European version features three actors as his voice; Dana Gould in the original game, Leslie PhillipsLeslie PhillipsLeslie Samuel Phillips, CBE is an English actor with a highly recognisable upper class accent. Originally known for his work as a comedy actor, Phillips subsequently made the transition to character roles.-Early life:...
in first sequel, and Danny John-JulesDanny John-JulesDaniel "Danny" John-Jules is a British actor, singer and dancer. John-Jules attended Rutherford Comprehensive School, Penfold Street, Marylebone, from 1972 to 1977. He is best known for portraying Cat in the television programme Red Dwarf.-Dance and song:John-Jules is a baritone...
in the final game.
- Rez is a megalomaniacal, cybernetic entity, and the main antagonist of the series. His one true ambition is to control the entire Media Dimension under his own rule and ensure the longevity of bad TV shows and Z-Grade moviesZ movieThe term Z movie arose in the mid-1960s as an informal description of certain unequivocally non-A films. It was soon adopted to characterize low-budget pictures with quality standards well below those of most B movies and even so-called C movies...
. His entire essence is made up of Liquid Rez, liquid noiseNoise (video)Noise, in analog video and television, is a random dot pattern of static displayed when no transmission signal is obtained by the antenna receiver of television set and other display devices...
spread throughout the series. He also claims to be Gex's father.
- Agent Xtra is Gex's crime-fighting partner, who loves TV as well. She is kidnapped by Rez, and communicates to Gex through video signals in mission control. She is played in live-action sequences by Marliece Andrada.
- Alfred is Gex's butler. He is a turtle who wears a bow tie and glasses. He provides Gex with constant help to defeat Rez. He is voiced by Akili SmithAkili SmithKabisa Akili Maradufu Smith is a former professional American and Canadian football quarterback. He was selected in the first round of the 1999 NFL Draft by the Cincinnati Bengals, the third quarterback in the first three choices, behind Tim Couch , and Donovan McNabb...
.
- Rex is a small, red Tyrannosaurus rexTyrannosaurusTyrannosaurus meaning "tyrant," and sauros meaning "lizard") is a genus of coelurosaurian theropod dinosaur. The species Tyrannosaurus rex , commonly abbreviated to T. rex, is a fixture in popular culture. It lived throughout what is now western North America, with a much wider range than other...
and Gex's prehistoric ancestor, He is frozen in a block of ice that Gex melts to free him.
- Cuz is Gex's overweight cousin. He is saved by Gex after being locked in a cage by the Gangsters.
- Gex's Father works for NASANASAThe National Aeronautics and Space Administration is the agency of the United States government that is responsible for the nation's civilian space program and for aeronautics and aerospace research...
by doing various research projects. He and ten other volunteers are chosen to eat tapioca pudding in zero gravity, though their rocket explodes due to a Band-AidBand-AidBand-Aid is a brand name for Johnson & Johnson's line of adhesive bandages and related products. It has also become a genericized trademark for any adhesive bandage in Australia, Brazil, Canada, India and the United States....
floating into one of the fuel tanks, killing them. His mother later moves to California, and after gaining money inherited from Gex's great-uncle, Charlie, she purchases 51 percent ownership in NASA, fires everyone, sells the rockets to some third world countries, and converts Mission Control into "Space Monkeys", a theme restaurant featuring robotic dancing chimps wearing spacesuits. In the novel, Rez claims that he is Gex's real father and became the way he was after the explosion, whether this is true or not is unclear, although Rez makes the same claim in Gex 2 but with a different story (saying he fell into a scrapheap while trying to get free cable).