From the opening FMV, it's clear that this game has a distinct, and downright hilarious sense of humour. The story begins with the people of the Poopanoonoo tribe having been turned into sheep by a jealous sorceror. The tribe's JuJu Shaman had trained a mighty warrior to protect them, but unfortunately, he has also been turned into a sheep. So, the responsibility of saving the world falls into the hands of Tak, who would most likely equate to the village idiot. Okay, so it's not that original. But the humour scattered throughout the game more than makes up for any plot-related shortcomings.
The thing that will instantly appeal to gamers is the loveable, and incredbily charming characters. All are fully voiced (and very professionally so), and each are distinct and varied. As you play through the game, it really does feel like a saturday morning cartoon, due in part to the fantastic character animations and spot-on lip sync.
The gameplay doesn't stray too far from established formulaic conventions. Tak is basically a series of glorified fetch quests, with animal-based puzzles and mini-game style racing sequences breaking it up and adding variety. Admittedly, the animal puzzles are clever and require a little brain power to solve. For example, shooting a monkey in a tree will make him throw a coconut at the nearest creature. If he happens to throw it at an orangutan, it will come over and fling the monkey out of the tree. Now, if you go over to the orangutan, it will pull the tree down, allowing you to stand on it and get flung to a new part of the level. In that way, the game keeps you interested and encourages you to try different things.
One very puzzling thing is the game's difficulty. The game is obviously aimed at a younger crowd, yet it takes literally two or three hits from an enemy to send Tak six feet under. Now, that wouldn't be a problem if it weren't for the fact that there are several very hard mini-boss plants in each level. You'll die over and over trying to kill them, yet if you do die, you're simply respawned in front of the boss to keep going. Such unbalanced difficulty really does detract from the game, which is a shame considering the high production values.
When you first load up the game, you'll instantly be able to draw comparisons with Naughty Dog's 'Jak and Daxter'. The menus are virtually identical. But the comparisons don't stop there. The game's art style seems eerily reminiscent of Jak's, from the lush, vibrant worlds, and the amazing draw distance. The characters also have a distinctive, tribal style, and the animals are stereotypically cartoony. The framerate is also stable most of the time, which is appreciated.
The music in Tak is full of rather generic tribal rhythms and is mostly unintrusive. Ambient jungle noises fill the sound channels, and the voice work is top-notch. It's all solid, but could have been a lot better with some more distinctive musical themes.
So, should you buy it? If you're a platform fiend like me, then go right ahead! Tak is a charming, funny, and interesting game. For everyone else, I'd recommend renting it if you're curious.
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