If you were to take a look at the company Naughty Dog’s video game history, you will find three iconic franchises: Crash Bandicoot, Jak and Daxter, and Uncharted. Crash Bandicoothelped give the company solid footing as an industry developer, but it was Jak and Daxterthat really showed off what the studio was capable of. The platforming and colorful environments of the first game, tied with the mature, challenging open-world of Jak II was an experience unlike anything gamers had ever seen before.
The last time that Jak and Daxter 4 was formally mentioned by Naughty Dog was just under a year ago (February 6th 2012 to be exact). In response to the soon-to-be released Jak and Daxter Collection, Naughty Dog revealed that the fourth game in the Jak and Daxter series was almost made instead of the Last of Us. They said that the game had been in development through an early stage, but they quickly ran into trouble.
“We dug around trying to find the core of Jak and Daxter. Who are the characters? We had to reboot it essentially. Every time we got excited about an idea we’d take a step back and look at it and be like ‘It’s not Jak and Daxter, are we just slapping the name on it for marketing reasons?”
Naughty Dog continued to address different ideas, with each one failing to captivate their intended goal. They felt these ideas were moving away from the core elements that madeJak and Daxter such a profound series. Perhaps the problems were related to the fact that the series’ core mechanics have greatly aged from the PS2 era. The Jak and Daxter Collection reflected that wholly. After a great deal of failed attempts, the studio decided to scrap the idea, saying that making the game could have disappointed the fans, and the cancellation was simply an act of charity in that regard.
Evan Wells, co-founder of Naughty Dog ended the conversation by saying that the Jak and Daxter 4 could still happen eventually. This is especially important as of now, considering that the next generation of consoles is nearly upon us. Rumors have already spread about Uncharted 4 being revealed shortly after Sony announces the PlayStation 4. Considering the same team worked on both Uncharted and Jak and Daxter, it could be either one or the other that is announced for the PS4 first.
Jak and Daxter would be perfect for a next-gen console. We haven’t seen the series release a new entry (exluding the subpar PSP game) since 2004. A jump onto Sony’s next console would be incredible both visually and mechanically. An accurate comparison would be when we first saw the beautiful trailers for Ratchet and Clank: Tools of Destruction, though it may end up even more drastic than that. It would also give the franchise the opportunity to sort of weave into a new direction, and start anew without much backlash. Sly Cooper was basically in the same boat, and Sanzaru Games still pulled off Sly Cooper: Thieves in Timemagnificently.
What it comes down to is whether or not Naughty Dog will give Jak and Daxter another shot. It’s clear they failed at conceiving a new direction for the series, but it certainly does not mean they can’t try again. Jak and Daxter recently appeared in PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale, which sort of reminded players of the franchise’s existence. The nature of All-Stars Battle Royale in itself sort of creates a gateway into franchises you’ve never played before, giving newcomers an invitation to try them out. If there was any chance to revisit the profundity that is the Jak and Daxter series, Naughty Dog really couldn’t ask for a better time. Lets keep our fingers crossed as we head into the next few months that shroud the next generation of consoles in mystery. I definitely wouldn’t mind some more Daxter in my life.
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