8 Gritty Reworks Of Video Game Characters That Fell Flat

8. Jak - Jak II: Renegade

The Jak & Daxter franchise was considerably improved upon with its sequel. However, many fans were left raising their eyebrows at Jak's transformation as a character.

From adorable mute, to temperamental badass, it seemed like a 180 on his supposed trajectory. The tone was overhauled in order to produce something more mature, for a maturing video game audience who came from the colourful worlds found in games such as Super Mario.

Jak, in the events between the original game and the sequel, went through a transformation stemming from torture and experimentation. His metamorphosis into a take-no-prisoners protagonist was cemented with his first ever spoken words, when Dexter rescues him at the start of the game: 'I'm gonna kill Baron Praxis!'

It may have been befitting, given the game's new edgy shift and realism, but it certainly wasn't what was originally expected.

And that's before we even mention the introduction of a literal Dark Jak. As if the brooding transfiguring of Jak's persona wasn't enough, when he gets modified with Dark Eco, he becomes devoid of any remaining innocence.

Whereas the original, good-natured Jak was a character that players could attach themselves to, this new Jak was an anti-hero with mere retribution on his mind.

Not a bad game, but the reconfiguring of one of Playstation's most famous heroes wasn't warranted.