Whilst the original Jak And Daxter was a colourful and child-friendly platforming game, Jak II radically altered the dynamic of the series by adding guns and a handful of elements 'adopted' from the Grand Theft Auto series, such as the carjacking of vehicles and the introduction of criminal employers in the crime-ridden metropolis of Haven City. Jak 3 built on this, setting itself in a scaled-down version of the same city as well as a large desert wasteland and an additional settlement named Spargus. In these, the player must jump, shoot and drive to progress and close the plot threads both introduced and carried over from the first two games. More than anything, Jak 3 struggles from a lack of originality, as it includes little that wasn't already featured in the series' second outing. The decision to set much of the story in a barren desert wasteland as opposed to a varied cityscape wasn't the greatest idea either, in retrospect, as despite the game's graphics being quite impressive for 2004, there's only so much sand you can look at before becoming bored out of your mind. Because of this, the game is Naughty Dog's weakest platforming effort, though their weakest effort is still vastly superior to the majority of titles that have been churned out by their competitors over the years.
