Ape Escape Academy
Encyclopedia
Ape Escape Academy, also known as Ape Academy in Europe and Piposaru Academia: Dossari! Sarugee Daizenshuu in Japan, is a game for the PlayStation Portable
system that consists of a collection of 45 mini-games, many of which borrow from elements of Ape Escape 2
. The game was first released in Japan
and later in Europe
and North America
. By utilizing the PSP's Wi-Fi capabilities, up to 4 players can play at a time.
A sequel, Ape Escape Academy 2 is currently out in Japan and Europe; there are currently no plans for a North American release.
Each level has a certain number of lines required to pass the class (one line consists of 3 naughts, either horizontally, vertically or diagonal). The game also offers review lessons, for players that have almost met the requirements. Usually, these are mini-games that the player has failed previously.
. Many reviewers criticized the difficulty of most of the mini-games, as the controls were not explained fully, often leading to a failure during the first run in these minigames. However, most reviewers liked the variations in the available mini-games.
It is believed that because of this game's lackluster reception, the future of the Ape Escape series in the North America is uncertain, as successive titles in the series (such as Ape Escape Racer and Ape Escape Million Monkeys) have yet to receive a North American release. Recently, however, Ape Quest
was released for download for the PSP on the PlayStation Store
in Japan & the US.
PlayStation Portable
The is a handheld game console manufactured and marketed by Sony Corporation Development of the console was announced during E3 2003, and it was unveiled on , 2004, at a Sony press conference before E3 2004...
system that consists of a collection of 45 mini-games, many of which borrow from elements of Ape Escape 2
Ape Escape 2
Ape Escape 2 is a platform video game developed by Sony and published by Sony in Japan and Europe, while Ubisoft published it in North America for the PlayStation 2 video game console. It was first released in Japan on July 18, 2001, and was later released in Europe on March 14, 2003, and in North...
. The game was first released in Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
and later in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
and 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...
. By utilizing the PSP's Wi-Fi capabilities, up to 4 players can play at a time.
A sequel, Ape Escape Academy 2 is currently out in Japan and Europe; there are currently no plans for a North American release.
Gameplay
Playing as a monkey working for Specter, the player must work up from junior class to senior class by playing mini games and meeting the criteria for each class. In each class, there are 9 mini games to complete. Failing to meet the criteria rewards you with an X, while meeting the criteria rewards you a O, similar to naughts and crosses.Each level has a certain number of lines required to pass the class (one line consists of 3 naughts, either horizontally, vertically or diagonal). The game also offers review lessons, for players that have almost met the requirements. Usually, these are mini-games that the player has failed previously.
Critical reception
The game received generally poor reviews, averaging just 55% on Game RankingsGame Rankings
GameRankings is a website that collects review scores from both offline and online sources to give an average rating. It indexes over 315,000 articles relating to more than 14,500 games.GameRankings is owned by CBS Interactive...
. Many reviewers criticized the difficulty of most of the mini-games, as the controls were not explained fully, often leading to a failure during the first run in these minigames. However, most reviewers liked the variations in the available mini-games.
It is believed that because of this game's lackluster reception, the future of the Ape Escape series in the North America is uncertain, as successive titles in the series (such as Ape Escape Racer and Ape Escape Million Monkeys) have yet to receive a North American release. Recently, however, Ape Quest
Ape Quest
Ape Quest is a role-playing game spinoff from the Ape Escape series by SCEA. It is a PlayStation Portable title and was released in North America & Europe exclusively on the PlayStation Store and a UMD in Japan only...
was released for download for the PSP on the PlayStation Store
PlayStation Store
The PlayStation Store is an online virtual market available to users of Sony's PlayStation 3 and PlayStation Portable game consoles via the PlayStation Network. The Store offers a range of downloadable content both for purchase and available free of charge. Available content includes full games,...
in Japan & the US.