Ape Escape 3 is more in line with what I expected from 2. I complained that I didn't like the style of 2 nearly as much as the first and I think this game meets half way between the two. I still wish the style was less fisher price because the fact that you play as a grade schooler is more obvious than ever in this game. I like the theming with TV and movie references. Unfortunately they did the freaky monkey five dirty and the boss battles overall leave a lot to be desired.

The gadgets are all familiar from its predecessors but the real new stuff is the transformations. I've heard some praise for these but they're mostly unimpressive. There were only 3 that I felt were good outside of their mandatory uses. I feel like they could have been reworked to be more useful, and maybe cut a few of the redundant transformations.

This game doesn't top the first in my eyes, but I liked playing it regardless and I'm glad it's better than 2.