There are a few daring duos from retro gaming past who always spring to mind when we talk about memorable characters; Banjo & Kazooie, Ratchet & Clank, Sonic & Tails, and of course, Jak & Daxter. They were poster boys for the PlayStation brand (I suppose boy and ottsel would be the correct terminology after that dark eco-silo business) and went on to appear in 8 games over the PS2, PS3, PS4, Vita, & PSP.
While the duo haven’t had a new game in a while, they have appeared on the PS5 thanks to the PS Plus subscription platform, but we’ve never had the first and best game in the series on modern gaming platforms. Still, as I’ve said before, the Retro Gaming community makes it their mission to right the wrongs that the big game companies carry out, and they’ve hit gold again.
I’ve already reported on an Online CTR PC port this week, and now thanks to @Pirat_Nation we know about another title to add to the native PC port list. Yes, the original game has been modded as part of a project called OpenGOAL, which also is dedicating time to get the second and third Jak & Daxter games onto PC.
Jak & Daxter: The PC Port Legacy
Now, there’s a mod called Team Runs which allows players to take advantage of brand-new features such as both online and local multiplayer, creating a world where you can interact with other players. Writing on the Team Runs website, the developers tell us ‘All in-game cutscenes that normally interrupt the game flow have also been modified to run in real-time to work better with multiplayer.’
They go on to tell us that ‘the mod, in general, is mostly catered towards speedrunning with built-in in-game timer, splits, and automatic leaderboard submission and verification through the use of demo files, but does also come with some other game modes for casual play and a recording tool for creating custom demo files.’
Sadly, we live in a time where some of our favourite series have been forgotten in favour of other, newer titles that are more lucrative for developers. Naughty Dog lost interest in the series and instead concentrated on titles such as Uncharted and The Last of Us, opting for more adult-themed games rather than games that appealed to children. I would have loved to have seen way more Jak & Daxter games over the years, and it’s a shame that Naughty Dog didn’t listen to the fans in a bid to keep this duo alive.
Still, thanks to OpenGoal and Team Runs, we’ve got an incredible Jak & Daxter multiplayer PC port to play through and a brand new way to experience a seminal PS2 game on our hands. Whether you’re a speed runner or just wish that you could have been an ottsel in a previous life, check out the multiplayer mod and relive this amazing adventure all over again in a new light!
