Gex 3: Deep Cover Gecko

Developer: Crystal Dynamics Publisher: Crave Entertainment

Released: September 28, 1999 Rated: T 6/10

Gex heads back into The Media Dimension for another series of small-screen parodies, rife with wisecracks and janky platforming. Though not the most deserving based on the quality of his previous efforts, the ability of Gex to market himself successfully and uniquely certainly made the series fit for another 3D platformer, not to mention the copious amounts of level concepts one can jot down with only an hour of channel surfing in the Crystal Dynamics break room.

You’d think Gex would be a little nicer to the guy who fought alongside him on the European Front all those years ago

It’s nice to be able to say that there are a few definite improvements that warranted a sequel this time around, even if the N64 version still lacks the ability to deliver the full experience that PS1 and PC owners get with their additional storage. Levels are consistently bigger, the camera, though still not perfect, is vastly improved, and each level has a unique theme, as opposed to the repeated visits to horror or kung-fu-inspired worlds from Enter the Gecko. These concepts can be quite charming and the limited amount of objectives compared to the likes of Banjo-Kazooie might seem lacking at first, but actually do provide a nice contrast to games that provide that same sort of sensory overload. It’s much more of an adventure in this manner than a true collect-a-thon, with the challenge of the platforming rather than the exploration and the need to be thorough about your time spent in each area providing the actual crux of the gameplay. Though this doesn’t provide as much replay value and likely won’t endear Gex in quite the same way, it’s a nice change that allows more interesting concepts like the Army Channel and Anime Channel worlds to stay front and center while firing away constantly on the references.

Big Koala Kong vibes in this miniboss fight against a pissed off Santa Claus

The hub world of Gex’s Mission Control bunker is also a generally better presentation than the odd “floating in space” main area of the original. Bearing a lot of similarities to that of Crash Bandicoot 3: Warped, it at least adds some character to Gex himself and a more interesting place to have to go through to find your next level. It also features Gex’s tortoise butler, Alfred, a curious trope of Crystal Dynamics continued on from the Tomb Raider series — he can even be the victim of abuse, like Winston in Lara Croft’s mansion. Though a lot of humor and gameplay concepts may have aged, particularly in this cartridge version where the repetition of lines is more frequent and therefore wear out that much quicker, there are still a good number of ways in which Gex and his routine will amuse you and are worth going back to. The wrestling-inspired boss fight previewed by the game’s box art is a highlight (and even bears its similarities to the final boss of Donkey Kong 64 later that year), and other television tropes like the rise of anime thanks to Cartoon Network’s Toonami block, and the History Channel’s twin programming attack of Egyptology and WWII docs. Mixing in little quirks like riding a donkey up the side of a mountain in the Western parody or Gex donning a Gundam suit for his trip to Japan also play into both visual and gameplay elements that, while not rewriting the whole genre, show that the little lizard knows his gimmick and can deliver it in spades.

Bigger levels also benefit from the presence of a control gimmick in most, if not all of them.

Gex 3: Deep Cover Gecko certainly sits as one of the mid-tier options for the N64’s defining genre. Despite improvements and a good deal of original concepts, it’s far from a must play, and the PS1 version can deliver slightly more when it comes to the sensory experience. Dana Gould’s constant commentary may not be the selling point for players now, if it ever was, but knowing it can be made slightly better or at least less grating on a disc-based version would certainly help your enjoyment of the game. This is far from the worst platforming and overall rather enjoyable, at least most of the time, without anything that can singlehandedly turn you off either in gameplay or presentation, while playing it nowadays. Fans of the original should definitely give it a try, but those who don’t care for the smart-mouthed toungelasher are not going to be turned by this additional adventure.

Continuing Legacy

Gex is definitely one of the more “of-its-time” examples of the mascot platformer from the early 3D era, and it’s not surprising to think that this was the end of the franchise simply because the world moved on from the genre pretty heavily. Some DNA of the wise-cracking animal character can be seen in characters like Daxter from the Jak series, but not in the same “throw all the references at the wall” manner as this series. Gex largely seemed lost to the annals of history until the original trilogy was remastered in 2025 by Limited Run using their Carbon Engine, a revival that received a surprising amount of fanfare and promotion both before and after its release.