After the retirement of the glorious PlayStation generation, the dawn of the PlayStation 2 would follow, bringing with it a new wave of characters battling to take over as PlayStation’s new mascot. Some would rise to fame on Sony’s sporty new console, and leading this charge would be a nimble, long-eared teen named Jak, who with his comical sidekick Daxter, would forever be cemented in gaming history.
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Conception
The initial character design for Jak began in 2000 when developer Naughty Dog commissioned artists to sketch ideas for their next PlayStation 2 title after finishing with their Crash Bandicoot generation. Several revisions, including some early designs provided by Crash Bandicoot designer Charles Zembillas, were created, before Naughty Dog animator John Kim drew a concept of a “tall, slender, and agile” character with “jaunty, spiky hair”. Bob Rafei refined Jak’s design, initially labelling him simply as “Hero”.
As Daxter was designed first, Jak’s design took longer as it was carefully designed to be multicultural. This was done both to broaden his appeal to multiple age groups and cultures, as well as to homogenize a character design to have one view worldwide, after Crash Bandicoot’s character design was altered for Japanese markets. This meant Jak was designed with a mix of Japanese anime and Western cartoon art styles, and his name, “Jak”, was a South African name suggested by Josh Scherr.
Jak’s design in Jak II replaced his spiky hair with the hairstyle that Zembillas’ early design for Jak had once used. In Jak 3, Jak was designed to appear more mature and hardened. To this end, he was given more militaristic, cropped hair to show growth. Naughty Dog also experimented with the idea of giving him a full beard before realising it “wasn’t cool”. For Jak X, Jak’s trademark goggles received an overhaul, and several iterations were needed to look the part of a combat racer.
Story: Jak To The Future
The following plot summary contains major spoilers for the Jak and Daxter series. Reader discretion is advised.
In The Precursor Legacy, Jak and Daxter traveled to Misty Island in an act of defiance against Samos the Sage, who had forbidden them from traveling there. After avoiding most of the Lurkers present, one bone armour lurker spotted the pair and attacked them. To escape, Jak threw a dark eco canister at it, which he activated accidentally, something only he could have done. The resulting explosion incapacitated the lurker but knocked Daxter into a pool of dark eco, transforming him into an ‘ottsel’.
The two returned to a disappointed Samos, who directed them to seek help from Gol Acheron, the Sage of dark eco. Keira offered to help, providing her zoomer hover-bike to travel north to see him, provided they could find power cells to power the heat shield needed to cross the Fire Canyon. Venturing north, they witnessed Lurkers’ increased attacks on the villages, with Rock Village under siege and both the Blue and Red Sages kidnapped.
At the Red Sage’s hut, Gol and his sister Maia both arrived to taunt Jak, Daxter, Samos, and Keira, revealing their plan to open the dark eco silos and reshape the world to their liking. Daxter was dismayed that the one they had sought for help was now the foe they had to defeat, but the group persevered; no longer trying to cure Daxter, but to save the world. Following their victory, Jak, Daxter, Samos, and Keira would use the power cells to activate the Rift Gate, opening a mysterious portal.
The party were scattered and transported many years into the future. Jak would arrive in the Rift Rider, following its preset coordinates to Haven City. There, Jak was captured by an already waiting Erol, and sent to be experimented on for Baron Praxis’ Dark Warrior Program. Jak remained there for two years. The dark eco experiments had not yielded the weapon Praxis had wanted to defeat the Metal Heads, and unlike other subjects, had not killed him either.
Frustrated, Praxis ordered Erol have Jak killed, before Daxter arrived to free him. Upon being awakened by Daxter, Jak vowed revenge against Praxis and accidentally transformed into his Dark Jak alter ego, freeing himself, and almost attacking before recognising Daxter and stopping. After leaving the fortress, Jak found Kor and (unbeknownst to him) his younger self outside, and after protecting Kor from the Krimzon Guard, would join the Underground resistance.
Relationships
Jak has quite a few friends who follow him on his journey, though he doesn’t meet some of them until the second or third game, while others lived near him in Sandover Village. Daxter is Jak’s mischievous best friend and sidekick, though he hates being called that. In a mishap on Misty Island, Daxter fell into a pool of Dark Eco which caused his transformation into an ottsel. He is weaker-willed than Jak, but remains entirely loyal, considering him a brother.
Jak is an orphan who was raised by the townsfolk of Sandover Village, including his adoptive Uncle, the Mayor, and village elder Samos the Sage. Samos is the Sage of Green Eco. He is a grumpy old man who doesn’t like Jak much at first, though he dislikes Daxter more. Samos eventually grows to respect Jak after being something of a strict teacher to Jak during his youth.
Keira is Samos’ daughter and Jak’s love interest, though Daxter likes her too. She is a reliable mechanic and inventor, and is always finding new and creative ways to assist Jak, the villagers, and those closest to her. She is very kind, hardworking, and mildly flirtatious, especially with Jak. Jak would make other friends in later years, including the mean yet supportive Torn, and the enigmatic Ashelin who provides secret intel to Jak.
Legacy
Jak was listed 26th on the Guinness World Records Gamer’s Edition’s “Top 50 Characters of All Time”, and in a poll conducted by Game Informer, Jak was voted 28th in the top 30 video game characters of the decade. He and Daxter were listed in the top 25 best duos in gaming, coming in fifth place by IGN, who would describe Jak as a “brooding emo figure” in Jak II in respect of his personality change from the first game.
Outside the Jak and Daxter series, Jak appeared alongside Daxter in the crossovers PlayStation Move Heroes and PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale. In the former, Jak and Daxter appear alongside Ratchet and Clank from the Ratchet & Clank series, as well as Sly and Bentley from the Sly Cooper series. In both titles, Jak brings his moveset from his own series, and appears in a story that sees him clashing with the others as rivals.
Jak is an unlockable skin in Ratchet: Deadlocked, and has appeared in several cameos throughout the Ratchet & Clank series. In addition, an unlockable Jak costume appears in LittleBigPlanet. Alongside Daxter, Jak appears as a Bot in Astro Bot, labelled “Eco Warrior”. His description reads “Left a legacy worthy of the Precursors”.
