There's nothing wrong with a game built of smaller games within it. I can think of a couple of titles that actually excelled because of such variety. Track & Field and its sequel Hyper Sports, for instance. These two arcade releases from the 80's were made up strictly of short sporting events, but they were put together so wonderfully that you didn't care about the lack of substance with each event. Hell, it almost makes you wish current Olympic game releases would follow such an example, instead of trying to stretch out the events into the epic proportions which they're not.

Another series that comes to mind- Wario Ware. Nintendo's taken their anti-hero and given him an identity of his own with hilarious (and downright fun) mini-games coupled into a whacked-out experience. Even if you're stuck with the under-developed GameCube edition, you're still in for hours of fun trying to avoid obstacles, catch balls, and pick your nose. (No, not for real, put your finger back.)

But when an example of a game like this goes wrong, it's like watching a train wreck. You see the good intentions bubble to the surface only to watch them get spoiled by not enough effort. That's the case with Ape Escape Academy, SCEA's second Ape Escape release for 2006- and obviously the weaker one.

Taking a different path than the enjoyable console release Ape Escape 3, Ape Escape Academy takes the mini-game route, with 45 different mini-games to choose from, from racing to boxing to other events of that nature. And it would've been a good idea, I'm not really knocking it at all. But the end result is completely lacking, thanks to three fatal flaws that kill its entertainment value quicker than those bi-planes killed ol' King Kong on the Empire State Building.

I'll get to those flaws in a minute, but let's talk about the other things first. The game's presentation isn't anything wow-worthy, but it is decent, showing those lovely helmeted primates in all their animated glory and backing them up with a cute little soundtrack that'll probably force you to plug your ears after ten or so minutes. The number of mini-games available is a nice touch, but the game constantly reloads back onto your PSP memory card, thus slowing down any speed that the game might have garnered in its previous efforts.

But, oh, those damned three flaws! Let's go ahead and list them out there, as if I was reading an autopsy.

First, and foremost, control. What's the deal here? How hard is it for a game to have complete, solid control when it's based around such short content? But, sigh, here it is, a game that lacks precision in most areas and, as a result, deems you for failure. Even something as simple as keeping up momentum in a running race feels like a chore thanks to the game's unsynchronized control mechanism. This will lead to a lot of mini-games losses, which brings us to the second flaw.

The second is what I like to call Graduation Mode, only because you're actually enrolled into the Academy and put through your paces to test your...um, ape-hood? Yeah, let's call it that. But this mode is completely unforgiving, not even giving you a chance to prep for your event. You get a small description, and then thrust right into it. Fail, and you don't get a chance to try again. The system this mode uses is a nine-point grid, kinda like a Tic-Tac-Toe board, and soon it will fill with X's because you couldn't get a fair enough chance to complete the event. This is terrible, and will probably anger kids who just want to have fun and instead get punished. Gah, it sounds just like actual school. (Don't tell my Literature teacher.)

Finally, the multiplayer aspect. A few of the games in Ape Escape Academy can be played wirelessly via Adhoc, but, really, the execution is something left to be desired. Worse yet, you can't really set up that many options for these games, and are once again forced to abide by ape rules. To make matters worse, most of the mini-games don't even interact wirelessly, forcing you to instead pass around your PSP to other players. Not exactly what I'd call the most interactive of multiplayer experiences, I'd say.

Ape Escape Academy is an example of a lot of thought and not a lot of effort, like a few games on the market now. If only some more precise gameplay and multiplayer involvement were introduced, we'd have something along the lines of a classic, opening the door to new chapters of the Academy. As it is, I can't wait for that sucker to close its doors and leave more Escape adventures on the agenda.