As a ‘Gex’ Fanatic, ‘Gex Trilogy’ Is (Almost) Everything I Could Have Ever Asked for (Review)

July 12, 2023, was an incredible day for me. As someone who has been clamoring for the return of this smarmy gecko for nearly a decade, the reveal of Gex Trilogy was tremendously exciting. While most of my childhood friends grew up with Mario 64 or Banjo-Kazooie, my introduction to the world of 3D platformers was Gex: Enter the Gecko. A game that I’ve revisited countless times, through any means possible. I’m not sure if I need to thank Scott the Woz, dunkey, or whoever helped bring this to life. But having the chance to jump into Gex Trilogy on any modern console is a total dream. Even if there are some things I’d love to see added post-launch.

When I Get That Feeling, I Want Gexual Healing

If there was one thing I was worried about, it was the removal of content. Gex is a product of its time, and there are some questionable aspects of the games. Joking around with friends, I’ve been mentioning that I was afraid they were going to “make Gex woke” for the Trilogy collection. But my fears were removed the moment I booted up the game. Limited Run Games, using the Carbon Engine, has done everything possible to keep the Gex Trilogy as true to form as they possibly could. During my playtime, I didn’t encounter any missing content. Every corny joke that I remember was still in the game.

As soon as I started Toon TV and heard Gex say, “Hey! I feel like I’m trapped in Boy George’s pants,” I knew that everything was going to be alright. Gex, even at the time of release, was corny and goofy, and that hasn’t changed in the slightest. Long story short? If you didn’t like Gex back in the day, there aren’t any changes here that are suddenly going to make you love him now. He’s still crude, crass, and offensive. Exactly how fans have grown to love him. Kudos to LRG for keeping these games identical to how they were when they released.

“A product of their time” can be used in more than one way, however. Gex Trilogy makes the games feel slightly more “modern” in their control schemes. There’s native 16:9 support for Enter the Gecko and Deep Cover Gecko, alongside proper analog camera control. Otherwise, they’ve been untouched.

Sorry, Brits and Aussies, Dana Gould Is ‘Gex’ in the ‘Gex Trilogy’

Depending on where you were located, you may have had a completely different Gex experience. In the United States, Dana Gould is the voice of this smack-talking gecko. But in the U.K. and Australia, Leslie Phillips did Gex’s voice in Gex: Enter the Gecko — and Danny John-Jules in Gex: Deep Cover Gecko. Seeing as Gex Trilogy is a region-free release, and there are no options within the menus of Enter the Gecko or Deep Cover Gecko to swap the voices, Dana Gould is Gex for everyone. This is one of the things I do hope gets added in post-launch. It would be interesting to experience PAL Gex here in America. It may be a bit of culture shock for our friends in the U.K. to not hear the sultry tones of Leslie Phillips when they boot up Enter the Gecko for the first time.

Outside of the omission of Leslie Phillips and Danny John-Jules, there are a plethora of goodies for Gex fans available in the trilogy. In the aptly named “Gextras” menu, we’ve got plenty of artwork, box art, manuals, and videos available to us. Extremely high-quality renders of all of our favorite Gex artwork await us. However, I wish they had included a playable Gex Jr. and some potential concept art for the canceled Gex 4. There’s at least a video that showcases gameplay of Gex Jr., and it’s easy enough to find to try it for yourself.

The Videos Section of ‘Gex Trilogy’ is Where It’s At, However

There’s no better way to experience everything that Gex has to offer than the Trilogy. Tailtunes gives eager fans a chance to listen to all their favorite Gex tunes. But the Videos section has the most to offer for those interested in the history of the series. Additional interviews with Dana Gould were genuinely insightful. But being able to experience some of the N64 exclusive levels, even if they were just via video, was a great feeling. Gex 64: Enter The Gecko was my introduction to the franchise when I was a kid, so seeing Gecques Costeau again for the first time in forever was great.

I do wish the team at Limited Run Games could have found a way to implement the N64-exclusive levels into this version. To be fair, they weren’t exactly the greatest, but it would have been amazing to see the most feature-rich versions of these games as possible. However, the work done to modernize the games while keeping them feeling as true to form as possible is commendable.

More Than Anything, I Hope ‘Gex Trilogy’ Proves That There Is Still Interest in the Gecko All These Years Later

Limited Run Games knew exactly what they were doing when it came to the Gex Trilogy. Trophies with names like “No Pre-Marital Gex” show that they know the meme-worthy status of the once-massive Crystal Dynamics mascot. But, more than anything, I hope this Trilogy release shows Crystal Dynamics and Square Enix that there is still plenty of life in the franchise. While I’ve been dipping into Gex over the years, there’s a good chance that this may be the introduction to the franchise for many new players. I welcome you aboard, and please enjoy your time with the game.

For first-time fans, there’s plenty to love about the Gex Trilogy. But LRG knows what true Gex fans want. It’s a treasure trove of information, with original ads, videos, and interviews that show how the game even came to be in the first place. It’s a great piece of history, and it’s something I’m incredibly glad exists.

I do hope in the future, additional VAs are added to the game. I would love to see how Leslie Phillips and Danny John-Jules brought Gex to life. Perhaps, even a playable Gex Jr. in the future. Outside of Gex’s crass humor, genuinely solid 2D and 3D platformers await anyone willing to look past the age and appreciate the goodness that lies within. Yes, just like drinking tap water at Jerry Garcia’s house.

Verdict: Highly Recommended

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Gex Trilogy is available now digitally on PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, and PC. A code was provided by the publisher for the sake of review. Reviewed on PlayStation 5.