Gex: Enter the Gecko is a platform game developed by Crystal Dynamics and first released on the 3DO in 1995. In it, you play an agile gecko that can jump, whip with its tail, and walk on walls and ceilings.

The aim of the game is to find remote controls, that allow you to turn on TVs, and this unlocks new levels to explore.

Each level has various traps to avoid and enemies to kill. Falling into water will instantly lose you a life, but contact with hostiles will knock off some of your health (represented by the gecko paws in the top right-hand corner of the screen). Lose all your paws, and you lose a life.

There are golden flies to collect (every one hundred you collect awards you with an extra life), and power-ups to either whip or swallow. These power-ups come in a range of colours and look like small pills. If you whip them, they’ll replenish one of your health paws. If you swallow them, they’ll instead confer some sort of special power to Gex, like the ability to shoot fireballs; or to freeze or shock things; super speed, or temporary invincibility.

Gex can also break blocks by whipping them, or by bouncing on them with his tail coiled into a spring (activated by pressing down while in the air). The tail spring can also be used to kill enemies by bouncing on top of them.

There are also small floating/moving TVs that will damage Gex if touched. The idea with these is to whip and destroy as many as possible for points bonuses. When whipped, these TVs drop to the ground and explode after a few seconds, so you have to take care to not get caught in the blast.

Occasionally you might discover a portal that will take you to a special room, or even a bonus minigame where you can win extra lives.

Polaroid cameras act as save points, and whipping them with your tail will allow you to restart from that point when you lose a life.

There are so many different features and mechanics in Gex that the game can be a little overwhelming at first. There are purple question marks littered around levels, and – when tail-whipped – will show a short text message to remind you what certain things do.

The graphics in Gex are superb; particularly the animation of the lead character. The first set of stages are cemetery/horror-themed, and the backgrounds and related scenery are beautifully-drawn and coloured. The sprites appear to be pre-rendered on Silicon Graphics workstations (similar to those seen in Donkey Kong Country), which was a popular technique at the time. The sound too is memorable, with lots of funny voice samples, used to give Gex character, including silly tributes to famous films (Gex screaming “Adriennnne!” when he dies is an obvious Rocky tribute), and some relatively dark humour (like Gex saying “Sorry Elvis!” when he runs over a coffin).

Each of the five different worlds culminates in a boss battle at the end, and each boss has a ‘secret’ that you have to figure out to beat them.

Gameplay-wise, Gex is very good, if a little frustrating at times. The gecko’s ability to walk on ceilings and walls gives the game a unique feel, and the levels can be re-visited if you want to find secrets you previously missed.

Overall, Gex: Enter the Gecko is a decent game from the mid-Nineties that is still reasonably enjoyable to play today. If you’re like me, you might get a bit tired of Gex‘s wise cracks as the game wears on, though, because they’re pretty much non-stop and quickly become repetitive.

More: Gex on Wikipedia