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Conker: Live & Reloaded Review

Jon Wilcox

23/06/2005

Rare's bad-mouthed, borderline alcoholic squirrel returns in a remake to an N64 classic...

During the 1980s Rare (formerly Ultimate: Play the Game), forged ahead with a portfolio that would put many developers to shame and helped to ignite a golden age for the Britsoft scene. In the 1990s the company worked exclusively for Nintendo and produced titles from Killer Instinct to Donkey Kong Country, culminating with the 2001 release of Conkerâs Bad Fur Day on the Nintendo64.

By the time Conker was released towards the end of the N64âs lifespan, Nintendo and more specifically Miyamotoâs influence in Rare was profound, with the vast majority of titles sporting a loveable cast of characters, âsafeâ collect-em-up gameplay and the trademark quirky Rare humour â“ the type of games that kids and adults could enjoy alike. Four years previously, Conker made his first appearance as an amiable squirrel in Diddy Kong Racing, followed by the similarly endearing Conkerâs Pocket Tales on GameBoy Color in 1999. Both titles epitomised Nintendo and Rareâs style, so when it was announced that Conker would be coming to Nintendoâs home console in 2001, expectations for a âfunâ 3D platformer were highâ¦

But during production something happened, Rare appeared to experience the developer equivalent of a psychotic episode with Conkerâs resulting adventure in âBad Fur Dayâ certainly not the sort of game your Grandma would appreciate thanks to the abundance of blood, violence, swearing and a big dollop of toilet humour.

Fast-forward to 2005; Rare now being an integral part of Microsoft Game Studios with two Xbox 360 titles in development for the impending launch (Perfect Dark Zero and Kameo), have one last send-off to the current generation Xbox in the shape of Conker: Live and Reloaded. Besides a stunning update to the visuals, Rare has bolstered the game with a strong multiplayer mode that pitches the Squirrels against the nefarious Tediz. But does the game show its age and do the additional online options make Conker a worthy game to purchase; more importantly after the release of Grabbed by the Ghoulies, can Conker put Rareâs tarnished reputation back on track

The single-player campaign is essentially based around the N64 classic and set across nine lengthy chapters. Given the lacklustre sales of the N64 version, itâs unlikely that too many people will have enjoyed it the first time around, however those who did will enjoy the various new âtwistsâ that Rare have injected throughout the game to differentiate it slightly. Throughout the game, Rare have sprinkled a multitude of film homageâs that nod to Kubrickâs âA Clockwork Orangeâ in the opening cut-scene (more milk, anyone?) to whole missions based on Saving Private Ryan and The Matrix, which are still amusing to play through even to this day... For Conker newcomers, a brief recap on a storyline that made no real sense the first time around: Following a cut-scene that sees our squirrel sit upon a throne surrounded by an odd array of characters (all of which Conker comes across throughout the missions), the game flashes back to our furry protagonist doing what he does best â“ drinking in the local pub. Stumbling away from the watering hole, Conker passes out and now has to find his way home. As anybodyâs who staggered out of a pub in the early hours of a Saturday morning can attest to, this isnât the easiest of tasks in the world, however at least thereâs not the worry of weasels on the lookout for a squirrel-sized replacement leg for a broken table - the squirrelâs adventures have only just begun.

The game serves as a reminder of just how high Rareâs standard was in the platform genre, and also a poignant indicator of just how far the genre has fallen in recent years. An excellent HUB system compliments the brilliantly designed levels and challenges to keep the player engaged at all times, although there can be a general aimless sense of wandering around at times â“ a previous criticism of the N64 version and one that slightly holds it back from topping Rareâs Banjo & Kazooie. Youâre often free to change between stages as you wish thanks to the HUB system, although restrictions give the game some structure and provide a sense of steady progress through what still amounts as a large game. Occasionally legacies from the fact itâs essentially a four-year old game show through, such as particular quests automatically being reset if you wander into the wrong area by accident and combat against initial opponents degenerating into a tiring affair (just avoid them). The initial shock/humour factor has also worn a little thin; four years ago witnessing a Rare character âeffing and blindingâ on the N64 was quite a sight to behold, now itâs almost customary for videogame characters to curse blindly â“ thereâs no doubt that Conker remains one of the most comical games in existence however, we just hope to see more original adventures for him soon (we want Conkerâs Other Bad Fur Day)!

Thereâs a wide selection of tasks presented to the player, while the predominant use of context sensitive actions throughout the game injects a unique âfeelâ compared to other platformers of the time and to this day â“ itâs tough just to label Conkerâs in that genre at times, particularly when the action heats up during the latter stages. Previous builds of Conkerâs: Live & Reloaded suffered from a slight time delay in jumping that raised the frustration levels, although thankfully this appears to have been completely eliminated in the retail version â“ if thereâs one thing you donât want in a platformer itâs an unresponsive jump button!

With just nine missions to complete (and the first one essentially a tutorial) the single-player mode wonât last too long, although youâll never grow tired in the 12-15 hours it takes to finish the game completely. But then Rare didnât release Conker on Xbox just to update Bad Fur Dayâ¦

As well as the single-player update of Bad Fur Day, the Live and Reloaded also includes a series of multiplayer modes, although they arenât an update of the Tediz vs. Frenchies multiplayer game from the original Conker on the N64 which may disappoint some. Instead the action is split into two âWarsâ (Old and Future), set across eight scenarios in different locations across the two time periods, with the squirrels taking the fight to their archenemy, the Tediz. Whilst some of the scenarios such as Beach Dead are taken from locations in Bad Fur Day others such as Doon are original to Live and Reloaded, with a variety of established multiplayer gametypes including Capture the Flag and Territories integrated into each of the scenarios.

The modes do offer gamers the ability to add Bots into the game along with split-screen modes, but to get the most out of the multiplayer sections players will have to take the game onto Live and team up with other SHC/Tediz personnel. The actual gameplay does become quite hectic during the scenarios, which can be quite confusing initially, however perseverance does pay off with the missions soon changing from being irritating and frustrating to becoming highly charged, intense affairs that bare more than an inkling to Rareâs Jet Force Jemini.

Choosing to side with either the Squirrel High Command (SHC) or the Tediz, players are then able to select one of six character classes, each offering their own weapons and abilities such as the sword wielding ninja-like âSneakersâ to the flaming-throwing âThermophilesâ; powerful yet cumbersome âDemolitionistsâ, vehicular aces âSky Jockeysâ, âLong Rangersâ and the all-round âGruntâ. It does have be noted that the game takes its classes very seriously, so itâs probably not advisable to send a sniper rifle equipped Long Ranger running into the battlefield because death will come swift and quite messily.

Initially the various modes can be a little too hectic and the objective-based gameplay a little too complex, however time and patience reveals the subtle nuances of each individual character along with the maps featured. Thereâs a great number of upgrades to earn throughout the game and secondary fire options to consider, while items such as the hacking device, arc welds, medguns and snoopaâs add a very definite tactical feel and provide the scope to truly master the game with skill.

Carrying on the importance of choosing the right class is the restriction on which of the five vehicles are playable, with each individual class trained in the use of one or two different types only. Vehicles do take awhile to get used (much like the rest of the game), but eventually provide a deadly tool to securing victory on the battlefield. Similarly to previous Rare titles the multiplayer mode can seem unforgiving to begin with, however perseverance does reveal a game thatâs truly rewarding and highly enjoyable to boot.

As well as running around armed with an arsenal of guns and grenades, Live and Reloaded also allows gamers to collect and disperse a limited number of heavy weapons and portals around the maps. Be warned that the laden character is very vulnerable to attack when carrying around the heavy items so itâs imperative that good support is used, but once again these serve as helpful strategic positions on the battle map.

It has to be said that Conker is an incredible game to look at; not only are the environments well designed and distinctively different from each other (name another game that can include locations as diverse as a dungbeetle mound and a D-Day style beach landing), but thereâs a clarity to the graphics that makes the game seem like a living cartoon. The character model of Conker himself is a testament of just how much Rare have tried to push the Xbox, with stunning fur-shading techniques that come across as truly believable and startling animation that never seems to look disjointed. Lighting and shadows have been vastly enhanced from Conkerâs previous iteration, resulting in the most visually impressive title youâll find on the Xbox.

As with the visuals of the game, Rare has managed to pick the perfect voices to represent the characters; although itâs worth noting that Conker was a treat to the ears back on the N64 with full voice-recording and lip-synch! Fun and light-hearted, not only is it hard to imagine any other voices for the various inhabitant of the game, but itâs also difficult to imagine the circumstances that brought a Southern State US accent to a paintbrush, paintpot, and pitchfork, and strong Scouse accents to the dungbeetles. A lot of the humour comes from the audio performances, and in that respect, Rare has managed to hit the nail on the head with one simple device â“ the swear bleep. At a time when swearing in videogames is hardly a rare occurrence, the bleeping action taken by the developers pays dividends. When the game was initially released, the device may have been used just to âhideâ the swearing, but today it actually makes the jokes seems funnier; clever wordplay only accentuates it further.