Review: Conker Live and Reloaded

R

Ruined

CAGiversary!
Conker: Live and Reloaded
http://www.gamestop.com/product.asp?product_id=210606

So... Rare's second game on the XBOX, the first being the vastly underappreciated Grabbed by the Ghoulies. Does Conker stand up to other great Live titles? Did Rare score?

GRAPHICS: 10.0
Bar none, the best graphics on the XBOX to date. Pretty amazing coming from a remake of an N64 game. If you want to see the best graphics on XBOX, Conker is where its at. Amazing fur, characters, lush backgrounds, etc.

SOUND: 9.7
Highly polished audio and speech along with a fantastic soundtrack earn conker high marks in the sound department. The surround field is also actively used in this game, with events occuring in the surround speakers frequently. Technically superb, only held back from perfection by the content of the game.

CONTROLS: 8.5
Controls in conker are good and responsive, but in single player mode the manual camera may take some getting used to; the user controls the camera at all times. Single player left stick moves, right stick is camera, A is jump, B is equip weapon, right trigger is swing weapon. With no weapon equipped, Right trigger crouches. Holding A after jumping results in a slow tailspin descent similar to Rayman 2's helicopter. Multiplayer controls are responsive but difficult to learn without reading the manual.

GAMEPLAY: 9.0
Single player mode is very simply the original N64 game with incredible amazing graphics and sounds - it plays the same. Multiplayer mode is very unique, sort of like Return to Castle Wolfenstein or Team Fortress in play, except with fluffy animals. There are several classes, all with different strengths and weaknesses similar to TF, and like RTCW there are objectives to complete in order to win the game. The game is very gory in multiplayer with blood spraying everywhere (including on the screen) and body parts flying. Multiplayer can be confusing at first and remains confusing unless you read the manual - there is really no tutorial (again, similar to RTCW for XBOX which did not provide a significant online tutorial). However once mastered the game is very intense, and the matches can be pretty incredible with 16 furry friends gutting each other to death online. Overall, the game is well polished however a tutorial for the online mode would have been very helpful. Still, the manual provides all you need to know.

OVERALL: 9.3
One of the best games on XBOX, that is incredibly deep once you learn how to play. An excellent conversion of the original Conker plus a very deep, enjoyable online mode make this game a must-buy. While it might not be as easy as some other games of its genre, anyone who puts some decent time into it can master it easily. Remember though, you need to RTFM before you get online :)
 
Overall a good review, there were a few minor gripes..

Bar none, the best graphics on the XBOX to date. If you want to see the best graphics on XBOX, Conker is where its at.
Click to expand...

Did you need to say that twice?

Other than that, a good review, perhaps a bit too high on the score, especially in the gameplay area.. the gameplay itself is fine, but without having a tutorial and no option to turn off friendly fire (right?), does it deserve a 9.0? Especially considering how unbalanced the game itself is.. don't get me wrong.. great review, great game (I have a blast playing this online), just a bit too high on the gameplay :p
 
[quote name='Scorch']Overall a good review, there were a few minor gripes..



Did you need to say that twice?[/quote]

Yes, they are that good :)

Other than that, a good review, perhaps a bit too high on the score, especially in the gameplay area.. the gameplay itself is fine, but without having a tutorial and no option to turn off friendly fire (right?), does it deserve a 9.0? Especially considering how unbalanced the game itself is.. don't get me wrong.. great review, great game (I have a blast playing this online), just a bit too high on the gameplay :p
Click to expand...

Tutorials are for n00bs ;) Seriously though, I wouldn't penalize a game just because it doesn't have a tutorial when the manual explains everything.
 
hmmm... Until now, I have only heard tht the N64 version is better (besides the graphics, duh). Is it worth a purchase if you already have the original?
 
[quote name='MorPhiend']hmmm... Until now, I have only heard tht the N64 version is better (besides the graphics, duh). Is it worth a purchase if you already have the original?[/QUOTE]

yes
 
I beat the game back on the Nintendo 64 when it came out. My buddy brought over the Xbox version. I only thing I did not like were the frequent load times. I would say buy it if you haven't experienced the N64 one.
 
The original conker was almost universally well reviewed, kind of shocking since it was basically a platformer on rails. And the reviews now read almost identically. I wonder how long this game's leg will be with online play.
 
[quote name='help1']I do have 50 credit at fye... is teh multiplayer good enough for that purpose?[/QUOTE]

Yes, once you figure it out, its outstanding. You just need to look at the first few pages of the manual.
 
[quote name='MorPhiend']hmmm... Until now, I have only heard tht the N64 version is better (besides the graphics, duh). Is it worth a purchase if you already have the original?[/QUOTE]

It depends. The single player gameplay is basically the same as the N64 version (well I like the XBOX controls better simply because of the controller) however the graphics and sound make it almost a whole new game. I find the XBOX version overall very superior to the N64 version. That being said, where its at is the XBOX Live multiplayer, which is essentially a fusion of Return to Castle Wolfenstein and Team Fortress except with Conker. It is very deep and entertaining.

If you are only playing single player and not XBOX Live, though, you would essentially be paying for a remastered version of the N64 game.
 
[quote name='vherub']The original conker was almost universally well reviewed, kind of shocking since it was basically a platformer on rails. And the reviews now read almost identically. I wonder how long this game's leg will be with online play.[/QUOTE]

That is where this game shines, the online play is fantastic once you learn it. It takes a bit of practice but is really great once you get it.
 
[quote name='the3rdkey']I beat the game back on the Nintendo 64 when it came out. My buddy brought over the Xbox version. I only thing I did not like were the frequent load times. I would say buy it if you haven't experienced the N64 one.[/QUOTE]

There are somewhat frequent load screens, but they generally only last 2-4 seconds, and considering the incredible amount of texture detail the game has for a 64mb console, that is understandable.

I think its worth buying even if you have played the N64 game simply for the intense TF-like multiplayer.
 
[quote name='help1']Cool, looks like ill pick it uo next time i visit.[/QUOTE]


You better, it's fantastic. I'll see you all on LIVE.
 
I've only played the bots in multi, but I'm loving the single player. I missed it the first time around on the N64 somehow.
Some have complained about the *bleeps*, personally I think it would lose some of the humor if the words were actually spoken.
 
[quote name='ryanbph']I've enjoyed it so far, a little clunky with the camera.[/QUOTE]

This was my biggest complaint about the original N64 version. The camera didn't let me see what I needed to see half the time, and moving it around manually proved to be problematic as well. I'm sad to hear they haven't corrected this problem. :cry:
 
I picked it up, but I have to wait till later tonight to play, any1 wanna play at like 11:00 pm EST? Post ur GT.
 
I loved the original, but I could never finish it. It was fustrating to figure out what to do next. That said I may pick it up when I see a cheap enough copy. omewhere in the $30 range is good enough for me.
 
[quote name='The Successful Dropout']wait...this is a remake of the original? i thought this was a new game all around[/QUOTE]

Nope a remake. I heard they made it up to date though to fit in some of the newer movies like Van Hellsing(spelling) and that.
 
[quote name='Quackzilla']Best graphics on Xbox? I doubt it.

They are on par with Star Fox Adventures (GCN, old).[/QUOTE]

..have you actually played it? I don't agree with "best graphics on XBox", but they're damn good.
 
[quote name='Quackzilla']Best graphics on Xbox? I doubt it.

They are on par with Star Fox Adventures (GCN, old).[/QUOTE]
do you have it
 
[quote name='-Never4ever-']I loved the original, but I could never finish it. It was fustrating to figure out what to do next.[/QUOTE]

I felt exactly the same way. The camera made it difficult to get a good view of the world around you, so I could never see everything to fight the bad guys, advance the plot, etc. I finally picked up a strategy guide for it cheap, but by then I was so frustrated with it that I never when back.
 
Worth buying, but I never played much of the original. Some parts were cut out to make the game easier though. IGN mentioned an EEL riding segment that didnt make the cut.
 
[quote name='The Successful Dropout']wait...this is a remake of the original? i thought this was a new game all around[/QUOTE]

The single player is a remake, the multiplayer is a new game.
 
Does the multiplayer have the "beach" stage from the first one where you could chose to be either the tedies or the squirels?
 
[quote name='billyG']Does the multiplayer have the "beach" stage from the first one where you could chose to be either the tedies or the squirels?[/QUOTE]

Yep, in Conker Live and Reloaded it's called "Beach Dead"
 
the while the color is nice and textures detailed, most of the animations look awful...anytime liquid is supposed to come out of someone or something hits something else, there awful clipping and objects that magically appear and disappear. basically, it ruins any coolness the animation had. the cow shit is probably the best cutscene animation in the game.
 
Did anyone notice that the mini-games from the original were left out? I thought those games like heist and tanks were great to play with friends. Other than that, no complaints.
 
I loved rare platformers from the N64 but I never did get to play conker on the 64 so I picked it up yesterday. I am not very far in it right now, just got to the cow shitting part...but so far I am liking it. Thing I like most about is because I liked banjo kazooie's and DK64's gameplay, its like playing the gameplay style of those but having a mature feel. The multiplayer I am still not sure of, first I was turned off by it cause it is quite confusing. But the more I play it the more it grows on me, so I will see after a week how I really feel about it. Its also nice being able to play a game that also makes you laugh, not enough comedy in games now a days.
 
[quote name='billyG']Does the multiplayer have the "beach" stage from the first one where you could chose to be either the tedies or the squirels?[/QUOTE]

Yes, but it's changed now. The Squirrels aren't running to freedom with no weapons like before. This time the Squirrels fight their way up the beach to kill the Tediz commander while the Tediz try to push the Squirrels back.
 
Conker seems to be a love-hate game. The single player is still really good, with all of the really bad problems the N64 version had. The multiplayer has a wicked learning curve, it will probably take upwards of 10 hours to get used to the controls. If you are forgiving of the problems Conker has, you can really enjoy this game. The character classes on XBLive are EXTREMELY unbalanced though.

--rabbitt
 
[quote name='rabbitt']Conker seems to be a love-hate game. The single player is still really good, with all of the really bad problems the N64 version had. The multiplayer has a wicked learning curve, it will probably take upwards of 10 hours to get used to the controls. If you are forgiving of the problems Conker has, you can really enjoy this game. The character classes on XBLive are EXTREMELY unbalanced though.

--rabbitt[/QUOTE]

true. The multiplayer controls are a bitch to get a hang of. I suck at Multiplayer soooo much right now because of controls.

and whoever said the graphics are on par with Star Fox Adventures has obviously not played the game. The graphics are very very good.
 
i got this on n64 when i was like 9 and i thought it was the best game ever me and my friends would play the multiplayer for hours.... the xbox makes it ok but i wish they made a new story to it.. but the multiplayer is awesome.
 
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