GENRE
	Shooter
	DEVELOPER
	Nintendo
	PUBLISHER
	Nintendo
	NUMBER OF PLAYERS
	1-4
	CONTROLLER PAK
	no
	RUMBLE PAK
	yes
	RAM PAK
	no
	BUY NOW AT

I gave in to temptation. Although the waiting time between the release of Star Fox 64 in Japan and the game's release in the U.S. is not all that long, I got myself the Japanese version of Nintendo's latest big-name cart. After playing it straight for two weeks, I regret nothing.

Star fox 64 is a fine game. Miyamoto team set out to create an A-title with "a B-Movie feel" -- and they have largely succeeded. In more than 15 levels based on designs from the original Star Fox (SNES) and the scrapped Star Fox 2, players face an armada of enemies, movie-like scenes and more action than any of the titles currently available for the N64.

Fox McCloud's nemesis from the first Star Fox game, the Dr. Zeyus-look-a-like Andolf, is back to cause some more havoc in the "Rilac" System (as it's called in Japan). Fox, along with his old friends Slippy (a toad), Peppy (a hare), Falco (a falcon) and his giant mothership "Great Fox", sets out to reach his foe's hiding place and travels from one end of the star system to the other. On a rotatable/zoomable map players can perceive their flight-route as they progress. Exactly which route you take through the system is determined by your performance in the individual levels.

The game starts off (and is interspersed) with real-time-rendered cut-scenes -- and while they don't stand a chance against professionally rendered MPEGs as in Tekken 2 or high-quality FMV as in Wing Commander, they don't fail to impress.

Secrets: It's a Nintendo game, so don't expect any codes. However, there are secret warp stages (which look like they were created by someone on LSD) and downing a certain number of enemies will get you medals for the levels -- which enable tanks and on-foot battles (in the four-player mode) and open an expert "Extra Mode," where one hit will take off you wing... This mode, and the fact that more than one way can get you to the finish greatly enhance the replay value.

Options: The game does not support a mem pak, but it does have a built-in EEPROM to save your best scores and medals (it's a play-it-thru-in-one-go game, so you won't be able to save in between missions). You can adjust the audio, check your best scores, erase the EEROM and even practice flying in a training mode.

There are also three slightly different multi-player battle modes, where you dogfight with up to four of your buddies either for points within a certain time, until a certain score is reached, or for pure survival. In each mode, you can select from a ground battle zone, or a space battle zone.

But the coolest feature is the included Rumble Pak. This little device plugs into your controller's mem pak port and provides limited force feedback during the game. If you get hit by a laser blast, your controller will jolt, if a giant space ship hovers above you, your controller will pulsate, and when activated, your Arwing's boosters will give you a good shake as well. It sounds silly, until you try it. Playing Star Fox 64 with the Rumble Pak plugged in really enhances the gameplay and leaves you wishing that SotE, Blast Corps and Wave Race had implemented the gadget as well. Shortcomings: I don't like the submarine level, it's too dark and too slow for my taste. And even though the cockpit mode looks cool, it dims the screen in an unfavorable way (simulating polarized glass, perhaps) and obstructs the player's view a lot. It's also a pity that the multi-player mode automatically splits your screen in four, even when playing only with two players (the other two screens then show alternate views of the battle) and that there are essentially only two distinct battle zones available. On another note: Some of the bosses are ridiculously easy to beat, even though some have you guessing for a while what exactly their weak points are, you will have no problems beating them without even taking as much as one single hit. Nintendo should have definitely increased the difficulty level of the game as a whole (luckily there is the harder Extra Mode).

But apart from this and a little bit of audio noise on the narrator's voice samples, the game's shortcomings are mostly limited to questions of originality. Although Star Fox 64 comes up with incredibly unique missions, the game's play mechanics aren't very far removed from its predecessor. The weapons power-up system is the same as in the original (the first doubles your laser blasts, the next increases your shot's power) and some of the bosses have been recycled from the original, too (although they now look vastly different).

visuals

The graphics are beautiful and scrolling is smooth, as expected, but what really stands out is the number of enemies on screen. This is the first 3D shooter that truly rivals the destructive fun you could have in such 2D shooting games as Galaga, Phoenix, or Gyruss. There are hundreds of enemies, weaving in and out behind buildings, traveling in formations and even flying in "chains" as in the 2D shooters mentioned before. Especially the last stage throws more fighters your way than you will find in the whole Shadows of the Empire game! And even though the 3D zones have a more sparse look than the on-rails levels, it's easily forgivable since there is more air traffic than on a hot summer day in Mos Eisley.

The bosses are equally impressive, and include a walking mech, different spaceships, a robot with fully animated hands, a cloaking probe, a submersible boat complete with rocket launchers and a crane, a lava monster with animated texture maps (!), a plant thing, an electric golem, a super-sized clam, a train, assault suit mechs, and of course the obligatory giant disembodied monkey head. From time to time your four arch enemies will also show up and make your life harder. These hot-shot pilots look like they are the "bizarro versions" of the four heroes and even fly ships that resemble Fox's Arwing.

While the graphics are bright and vibrant, puritsts will notice pesky rasterization now and then, where it looks like someone painted the image through a sieve. You may have noticed the same effect in Turok's fogging, only that here it's much more visible and whenever the screen fades to white or black during transitions, there is a lot of "video noise" on the screen. But in the long-run it doesn't detract from the fun, and you'll actually get used to it fairly quickly. Although Nintendo applied fogging to hide pop-up, you will still notice some objects drawing in fairly late -- but usually this is only noticable when someone else plays and you watch, because it's never enemies that "pop up," only background elements. Another quibble: The limited size of the cart format shows in the cloud bitmaps, that look like small textures blown up to large size. Apart from these admittedly minor nitpicks, the game looks smooth and beautiful, easily leaving any other 3D shooter to date in the dust.

audio

Sound: The explosions and ship sounds all perfectly fit the game, but what really stands out is the unbelievable amount of speech in this cart. If someone attacks your ship from behind, Falco will warn you saying "Watch out, there's someone on your tail," when entering the Asteroid field, Peppy says "It's strangely quiet here..." then: "Watch out it's a trap!", if you outperform an enemy they will say "What!?" and Slippy -- well, Slippy usually gets attacked by everyone and their mother and calls for help: "Fox, do something about the enemies behind me!"

Since I only played the Japanese version so far, everything is in Japanese (surprise, surprise), but I think the voice talents deserve special mention. Falco, Peppy, Fox, their friends Bill and Cat and the narrator all sound great and read their lines with panache -- unfortunately Slippy and your mothership's navigation droid possess two of the most annoying voices in the galaxy, high-pitched and very, very Japanese. I've been catching myself trying to shoot down that toad in the very beginning of the level sometimes... (I hear the American version is less annoying, although Slippy is voiced by a child). If you don't speak any Japanese, I do suggest you wait for the U.S. version, since many of the things your mates say actually matter and help you complete the game with good scores.

Contrary to the cute looking animal characters comes the actual language used in the Japanese version. Falco will yell things like "Damn!" ("Chikusho!"), "Shit! They're on me!" and "Kusottare!!!" (literally: "shit dripper", perhaps better translated as "asshole"). The American version will be toned down, no doubt.

gameplay

Just like its predecessor, Star Fox 64 is essentially an on-rails shooter that lets you fly on a pre-determined path (which branches now and then) and leads you directly into the arms of an impressive end-boss. However, in some levels, you are able to fly into all directions (like in the first level of Shadows of the Empire) within a confined zone, and you will experience some very intense dog-fighting.

As in the original Star Fox, you start on Corneria, which is under attack by Andolf's forces (again). Only, this time it really looks like there is a war going on. No more "attack of the geometrical shapes" -- there are really nice effects here, such as burning buildings, water reflections (even your enemies and your lasers are reflected in the water) and plenty of enemies. Depending one whether you have Falco with you and fly through a number of gates, you will either fight a giant robot end boss (very easy), or cut through a waterfall and have a rematch with the flying boss from the first level in the original SNES Star Fox. From here, your flight route to Andolf branches out and depends on your abilities.

On the way, you will have to cross an asteroid field, survive the heat of a sun, take on a train, fly through a space scrap yard, dive into the depths of the ocean, destroy outposts and a convoy and even take part in a space battle between allied fighters and the evil fleet (only shoot down the bad guys, please). The diversity of levels is stunning -- each mission manages to come up with unique objectives and it never feels like you're repeating yourself. Whether you're flying over a rough seascape with oil tankers and giant sea snakes, shooting out search lights, or driving a tank while searching for a missing team member on a dusty desert world with space turtles, this game is fun.

There are countless references to science fiction movies here -- from the presence of your arch nemesis who could have stepped right out of the Planet of the Apes, the giant mothership from Independence Day, the asteroid sequence from Star Wars, the robot probe in the scrapyard level that constantly requests to meet "the Creator" (Star Trek - The Movie) and levels that bring back memories (be they fond ones, or not) of Waterworld and Dune. The game is virtually a playable movie. If you don't succeed in a certain mission, e.g. your mothership gets damaged in an attack, it will retain its damage until the end of the game, and even show up damaged in the final scenes. There are a number of different ways to get to the end, and depending which one you pick, the final boss will be harder to beat (or someone will make a suprise cameo).

Controls: Controls are intuitive and responsive. You steer the craft (most of the time your Arwing spaceship, but in two levels also a tank with hovering capabilities and even a submarine in another one) with the analog stick, bank left and right with the Z- and the R-Button (double-tap to spin), use the C-Buttons for view-point change (in cockpit/follow mode), boosts, braking and to answer incoming calls, and the A and B buttons for lasers and bombs. By holding the fire button, you can also charge your beam and even lock on to an enemy target and fire a guided missile or bomb. In addition, braking and "down" makes your ship perform an Immelman turn (like a U-turn) and boost and "down" a loop. These are very important in the dog-fight levels for outsmarting your enemies, help you capture hard to reach items in the on-rails levels, and are your only means of survival to break a lock-on in the multiplayer battle mode.

multiplayer

See gameplay above.

overall

But to say that Star Fox 64 is simply an update to the SNES version (like Mario Kart 64) is not right either: It's true to the original, and I'd probably be disappointed if it wasn't. The game takes the best elements of Star Fox (SNES) and adds full-3D levels, more objective-based missions (protect, rescue as well as destroy), loops and turns, lock-on lasers, the ability to deflect lasers, land-missions in a tank (excellent fun), a submarine level, fantastic graphics, a full voice track, a changing story-line, a multi-player battle-mode and even force feedback. As far as gameplay goes, this is as good as on-rails shooting gets. Even if you're not a friend of shooters, at least rent this game -- everyone else: Don't even think twice about it. Preorder and blast away! This game easily beats the original to form one of the best shooting games of recent times.

9.4/10