I've always viewed the video game remake as a bit of a conundrum. It always made me wonder what sort of lazy, cheap stooge didn't buy and enjoy the game the first time. Such examples reside in classics like Metroid and Resident Evil. What sort of incompetent fool hasn't bought, played, and loved the game upon it's first advent? However, when Conker: Live and Uncut (or as it is now known today, Live and Reloaded) was announced, I realized that this time the stooge was I. Yes, many a gamer had had the chance to play and enjoy Conker on the N64 in his "Bad Fur Day"... except me, of course. So, when I heard that Rare would be bringing their epic tale of squirrel debauchery coupled with an all new, class-based multiplayer mode (an instant plus with me), I decided it was time for me to bring an end to my campaign of idiocy and wash away my sins. It was time for me play the game many people considered the magnum opus with which to end the Nintendo 64's lifespan.


Single Player:

It was the single player mode found in Conker's Bad Fur Day that had everybody raving when it was released way back in the age of dinosaurs, roughly four years ago. This being my first time playing it, I made sure to sit down and take notice of everything there was to this section of the title.

The majority of the game is played like a platformer, and it was these sections of the game I enjoyed the most. The multiple environments make for some unique situations, and the jumping is handled extremely well. Controls are simple and smooth, although combat during the platforming sections are exceptionally mindless, with nearly every battle turning into an exercise in "smack the enemy, run back before he attacks, then smack him again.". After about two hours of playing, combat becomes stale exceptionally fast. Controls are nice, though I personally wished the option to increase or decrease the camera's sensitivity was available.

However, once you've progressed through about 3/4 of the game, it morphs from platformer into a third person shooter. This part of the game, while most certainly fun, isn't quite as enjoyable when compared to the platforming section of Bad Fur Day, and can't really compare to other shooters within the Xbox library. This is not a blemish to the title, but the platforming was simply so enjoyable, it was a bit of a drag to see it go the way of the dodo.

Humor was a large part of what made Bad Fur Day so controversial and great (at least, that's what I've been told), and Live and Reloaded is heavy in the laughs department. Toilet humor runs abound, leading to many immature and laugh out loud moments. A sunflower with an enormous rack or an enormous chunk of feces singing tickles my funny bone the way shows like "South Park" do: with absurd visuals and simple stupidy topheavy within the humor. The various parodies of films, like Saving Private Ryan and The Matrix garner a few chuckles, though I'm sure they'd have been gut-bustingly hilarious when the title was released back in 2001.



If you laugh at a WW2 parody, you're going to hell. Remember that.

Multiplayer:

To be completely honest, it was Conker's online mutliplayer aspect that had me most excited over this title. Class-based mutliplayer gaming has always been a favorite of mine, dating all the way back to classics like Tribes all the way up to the intense action found in Battlefield 1942. After spending some time with the mutliplayer mode in Live and Reloaded, I've found that the multiplayer is enjoyable, though it will undoubtedly take a little time to grow on you.