Retro Review: Conker's Bad Fur Day

Some of Rareware's greatest masterpieces were released on the Nintendo 64 between 1996 and 2001. These games would often push the system to its limits, offering impressive graphics and sound along with great game play. Their final N64 game, Conker's Bad Fur Day, was no exception to this rule. Originally intended to be a family friendly platform game in the style of Banjo-Kazooie, Rare changed it into a Mature-rated title filled with violence, strong language, adult-oriented humor, and other aspects that were decidedly different from the squirrel's formerly E-rated environment. The game ended up as a masterpiece in many areas, and is often regarded as being one of the last great N64 games. I dare say that I agree with those who think this way, because Conker is a true cult classic.

It all starts on a dark and stormy night, with Conker at a bar, drinking with his friends. When he ends up drinking one too many beers, he staggers out of the bar, and in his drunken state, he loses his way and ends up in a strange land. Meanwhile, in a dark castle, the Panther King is angry because he has a table that keeps falling over and spilling his precious glasses of milk. Rather than simply building a new one, he learns that a red squirrel will prevent the table from falling, and orders his weasel guards to capture one. Conveniently for them, Conker is a red squirrel, which means that the rodent will have to watch out for various dangers as he tries to make his way home. Granted, the story is rather minimal, but since it takes a back seat to the sheer amount of humor for much of the game anyways, it does not bother me all that much. One interesting aspect of the opening cut scene: it actually starts at the end of the game, with Conker having been crowned king, meaning that the rest of the game is actually a flashback leading up to his sudden coronation.

At first, the game seems typical of other 3D games that Rare has made: Conker can run, jump, and even use his tail to hover as he explores the various game worlds. Camera angles can be used to help you see batter, although they are not as polished as those found in Banjo-Tooie. There are puzzles to solve, boss battles to fight, and things to collect. Unlike other Rare games, the collection aspect is kept to a minimum. The main things for Conker to pick up is cash, which is often found in hidden places or given as a reward for completing various tasks. Sometimes, money is required to help you progress further into the game, though the times that this feature comes up is rare. Other collectibles include chocolate that restores Conker's health (and which often regenerates after a bit) and tails that give him extra lives (only after the first time that he dies).

What separates this game from other Rare N64 games is that it is one large line of British humor geared towards older players. In the many cut scenes found in the game, a funny remark or sight gag tends to pop up. In one early scene, Conker meets a large stone gargoyle, which he manages to take out with merely a frying pan. Other scenes parody a lot of movies, from A Clockwork Orange to Star Wars to Saving Private Ryan. A scene inspired by the latter shows a lot of soldiers getting killed as they approach the Tediz base, and it results in Conker screaming "Get me the heck out of here!" Often, the game breaks the fourth wall: at one point, Conker asks the music composer to change the music from something quite dramatic to a tune with more of a beat, and the composer complies. The cut scenes are nothing short of pure genius, and you can even pause the game during the movies, which is beneficial since you can complete an errand and return to the cut scenes without missing a thing.

Not only the cut scenes, but much of the game, is also filled with material not suitable for children. Practically every chance that it gets, Rare puts in one scene with a lot of blood, such as the aforementioned Saving Private Ryan-related scene; or one filled with lots of swear words. Impressively for a game released on a supposed "kiddy" system, many of the curse words, including some stronger ones, are uncensored or largely uncensored. Only the nastiest swear words are bleeped out. It is amazing that Nintendo would allow Rare to release a game with so much Mature-rated content, but it is that content that really makes Conker stand out of a crowded area of platform games.

Throughout the game, you will discover context sensitive pads with the letter "B" printed on them. When you press the B button on those pads, you will make something happen depending on your current situation. At one point, you may bring out some knives needed to slice some electrical cables before the rising waters become electrified. On another occasion, these pads enable you to through toilet paper at a certain singing boss. About the only thing wrong with these pads is that you do not get an aiming cursor, so you will need to manually aim very carefully.

As for the game worlds that Conker explores, they range from a farm world in which he deals with a mechanical bale of hay, to a prehistoric land filled with dangerous cavemen and hungry dinosaurs, to a haunted world plagued with zombies. Each world is divided into sections, each of which can be replayed on the main menu once you unlock them in the main adventure. This is a good thing, since the game is a bit more linear than some other Rare games, and there is a point of no return towards the end. On the plus side, the game saves automatically as you complete various tasks.

As great and ingenious as the game is, it is by no means perfect. Some sections are a bit frustrating and tedious, and having saves at certain points sometimes means that you will have to redo some of the harder parts of the game. When Conker falls from a height that would not hurt Banjo, he loses some energy, which granted is more realistic, but still a bit annoying. At times, you are not told where you should go next, which leads to aimless wandering until you discover for yourself what must be done next. Some of Conker's actions, such as killing a baby dinosaur, makes him seem not all that likable at times. Lastly, the game is a bit short, around 15 hours for first time players, although it is still overall enjoyable during this relatively brief period of time. All of that said, the game has a lot of positive aspects to offer, and has taken its rightful place as the last great Rare classic.

In terms of graphics, the game is gorgeous looking even nine years later. The lighting effects, shadows, facial expressions...everything, really, is quite impressive looking. By this time, Rare had pretty much perfected pushing the N64's graphical capacities to its limits, and it shows. Of course, it means that slowdown occurs in spots, but this can easily be overlooked. Also impressive is the music, which sounds almost CD quality, and has tunes ranging from 1930s cartoon-style music to a club dance number and even a opera sing along in one particular boss battle. For a N64 game, there is a lot of voice acting, and every voice fits the characters very well. Even more impressive is the fact that there are many characters with distinct voices, and only three voice actors in the entire game! Talk about versatility!

Conker's Bad Fur Day is an example of Rare at their best, offering amazing graphics and sound while at the same time raising the bar when it comes to game play and innovative approaches; in this case, filling it with as much Mature-rated features as humanly possible. Sadly, it is also their last great classic: they seem to have lost their charm since Star Fox Adventures. Nevertheless, Conker is a game well worth checking out, with plenty of great humor, ingenious surprises, and overall great fun. I recommend that you try and track down a copy of the N64 version, and see how Rare used to be at the top of their game. How I wish that the company can be as good as they used to be once again.