Buck Bumble

"Even if your life revolves arond bug you might still have a problem with this bee."

Buck Bumble is one of those with a great idea that doesn't work as the company that made it had planned.

In Buck Bumble you are a cyborgnetic bug sent into enemy territory again and again to eliminate the enemy bugs who are going to take over the world or some other evil thing that doesn't really matter.

Graphics: 6/10
They're pretty sweet for the N64, but not its best. The levels aren't all that detailed and the scenery is plain boring. Some of the levels look like they're from something on Martha Stewart. The first couple of levels look like a garden which is OK for the theme but not for the gameplay. The boundaries of most levels is made up of this thing that we are meant to believe is some sort of plant which looks like green rock.

Sound: 8/10
This is the games high point. The opening beats are very catching but I'm sure will annoy some of you out there. If you hate anything that sounds similar in anyway to rap even if it doesn't exactly sound like rap then subtract a point from my score. That's what gave this part such a high review.(I found myself singing it at school sometimes). Other than that most of the sound is Buck's wings flapping, weapons firing, and him flying into stuff. There isn’t much else to the sound of this game.

Control: 6/10
Buck really needs help controlling his various weapons. It was pretty hard to shoot the constantly moving drone bees. The camera stays directly behind Buck the entire game and can become frustrating, but hey, at least you don't need to fiddle with it. Cycling through the weapons was painless process but with the weapons being so boring there really was no need to. The best part of the control is the rocket launcher that lets you control what it crashes into.

Fun: 4/10
The game is incredible easy in the first several levels but after that the difficulty level skyrockets. Most enemies you will end up flying right past to get to the end of the level. The level objective are involving buy since they take forever to complete you won't be able to get your level bonus which in turn gives you extra lives to kill all the evil bugs.(If that wasn't a run on than I don't know what is). If you even touch the water you are done for. Once your in it your stuck till your dead bee. The last boss is amazingly difficult to destroy.

Multiplayer: 4/10
Buck also supports two, two player games. If your friend has never played one player Buck than you’ll have no prob fragging his ass in no time in Buck Battle. The game play is crazy but lacks the...fun? Since the person your playing against is gunna be dead bug once you get him in your sights he will just avoid you the entire time your playing. The other two player mode is “Buck Ball”. The idea behind this baby is to score a regular sized soccer ball into what seems to be a goal to small for it to fit. You can fly into to it or shoot it with one of two weapons available on the play field. You'll eventually just end up trying to kill each other which is stupid anyway because you just respawn every time.

Replay: 1/10
Unless you had a blast struggling through to the final boss then there is no point in playing it again.

Overall this game hasn't got much going for it. The only thing this is good for is a weekend rental, play at your own risk. I realize I might be a little harsh on this game but there is a good reason. What you wanna know what it is? Should’ve read the review!

Reviewer's Score: 4/10, Originally Posted: 12/14/01, Updated 12/14/01