"Fox's main mission - Staying awake."

Star Fox 64 is often considered to be one of the N64's better games. However, ''better'' should be referred to as being better than 50% of its available titles, and nothing more. I remember when this game first came out. It was one of the two games that my friends would play constantly (the other being Mario Kart 64). But for some reason, I just wasn't able to get into it. I was rather bored from its constant repetition and limited boundaries. That being said, I can safely assure you that this game is not for everybody. It requires specific tastes, one that doesn't match mine. But even if you're a fan of the original, this sequel may disappoint you.

The game game takes place in some far-out place called the Lylat System. Basically, Fox McCloud's father is missing, and some monstrosity (or more accurately, a giant ape-like head with Rayman-like hands without arms) named Andross is supposedly behind it all. He's also threatening the whole Lylat System, so Fox gathers up his friends to save the universe. Typical plot, but gameplay never revolves around a storyline too much.

The gameplay in Star Fox 64 is a little on the weak side. The gameplay is not complex, this is basically a straight up shooter, with no objectives. Okay, maybe I exaggerated a bit there, but your objectives are very limited. Here's the basics. You'll spend pretty much most of your time cooced up in your jet plane. You'll also use a tank and a submarine over the course of the game. There's some guy who gives you orders at the beginning of each stage who tells you how to complete the task and he gives you another. Your comrades, Slippy, Peppy, and Falco will often contact you over the intercom to either inform you about certain enemies or ask for help. Sometimes, you'll have to act as back-up to your comrades. Seriously, they can get annoying. While in your jet, you can move around and fire lasers at incoming objects.

However, the control tends to be a bit of a nuisance here. It's not until you start playing that you realize the control is a bit unruly and some of the special maneuvers equally so. If you fly the ship to the left, it either does not move, or it flies to the right. U-turns, in particular, can be really hard to perform, especially when you need them the most. Other special and essential moves include the brakes and the limited booster for getting through closing areas quickly and easily. These are all performed by using arrows in conjunction with the C buttons. What I've just covered are simply the basics; I don't want to give you a step-buy-step walkthrough or anything. However, none of this is nearly as bad as the tank's control, which is like a stationary megaton of steel. Oh, wait...it is.

Now here's a huge nuisance - Your comrades. Seriously, every 5 seconds or so, one of your comrades (Slippy, Peppy, or Falco) will come on the intercom and say something really stupid. Most of the time the stuff they'll say is completely obvious, like "Destroy the Mothership!" or "Do a barrel roll!" A lot of times they'll simply give you background information on an enemy, when what you really need is to know how to defeat them!

Each stage has you pitted against large groups of enemies which you must shoot down. After you've completed whatever your assignment for the stage is, you're usually pitted against a boss. The boss fights are probably the few parts I enjoyed about this game. They look pretty awesome, and some are quite a challenge, too.

Surprisingly, this game has a multiplayer mode. You in your friends each choose pilot, jump in a jet, choose an arena, and begin! The mission, obviously, is to shoot your opponents down. The stages are pretty wide, but there's not much place to hide. This can be fun for the first 30 minutes or so, but after that, it becomes stale. You're likely to fly into many invisible walls at the boundaries of each arena. The arenas and the options are far too linear.

One unique thing I'd like to mention is the inclusion of the Rumble Pack. Attach it to your controller, and it will vibrate whenever you're hit! It seems like a pretty cool little gimmick at first, but there's a big problem - It serves as more of an annoyance than anything. It weighs down the controller and completely distracts you from what's going on on the screen. If you really want to play this game, take my advice - Just play the damn game without any cheap gimmicks.

This game's graphics are actually pretty good for an N64 game. The textures are shaded rather nicely, and your enemies look a bit more solid than in your standard N64 game. The bosses are designed pretty nicely for the most part. The obstacles put in blend perfectly with the scenery. Just some occasional blurriness here and there, but it's especially noticeable on some of the tanks.

Now for sound. Ugh, what were they thinking? Music is average at best. I mean, in some stages it sounds all good and high-tech, but the majority of the time you won't hear anything special. Most of the time it sounds like somewhat of an armada beat theme. They'll start out pretty nice, but get bad quickly. On the plus side, it's not anything you'll yank your hair at, though. Voice-acting, on the other hand, is a different story. Many of the voices (especially Slippy's) can really get on your nerves. In fact, sometimes you'll wish your comrades would be shot down. As for other sound effects, like shots and explosions, there actually isn't anything too bad. In fact, it actually has some pretty good sound effects. It's the voicing and the music that kills it.

Finally, we have lasting appeal, another major pitfall in the game. Did I mention how easy this game is? If not, I'll say it now. This game is so freakin' easy! The average gamer should take about 6 hours to complete the game, and chances are they won't be coming back for more. Multiplayer adds about another 30 minutes or so to the game's longevity, and that's it. Star Fox 64 is simply not a game you're going to want to play through again and again. Once you beat the game with gold medals on all of the missions, there is no point to playing this game. Once you're done, you're either ready to retire or return it.

I honestly, honestly tried to enjoy Star Fox 64. But for some reason, it just didn't work out for me. The missions are way too linear, the multiplayer is really sub-par, and the controls are some of the most flawed I've seen in any video game, ever. Plus, the level of challenge is relatively low. Of course it has some redeeming values, but those values are extremely limited. Maybe if you find it at a used games store for 3 bucks or less (Note- Extremely unlikely), pick it up. But for anything more, skip it. There are much better N64 games that exist.

Reviewer's Score: 6/10, Originally Posted: 07/19/06