"Pretty rad and definitely not bad"

Lets face it, if you're playing a game by the name of Skate or Die you probably aren't looking for any innovations. That's a good thing too, because there aren't really any here. The series has been around for ages and little has changed. However this game is still a blast to play, groundbreaking or not. Also this was also the first Skate or Die game to make its way to Gameboy, all the previous ones had been for Commodore 64 or NES. I really enjoyed this game, however many fans thought this game was a step back from the freedom the NES version offered, with modes like freestyle and joust. Despite this Bad 'N Rad obviously did all right because a sequel (Tour de Thrash) was released on GB a year later.

Story: After playing through the game as far as I could I saw no apparent story. However this isn't necessarily a bad thing, because if you want to enjoy a game like this you can not overanalyze it. Just enjoy the mindless fun and don't worry about the story.
Score-7

Game Play: You start off with 4 levels and after you beat number 4 (you can choose to skip 1-3) you unlock more as you go.
You go through level after level collecting pick-ups for either more points, an extra life, or to regain some health. Some levels are Mario-esque platformers where you just zip straight through picking up as many items as you can find while avoiding enemies like angry dogs and fierce skaters who will throw daggers at you. You can fight back though. Just jump on your enemies and you'll pick up some points and eliminate any danger they may pose. At the end of some of these levels you may fight a boss, which is usually moderately challenging, but once you get their pattern down you won't have too much trouble.
Then some other levels are seen from an overhead view like in the original Legend of Zelda and countless other games. These levels seem to focus on having you move from lower levels to higher levels to avoid things like spikes or other obstacles.
This mix of switching every few levels keeps the game from becoming boring, although the high speed action of the game can usually keep that from happening. Also this game is quite challenging, which adds to the replay. It will more than likely take you quite some time to master Bad 'N Rad.
My main complaint is that a few of the levels are a bit uninspired. For example the 2nd and 4th levels are practically the same at first glance. Sure if you take the time to really look you can see some differences but most people won't take the time. However this is not a major problem as there are only a handful of levels like that. Score-9

Controls: The controls are simple and get the job done. A jumps and B ducks to avoid various obstacles or in some levels duck into things such as cylindrical pipes. The controls are very responsive even at max speed, something you rarely see in a skating, something I was very happy to see. You have the ability to move back and forth in the air but I don't recommend trying it; you aren't very mobile. This doesn't mater much though, as you only have to worry about doing that in the first level, which you can skip anyway. Other than that minor drawback the controls are great.
Score-9

Graphics: Bad 'N Rad uses an engine similar to the one used for CastleVania, which should give you an idea of what it looks like. You have your standard faceless skater riding on a thin skateboard. He's wearing a helmet, along with knee and elbow pads (safety first) which are nice details to add. The backgrounds vary greatly from level to level. While the first level is a very realistic looking city setting it's not really clear where you are in the 4th level and the 2nd level is apparently supposed to be a beach yet there is no sand or shells present. The only thing that hints at it is the water that will occasionally rush out and try to harm your skater. Overall the backgrounds can fit every category from great (first and fifth levels) to horrible (level 2).
Score-6

Music: Veterans of the series will be happy to see that the original Bad 'N Rad theme still plays at the title screen. The rest of the music has an upbeat techno-like soundtrack; it's nothing spectacular but it does its job and does it well.
Each level has its own theme and there's also a boss theme and a brief song that plays when you get game over that is very catchy. In the end almost all the music is average; nothing more, nothing less.
Score-6

Sound Effects: There are very few sound effects to this game, and those that are there are hardly audible, and sound very similar to each other with few exceptions. Basically you get a series of bleeps when you pick up an item or jump. The only other sound is when you open a door, which sound somewhat realistic. The sound effects are definitely not one of the better features of this game.
Score-3

Overall Bad 'N Rad will give you hours of mindless fun and you'll be coming back over and over to finally try and finish. Veterans of the series may be disappointed but other than that I recommend this game to anyone who can find it.

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 08/22/01, Updated 08/22/01