Perfect Dark Review

By Christian Donlan Published 11 March, 2010

Playing the old Joanna.

Version tested: Xbox 360

Of all the things I wasn't expecting to stumble across in the XBLA remake of Perfect Dark, Peter Molyneux was quite high on the list. But there he is, the founder of Lionhead, a key creative force behind Populous, Theme Park, and the Syndicate series, waiting patiently in a dataDyne elevator so that Joanna can pop out from a nearby grating and kick him in the head.

Some people, it seems, are still a bit cut up about the fact that you couldn't grow entire trees from acorns in the first Fable.

Odd as it is to come up across a legend of British game development while playing through a first-person shooter - it's even weirder when he turns up in multiplayer, decked out in a white tux, and wielding a sub-machine gun - it's totally in-keeping with Perfect Dark's peculiar culture.

On its first release, Rare's N64 classic featured the scanned-in faces of dev team notables and even a few journalists, so Peter Molyneux's just another way that the crew at 4J Studios, who have handled the XBLA conversion (and before it, the conversions of the Banjo-Kazooie games), are keeping true to the spirit of the original.

And they really are, too. This is, as Kevin McCloud might say while wandering around a modernist cottage hewn out of the clanking guts of an old tyre factory, a sympathetic update. 4J has aimed to present a classic game in the way that you remember it, rather than the way it actually was. (On the N64 in particular, there's often a gaping chasm between rosy recollection and the juddering, artefacted reality.)

'Perfect Dark' Screenshot 1

The original game's bonus missions and challenges are all included - if it was on the original cartridge, it's still in the game.

That means curation and restoration rather than much in the way of additional design, and most of the team's best work will be all but invisible. There are no new levels to compare unfavourably to the originals, in other words, and no Master Chief armour waiting to be unlocked when you 100 per cent everything.

So what has changed? The frame-rate, for starters. Perfect Dark was always a little ahead of its time in terms of what it wanted to do with its action sequences, and that often meant that, when the big fire-fights kicked off, you could find yourself playing something that looked a flick book operated by an epileptic.

Thanks to the power of the 360, you're now able to blow through the whole thing in 60fps, meaning that you can enjoy the game as the developers intended, even if you will no longer be able to rely on that slightly wonky tactic of using big explosions to enter into a kind of unintentional bullet-time, giving you a smidgen more thinking space when things got hairy.

Textures are all up-rezzed, but retain the distinct feel of the originals, and the geometry has been tweaked very subtly - generally only with the NPCs, skyboxes, and the weapons, by the looks of it.

Faces have been given a once-over - Joanna's new mug is a strange cross between Sandra Bullock and, oh, let's say Michael Jackson - but the new character models have been welded to the old animations, which means guards role in and out of view with the same gymnastic hilarity that they used to, and you can still shoot guns out of peoples' hands if you're feeling spiffy. All of which means that Perfect Dark XBLA retains the look of an N64 game, even if it's something Nintendo's old console would be comprehensively incapable of running.

There are two other changes that are probably worth mentioning, both of them for the better. Practically everything is unlocked from the get-go, meaning you no longer have to slog through the main campaign to piece your multiplayer options together, and the GoldenEye weapons, which were originally only available in single-player, are now up for grabs in multiplayer too, along with three GoldenEye maps. Make the most of it, because you almost certainly aren't going to get Rare's most famous FPS following this down the pipe any time soon.

For the most part, however, this is still the same game it used to be, which is a mixed blessing. While Perfect Dark once seemed to have come from the future, it's now clearly a relic of the past. Like an archaeologist drilling into the earth, replaying Rare's classic will give you a few insights into how FPS games have changed over the years.

Signposting is perhaps the biggest thing I noticed. Games are now so much better at telling you where you should go next and what you should do when you get there. If you miss the sense of exploration and experimentation that a lot of the classics possessed just because their layouts were a bit confusing, this is the game for you.

Branching mission objectives, some of which are removed for the game's easier settings, means that plenty of rooms may have no obvious purpose depending on what difficulty you're playing on; even without that, Perfect Dark's not afraid to throw dead ends at you seemingly for the hell of it, or repeat textures so much in its huge maps that you can get a little dizzy.

DataDyne's own offices are particularly bad at this, featuring dozens of really quite similar rooms where security guards sit behind desks, tapping away at computers (still holding their guns, naturally), and the only way to tell whether you're retracing your steps or not is if there's blood on the walls. Modern games have made us stupid and impatient. Me, anyway.

'Perfect Dark' Screenshot 2

If you're into avatars, there are two Achievement awards to unlock. If you're into Avatar, you should probably watch some better movies.

Then there's aim assist. It was necessary for the N64, certainly, but can take a little getting used to on a 360 pad, particularly if you play the game on easy, where the tug from one target to the next is almost comically powerful. Gone on the harder settings, it's customisable, however - as with the original game, almost everything is - and on top of that, you can choose between a range of different control mappings, some based around Halo and Call of Duty 4 standards.

When you turn to multiplayer, you may realise that doors have been a casualty of virtual wars in the past few years, as online games move towards more open maps, and leave behind a world of endless corridors. Perfect Dark's still filled with doors - some of its arenas, particularly those based on the Carrington building, are practically door museums - and they add a not altogether welcome element of fiddliness to proceedings.

But multiplayer also reveals just how much of Perfect Dark hasn't passed its sell-by date: these battlefields are still devious and riddled with tactical options, the weapons are still brilliant fun to use, and Counter-Op, in which one player takes the role of Joanna while a second becomes all of the enemies, one by one, still feels ahead of its time even now.

With eight-player online games and four-player local split-screen (with each screen fully customisable), and with bot support, two-player co-op, and all the original game's modes available, it's a reminder of just how much content games used to come packed with - and that's before you take into account the fact that the single-player campaign has 17 missions, and most of them are pretty expansive.

Boasting gadgets and set-pieces that the more recent update struggled to improve upon, and multiplayer maps you probably wore ruts into the best part of a decade ago, this is an enviable chunk of nostalgia. Zero may have proved that it's hard to create a fitting sequel to a classic, but to see the original Perfect Dark slotting into place so well on XBLA is enough to suggest that, just sometimes, restoration might be a better solution than reinvention.

8 / 10

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Picture of Christian.

About Christian Donlan

Chris Donlan writes about games for Eurogamer and some magazines. His heroes include Eugene Jarvis, Errol Morris, and Linus Van Pelt.

Read more articles from Christian by visiting the Christian Donlan archive page.

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Comments (64) Latest comment 2 years ago

Comments threads automatically close after 30 days, but please feel free to continue chatting on the forum!

  • MORZTAN #1 2 years ago

    WOW! Great review.

    This is a buy for sure!

  • Pastici #2 2 years ago

    How much is it? I assume 1200?

  • BBIAJ #3 2 years ago

    Nope, it's a measly 800 MS Points!

  • Pastici #4 2 years ago

    Wow, nice. May have to grab this when I go home for easter!

  • lavalant #5 2 years ago

    Best 800 points I'll ever spend.

  • Vice.Destroyer #6 2 years ago

    Good price and great price. I guess we will never know, but I'd like to think that the fury of fanboys is the reason why this game costs less than the other Rare conversion. Especially, since it looks like it wasn't just a conversion, but also made it prettier.

    Yay for us!
    :)

  • beastmaster #7 2 years ago

    Great early review! Instabuy!

  • peterfll #8 2 years ago

    I was bought MS points at Xmas specifically for this. Its been a while coming but I'm really looking forward to spending some time with this over a weekend...

  • muscleblade #9 2 years ago

    This was the best FPS availaible until Halo was released. Looking forward to play it again next week.

  • CaptainQuint #10 2 years ago

    I'll get the trial and take it from there.

  • dagas #11 2 years ago

    An FPS from the pre-Halo era? No thank you, I stick to dual joysticks thank you very much. Having to stop and aim is so 1990's. I played some Goldeneye and PD back in the day even though I did not own a N64 myself. It was good back then, but the FPS genre have evolved probably the most of all genres in the last decade. This is just nostalgia. Games did not use to be better, games get better every year.

  • Lotos8ter #12 2 years ago

    Nearly missed the review, its fallen down the page too quickly. Definite buy for me at 800

  • edhe #13 2 years ago

    So this has all the goldeneye maps and weapons also? might have to show this to my other half.
    Edited by 1 at 11/03/10 @ 08:32

  • SleepyDeathFred #14 2 years ago

    I got the impression that it has a few Goldeneye maps and weapons thrown in, but not all of them.

  • Rodney #15 2 years ago

    I am not sure about weapons, but it only has some of the Goldeneye multiplayer levels, not all of them. I remember it definitely has Facility and the Egyption one. Looking forward to paying this. On the N64 You could have up to 4 players plus a load of Bots, how many people can play multiplayer on XBL with this? Is it just 4 still?

  • reality_cheque #16 2 years ago

    Better than PD0? lol

  • Murbal #17 2 years ago

    Oooooh! Ace! I'd almost forgotten about this, never played it before and eager to give it a go.

  • Lotos8ter #18 2 years ago

    Rodney - its 8 players on XBLA. And you can have any mix of local or LIVE multiplayer, so you can have 4 player splitscreen around one telly with another 4 from anywhere over LIVE. Looks ace

  • Raziel #19 2 years ago

    Even 4v4 Matchmaking service I was told.
    I've been saving the points for this for ages now.

  • Kerome #20 2 years ago

    Very cool ;) I missed the original, but am looking forward to giving this a spin.

  • brainbird #21 2 years ago

    More facemapping needed. ;)

  • KillerMonkey #22 2 years ago

    "This was the best FPS availaible until Halo was released. Looking forward to play it again next week."

    On consoles maybe ;)

  • FooAtari #23 2 years ago

    @dagas
    An FPS from the pre-Halo era? No thank you, I stick to dual joysticks thank you very much. Having to stop and aim is so 1990's. I played some Goldeneye and PD back in the day even though I did not own a N64 myself. It was good back then, but the FPS genre have evolved probably the most of all genres in the last decade. This is just nostalgia. Games did not use to be better, games get better every year.

    Graphically maybe, but not in gameplay. Over the last year I have been constantly playing (and completing) older games from the 90's as most of todays games bore me to tears. If it was just nostalgia or rose tinted glasses I would get bored of these games within a couple of hours. But I find the gameplay more enjoyable and I can look past the eye candy.

    From article
    Signposting is perhaps the biggest thing I noticed. Games are now so much better at telling you where you should go next and what you should do when you get there. If you miss the sense of exploration and experimentation that a lot of the classics possessed just because their layouts were a bit confusing, this is the game for you.

    I read that as games are dumbed down now. On rail games are not always bad, but in just about every FPS these days, it's impossible to get lost and the AI in certain games are no more than cardboard pop-up's. The game holds your hand all the way through. That's progress? Not for me. If you go into a building you have never been into before, surprise surprise, you don't know your way around and can get lost. Rarely get that feeling in games these days.

    While games look and sound better now, I don't feel the gameplay any better for the most part. It's not always the case, but In my experience it's a common theme.

    It's a bit like saying all older movies suck compared to the latest and greatest special effects and 3D as they can't compete visually or aurally (sp?)
    Edited by 1 at 11/03/10 @ 18:48

  • schnide #24 2 years ago

    Actually, according to EDGE just under a month ago, the original N64 Perfect Dark had Miyamoto's face in it, which they obviously couldn't use for the 360 rebuild, so they put Molyneux's face in it instead.

  • andywilkie35 #25 2 years ago

    Literally can't wait - sunk hundreds of hours into multiplayer on the N64, planning on doing it all over again

  • kinky_mong #26 2 years ago

    the FPS genre have evolved probably the most of all genres in the last decade.

    It really hasn't, unless you think aim down sight is the gaming equivalent of opposable thumbs.

  • geeza2020 #27 2 years ago

    i loved this game back in the day, so many hours poured into multiplayer while I was supposed to be revising for GCSE's. Great fun. It sounds like they have done a great job making it work on a modern console too. I just cant wait to pick up that laptop gun again....

  • Tyranix #28 2 years ago

    I LOVE doors in games, it has to be said. I really miss them these days, both from a tactical and immersion point of view.

  • Skurmedel #29 2 years ago

    I loved this, especially the laptop machinegun.

  • lavalant #30 2 years ago

    There's feature now on Inside Xbox on your dashboard, I think MS are watching this game closley, they mention PD2 if this game does well (could they be talking about Goldeneye without bond license?)

  • WinterSnowblind #31 2 years ago

    @edhe
    I blame Kotaku for this, but the Goldeneye levels were always in the game, but only three of them. The Complex, the facility and the temple. Chances are we'll see a lot more maps added via DLC though, which is probably why the game is only 800 points.

    Like the review said, the weapons were also always in the game, just not multiplayer.

    Speaking of Goldeneye, I don't think it's inprobably that we'll see it as a single player add on for this. There's been rumours of "Bean" coming for quite some time now and simply removing the Bond references and adding them in here would work fine, and would be as close as we'll ever get to a rereleased Goldeneye.

    There's no copyright problems to adding in a Dam level to Perfect Dark, and so forth..

  • MiniAmin #32 2 years ago

    Microsoft, I hereby absolve you from your crime of releasing Perfect Dark Zero.

    Instabuy!

  • xandaca #33 2 years ago

    Perfect Dark's single-player was always weaker than GoldenEye's, mainly due to the alien missions and the removal of the stealth system in order to accomodate the more linear narrative and missions. The repeating textures was an issue in several of the later levels, but for the reviewer to say he got lost in the dataDyne offices is frankly ridiculous: there are only two floors which are remotely similar to one another, and they're pretty tiny areas structured as two U-shaped corridors surrounded by a few rooms. If you get lost in there, you'd probably have trouble finding your way out of an empty pub. Faulty as PD's single-player may be, if this was a genuine issue on that level (I'd be more forgiving if he'd said Carrington's Manor, which has more variety but at least is quite a large space), it's more a case of gamers getting stupider than game design getting better.

    ADDENDUM: Incidentally, I finished playing through the N64 Perfect Dark (and GoldenEye) a few days ago, so I know exactly what those games are like, within their original contexts and the context of modern gaming. They not only stand up, but kick a surprising amount of modern arse too.

    This...

    [link url=http://w ww.gamasutra.com/blogs/XanderMarkham/20100306/4601/Nobody_Do es_It_Better_Why_GoldenEye__Perfect_Dark_can_still_teach_us_ a_thing_or_two_about_game_design.php
    ]http://ww w.gamasutra.com/blogs/XanderMar...[/link]

    ...is a more accurate retrospective look at the two games.
    Edited by 2 at 11/03/10 @ 12:41

  • Seabeast #34 2 years ago

    When is this out?

  • jmg123 #35 2 years ago

    @WinterSnowblind

    I don't think it is as simple as renaming it "bean" , Rare Nintendo and Activision's rights around goldeneye are complicated, not least because nintendo had the rights and contracted out the development to Rare, rather than juts acting as a normal publisher. If Rare's IP covers the level designs, then I guess a level Dam could appear. But copying the whole game and renaming bond would probably end up in a legal grey area and some lawyers getting rich. It might happen one day though, (hopefully). TBH nintendo should swallow their pride, let it appear on xbox and wii, xbox with hd graphics, wii with bodged together motion control, and charge a large amount e.g. £15 on each system just because they can.

    Mind you if they are going to rename it bean , can they at least make it look like rowan atkinson? lol

  • schnide #36 2 years ago

    @jmg123

    In that case I think you should swallow your pride and let me fuck your wife.

  • jimboton #37 2 years ago

    Signposting is perhaps the biggest thing I noticed. Games are now so much better at telling you where you should go next and what you should do when you get there. If you miss the sense of exploration and experimentation that a lot of the classics possessed just because their layouts were a bit confusing, this is the game for you.

    what a strange way of putting it! let me rephrase it:

    Respect for the player is perhaps the biggest thing I noticed. Games used to be so much better at evoking a sense of exploration and experimentation as you work out where you should go next and what you should do when you get there. If you miss the handholding and extreme simplicity that a lot of modern games possess just because there's always one big arrow pointing at your next objective and their layouts are extremely limited anyway, this isn't the game for you.

    see? it makes more sense like that. At least it doesn't suggest that it's somehow more skillful, clever or progressive to create a simple signposted 'modern times' level than one which allows for multiple routes, secondary objectives, exploration, experimentation, etc....

    games have not got 'better' at anything, it's not that hard to let the player know which way to go, now or then. It just wasn't considered necessary to prevent the player from needing to think every once in a while..

  • thisisatempaccount #38 2 years ago

    "But there he is, the founder of Lionhead... waiting patiently in a dataDyne elevator so that the player can pop out from a nearby grating and kick him in the head. "

    I know it's mean, but someone has to say it:

    INSTABUY.

  • muscleblade #39 2 years ago

    @xandaca

    You can get lost in the UFO crash site with all the caves and such. I think i recall getting lost there.

  • jot027 #40 2 years ago

    Played both Goldeneye and PD far too much back in the day. Been waiting for this since it was announced and although i'm sure time will not have been kind in some areas, too be honest i don't much care.

    This will take pride of place next to Sensi and Speedball2 in my retro collection. Just hoping for Xenon2 to turn up now

    Roll on next wed
    Edited by 1 at 11/03/10 @ 13:38

  • xandaca #41 2 years ago

    @muscleblade: I did too. I'm not saying that getting lost isn't a problem, but the reviewer seemed to be making it out as far more of an issue than it really is. As I said, some of the later levels can be tough to navigate perfectly, but it's generally not too hard to get back on the right track. I mainly found it baffling that he used the dataDyne level as his example which, quite frankly, is about as simple to get around as is conceivably possible. The Crash Site, Pelagic II and the Cetan megaweapon (!) ship would have been far more understandable references.

  • Nova5lag #42 2 years ago

    Sold

  • gizmo #43 2 years ago

    *LOVED* PD right up until the... cloaking enemies... FFS. If I wanted to fight invisible enemies I would TURN MY TV OFF! Tat.

    The most innovative part of PD for me, was the ability to play in counter-op mode, rather than co-op mode. Having a mate take control of the AI baddies to try and thwart your progress through the game was genius. This particular mode hit the framerate hard, but it was still our most played. Don't know why it hasn't been repeated since, it's a prime idea to nick! Would be extra special over Live where you can't glance at his position to try and work out which AI he is.

  • Bremenacht #44 2 years ago

    Haha - love the screenshot of the hidey-hole above the bogs. Get ahead on kills and then camp up there. Only it wasn't camping then, it was, errr, cottaging? :D

    The Charrington Villa level was excellent.

    BTW - You could use dual-joysticks on PD and Goldeneye, so I don't know where dagas got that idea from.

  • SG #45 2 years ago

    There were no problems with movement on the N64. Assign forward, back and strafe to the C buttons and looking around (turning, up and down) - ala Turok - to the stick. It also meant that should you want to precision aim, a quick hold of the R button meant you didn't get confused as the C buttons became dodge left and right and aiming was on the stick, forward and back on the C buttons meant crouching. This was all regardless of control scheme so it was more fluid and logical.

    As for whoever complained about having to stop to aim, with this scheme you didn't, unless you wanted to show off with a half second touch of the R button, a flick of the stick and a tap of the Z button for a headshot. Bit of a whizz on it I must say. ;) Control scheme 1.2 was the way to go. Only idiots using 1.1 would have these complaints.

    I also don't get why people get so excited about Goldeneye; it was a GREAT game, but this game beat it in every way (GFX, weapons, environments, gadgets, speech, presentation (even down to the soft beating music on pause as the mission objectives gradually had light waves dash over them) - except perhaps framerate, and 'being Bond' if you're a fanboy. I wasn't fussed).

  • RedSparrows #46 2 years ago

    There's a big difference between dumbing down and good design. Older games were generally harsher, but the AI was hardly anything to shout about, was it? Just because some more modern titles are hand holding sims, and others are excellently desgned titles that want you to explore IF they want you to, rather than HAVING to, it doesn't mean the picture is black and white.

    OLD GAMES GOOD NEW GAMES BAD etc

    PD instabuy.

  • ElectricDemon #47 2 years ago

    So when the review says that just about everything is unlocked from the off, reckon that applies to the cheats as well? I used to have great fun messing around with them to play with the AI and things. However, I used an AR back in the day to unlock them cos I was too inept to get them the hard way, so if they're not unlocked right away I don't have much hope......

  • Rodney #48 2 years ago

    wasn't level design part of the challenge in older games? finding keycards in a big maze was a gameplay feature. This certainly seemed to be the case with games such as Descent and Doom. The last game I remember getting stuck on and not knowing where to go was Fable 2, but then that was due to a bug.

  • monkfishjoe #49 2 years ago

    God dammit - 6 days to go. Just. Can't. WAIT! It's torture...

    Proximity mines and Laptop guns(?) on Complex. Who'll join me?!

    Edit: I wonder if this will have the odd 'speed walking' controller exploit of Goldeneye and PD - when you would push diagonal on the analogue stick and strafe on the C buttons. You kind of ended up looking down, but could travel much quicker.
    Edited by 1 at 11/03/10 @ 22:44

  • Razz #50 2 years ago

    If you're into avatars, there are two Achievement awards to unlock. If you're into Avatar, you should probably watch some better movies.

    Thank you. Avatar was shite.

  • devilmyarse #51 2 years ago

    Ugh, what about legacy controls?! Does this support the left stick for movement and abxy for strafe left, right and look up,down?

  • rumblesushi #52 2 years ago

    I'm going to buy this, but what I find puzzling is - why PD and not Goldeneye?

    Goldeneye is an absolute classic, RARE's best game, and my favourite FPS of all time.

    I would absolutely love a 60fps version of Goldeneye on XBL.

  • devilmyarse #53 2 years ago

    Goldeneye is subject to licensing hell and will most likely never ever see a re-release. As mentioned elsewhere in the comments, Nintendo owned the licence which they sub-contracted out to Rare for development. Then the licence was sold and Activision picked it up. So there would need to be an agreement between Nintendo and Activision and Rare/MGS. Nintendo won't let it appear on anything but a Nintendo console, and Microsoft won't let it appear on a Nintendo console. Meanwhile, Activision will scream, fling some shit around and try to sue the entire world.

  • IMD1_Pk #54 2 years ago

    I prefer having Perfect Dark over Goldeneye especially since the maps and weapons were much better. For those nostalgic fans they still have access to some of Goldeneye's multiplayer modes and it's weapons in Perfect Dark's maps. They will also have a game which has less detailed backgrounds than what could have been. And finally they will have this screenshot to cry over..... http://th egamesguru.files.wordpress.com/...

  • viper_h #55 2 years ago

    Ugh, what about legacy controls?! Does this support the left stick for movement and abxy for strafe left, right and look up,down?

    This. Although I'd hope it'd be 1.2 control style, with ABXY for forward/backward/strafe left and right with the right analogue for aim...

    Probably not.

  • masterson #56 2 years ago

    Regarding signposting in games (or lake thereof) -

    Until games are actually able to afford us infinite possibility I think it is entirely appropriate for them to tell us what it is they want us to do. As the language of games evolves it begins to establish it's own grammar, which has come to include providing cues in the usage of lighting, framing or sound to direct the player. This is no different from how the language of cinema has evolved over time (also including similar audio/visual cues to direct the viewer emotionally and/or thematically). I would argue in fact that this type of signposting is even more relevant to an interactive medium.

    In any event, I think I too would find the lack of it frustrating in PD, as I do when attempting to play many older games. Whilst it's entirely possible that I'm simply becoming increasingly stupid, I think it's because design that informs and guides the player is now an expected part of good game making. Far from being a "dumbing down" I think it has been one of the most required and notable areas of genuine improvement in games over the last decade or so.

    I'll be sticking with the rose tinted specs for this one I think...
    Edited by 1 at 17/03/10 @ 08:47

  • Fuser #57 2 years ago

    @IMD1 - awesome screenshot there: never seen that before. You are right - now I feel sad :(

    Still, can't wait for PD this evening!

    Oh, and I always found doors hilarious fun in multiplayer - open a door, chuck a grenade in, close the door and laugh as your opponents face gets mashed against the glass (that was one of my favourite tactics in Goldeneye....)

  • devilmyarse #58 2 years ago

    Ugh. No legacy controls at all, not even the ability to remap buttons. What a joke!

    Classic controls are OK but it's not the same... Looks like strafe-running/circle strafing is impossible now :(

  • Harmonica #59 2 years ago

    Been playing this since it came out this morning and it's still a lot of fun, counter-ops seems a bit broken online since it seems to always fizzle out with 'SYNC ISSUES' before anyone can get a shot off, but playing with friends and bots (only four alas) is relatively lag free (you don't notice it), and just as fun as before, or more, since you're not peering at a quarter-screened tiny 20" TV.

    EASILY worth the 800 points. Great conversion.

  • Bander #60 2 years ago

    "the FPS genre have evolved probably the most of all genres in the last decade"

    Most of them still play like Duke Nukem 3D though, with a few exceptions like Mirrors Edge and Gear of War which don't let you run backwards and sideways all over the place in a very inhuman way despite the increased emphasis on physics.

    One thing I really liked about PD Zero was how running speed changed according to which weapon you held, so it made sense to put guns away sometimes. Plus it encouraged setting traps and blowing up walls in multiplayer, so long as you had team mates to cover you, which required communication. But, not being able to hop or climb over low obstacles seemed really silly. I didn't like having to look for a ramp or stairs when faced with an curb at waist height.

    "Microsoft won't let it appear on a Nintendo console."

    Allegedly MS were okay with the idea of a Goldeneye remake on Wii, as a reasonable trade for it being on 360. Viva Pinata is on DS after all, which may have been something of a goodwill gesture. But the other parties didn't agree.

    So what's happening with Killer Instinct? 1-on-1 fighters may not be as popular as they used to be, but I'm sure something deliciously over the top could still be done with the KI franchise and its characters.

  • Sharzam #61 2 years ago

    Its as brillant as i remember, althourgh i still struggle with perfect agent setting. I think special agent is right althourgh the heavy auto aim hmm choices.

    Great game none the less, now to find someone for co-op any takers ?

  • Kerome #62 2 years ago

    @ masterson: Lol, games will never be able to afford "infinite possibilities". The only kinds of games that can even have a stab at doing that are heavily procedural - things like Spore or Elite or perhaps Elder Scrolls: Daggerfall - and the problem with them is that either the experience goes off the rails, or eventually you 'learn the system' and it ceases to be fresh and interesting. And the problems of just framing cinematic game experience programattically are so deep and complex that no-one has yet had even a half-way decent stabs at it.

    So I wouldn't hold my breath for that one.

  • rommy667 #63 2 years ago

    Bought it today love it 800 is well worth it great review as well :)

  • Jesus: Action Figure #64 2 years ago

    Got this yesterday night - stopped playing after about four hours.

    It just brings the memories flooding back, and it's still so much fun to play.