Mini Review: Perfect Dark
Reviewed on XBLA. Also on Nintendo 64. Developed by Rare (360 version by 4J). Published by Microsoft (360), Rare (N64)
Once apon a time, Rare was one of the top five developers in the world. It’s slate of hit titles for the Nintendo 64 eclipsed Nintendo’s own output. They were also prolific, Their last unequivocal and bona fide big selling classic was 2000′s Perfect Dark. The follow-up to the system selling Goldeneye, but without the expensive James Bond licence, PD introduced the world to Joanna Dark, some choice bad Sean Connery impersonations and a Yoda-sound alike Grey named after a Cheeseburger fetishist.
So it was Goldeneye without Bond or a framerate. It sold well back in the day, enough for Joanna to get a prequel for Xbox 360′s launch, the abominable Perfect Dark Zero, so named because that’s the Metacritic the team was aiming for judging by the released game.
Nearly 10 years after the original release on N64, Perfect Dark is back, ported to the Xbox 360 at 60 frames per second with upgraded texture and sound work (somewhat upgraded anyway), Xbox live support and lofty expectations.
It’s like stepping back in time, but no more so that Duke Nukem 3D. So in a good way.
You play as a Joanna Dark, an agent for the Connery Carrington Institute. Through a number of missions, starting off as simple spy antics, but eventually moving towards more overt science fiction trappings towards the end. You can shoot guns as per any shooter, of course, but you also have a few gadgets thrown in to help with some missions, none of which make a huge difference as they are for very specific locations from a time before context-sensitive actions became commonplace (which, funnily enough turned up in Rare’s next and final N64 games, Conker’s Bad Fur Day).
As a port, it retains the weird AI, the dodgy animation (to modern eyes but not obviously the eyes of Rare circa 2005), the dated level layout, lack of hints and /or feedback, no checkpoints, etc. But also, it has retained the greatness and gained a steady framerate along with its slightly updated texture work.
Multiplayer is much the same with two important additions. It finally runs at a framerate faster than a Power Point presentation and has online play. I can’t vouch for the online portion but I did play a few rounds of split screen with some friends- mainly to kill a certain cab-stealing Englishman. It’s fun in a retro sort of way. But that IS the point.
So it’s silly to complain about the limitations of a game made for the N64. The upgrades have only helped the game but it has to be played in context of what it is, not compared against a modern game like a MW2 or Crysis. The 4J crew have done a nice job in breathing life into something Rare killed in 2005. The reanimated corpse of Joanna Dark is alive and she’s pissed.
Controller1.com Rating 2/3
March 31st, 2010 at 11:28 pm
“The upgrades have only helped the game but it has to be played in context of what it is, not compared against a modern game like a MW2 or Crysis. ”
You know, I’m not sure I actually *can* appreciate an older game for what it is. I downloaded Xbox’s Game Room last night and revisited some videogames of yesteryear…
Christ, we were poor, stupid, bastards back then.
I was like 14 when most of those games came out… I wasn’t even drinking yet. Why did I want to play them?
Good looking application though.
“Have you played a game from Atariiiii? Have you played Atari today??!!”
…
On the other hand I introduced my 4 y.o. son to Serious Sam HD yesterday (gimme a break, he wanted to play Call of Duty MW:2) and it was a heck of a lot of fun. Nice bright settings with a gorgeous blue sky.
I guess I can go back a few years… in some cases.
If my son rips off his head and comes screaming at me with a bomb in his hand I’ll know I’ve done my job as a parent.
April 1st, 2010 at 6:11 am
er, I can’t comment on that product in any way, shape or form on this blog. It has excelllllllllllent music though.
Cam has a plan, you introduce your kids to older games and gradually give them newer games as they grow up. cheaper to get them a SNES or PS1 when they’re 5
Although I love modern games, sometimes older games can give you a short sharp jolt of fun.
April 1st, 2010 at 1:36 pm
“That product”?
You mean Game Room? I thought that was an internally produced app by some guys in Redmond.
Err, I hate to say it but I had the tv muted as I was playing late at night. I’ll check it out again.
… someone should slip the A-G riff into a game one of these days…