Perfect Dark (XBS) "The Initiative Developer Interview"

My favorite FPS returns to the gaming spotlight with The Initiative taking on the herculean task of reviving the Perfect Dark series! The passion on display by the creative directors and staff at The Initiative give me a lot of hope for this game turning out wonderfully. Here's hoping it does, but in the meantime, check out this developer interview video provided by Xbox on its YouTube channel.

The Tuesday 10s: My Favorite Multiplayer Games

It's approaching the end of Tuesday here in Central City, but that means there's still time for The Tuesday 10s to make its reappearance once more! The Tuesday 10s is a relatively unordered list of ten game-related items of a specific category. This time around, I'll be sharing ten of my favorite multiplayer games, whether they're enjoyed online, offline, or a mix of both!

After you've checked out my ten choices, feel free to let me know which multiplayer games are your favorites to bust out every now and then!

Super Smash Bros. Ultimate (NSW)

We start off this list of ten multiplayer games I love the most with Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. I'm hardly what you'd call a "competitive Smash player", as I don't even have one character I stick to predominantly. Well, I do prefer to use Link in Spirit Battles, but when it comes to online and off, I change up which character I play as constantly. I prefer to play Ultimate in a local multiplayer setting, so while I don't have the option to play with friends at the moment this way because of a certain pandemic (you may have heard or read about it), I do have the option to play with family. Unlike so many fighting games I've played where I struggle to learn and memorize move inputs and combos, with Smash Bros., it's as simple as hitting an attack button and holding a direction on the analog stick. It makes it easy to jump in, play, and have some fun. With all of the characters, modes, and arenas to engage in both online and off, the "Ultimate" moniker of Super Smash Bros. Ultimate definitely isn't just for show.

Mario Kart 8 Deluxe (NSW)

For the next three entries here on this Tuesday 10s, I have the need--the need for speed! Beginning with Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, the Tuesday 10s feature a trio of cartoon kart racers. Mario Kart 8 Deluxe  offers an approach that works for both seasoned racers and more casual types, giving the latter a completely optional steer assist to keep them on the track. The multiplayer is generally fun for all skill levels because of this, as well as the generally satisfactory item balance--a concept that previous Mario Kart games didn't do a great job at doing. Mario Kart 8 Deluxe is a racer I routinely return to because it's great for hopping online for a few tracks, or--if my brother and I are feeling a bit crazy and possessing a couple of hours--great for doing a series of 48 tracks all in a row. Now if that doesn't show some love and dedication to Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, then I don't know what does!

Crash Team Racing: Nitro-Fueled (PS4, NSW, XB1)

Moving on from Mario to Crash Bandicoot, Crash Team Racing: Nitro-Fueled has an abundance of content attached to it--far more than Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, truth be told. Between the immense amount of tracks--whether from the original CTR, from Crash Nitro Kart, or brand new races entirely--characters that can be unlocked, a meaty adventure mode to complete, time trials to beat, and daily tasks to tackle, Nitro-Fueled has a lot going for it. I actually prefer playing this one online, as the skill ceiling is mighty high. For new players and heck, even average players, it's far too easy to grow disenchanted by the difficulty of both the Medium-level AI and well versed online players of CTR. You can lose ground easily, and when online, it's not uncommon to get lapped unless you master to art of the Sacred Fire boost and its Ultra form. Confused? Don't be alarmed, as CTR is an insanely complex and deep kart racer, and this is what makes it not the greatest game to break out for the uninitiated at parties. Still, once you get over that initial bump, the multiplayer becomes incredibly enjoyable, especially online.

Diddy Kong Racing (N64)

My final kart racer on this list of multiplayer faves is Diddy Kong Racing, which is probably my favorite kart racer of the bunch. You can play by land, by air, and by sea in one of three vehicles: karts, planes, and hovercrafts--depending on the track. Diddy Kong Racing invented the adventure mode template seen in Crash Team Racing, and dare I say, it hasn't been beat yet. Multiplayer offers up to four players to share the screen and speed through various tracks, but the stand out feature of Diddy Kong Racing's multiplayer, for me, is the ability to play the aforementioned adventure mode with another player. Now, this required a special in-game code to do so, but being able to compete together to help one another win races, complete silver coin challenges, win mini-games, and beat bosses was awesome. Diddy Kong Racing houses some of my favorite multiplayer memories on the Nintendo 64. But that isn't the only N64 classic that managed to do that...!

Perfect Dark (N64, XBLA)

Ah, yes. If there was any game on the Nintendo 64 that I devoted the most playtime to, it was Perfect Dark. This first-person shooter was so ahead of its time, and it still contains myriad features that most FPS games lack today! Multiplayer alone features so much customization with the coup de grace being customizing the personalities and difficulties of the numerous bots that could be in matches. From pugilist simulants that let their fists do the talking, to simulants that prey upon the losing opponent in matches, the personalities are so impressive. I loved customizing the look of my character by head and body model, setting up my own loadouts and scenarios, playing match after match, and leveling up (though not in an RPG sense) based on various stats like kills, steps taken, accuracy, and more. Then, there's the single player campaign, which players could engage with either co-operatively or with one player as Joanna Dark and another as a never-ending supply of enemy grunts. Like I said, Perfect Dark was so ahead of its time, and perhaps that's why I've struggled to find as compelling an FPS game since.

Bomberman 64 (N64)

Let's continue our foray with the Nintendo 64 with a blast from the past. Literally! It's Bomberman 64, and between this game and Bomberman 64: The Second Attack, its hard-to-find and valuable sequel, many sleepovers as a child were had bombing and blasting friends to smithereens (and also blowing myself up with errant placed bombs of my own). The 3D arenas brought a unique spin on the Bomberman franchise, featuring multiple tiers and spots on maps where the action truly heated up. Yes, Bomberman 64 certainly did not play the same as its 2D counterparts, but it did bring my friends and I joy. To this day, Bomberman 64's multiplayer still brings this blogger joy to play.

Mario Party 2 (N64)

There are so many Mario Party games to choose from that picking just one might seem like an impossible task. However, my favorite of the bunch remains Mario Party 2. Had it not been for the original's handful of blister-causing mini-games, the first Mario Party would have been my pick. Still, Mario Party 2 provides plenty of entertainment all the same with its focus on unfiltered fun. A fair portion of the original Mario Party's mini-games make a return in this Power Star-studded sequel, as does a collection of amusing new mini-games alike and new mini-game types. Boards are much more expansive, and the costume party window-dressing of the game is one that I enjoyed, too. I particularly have fond memories of Mario Party 2 not just for the times I played this with friends at sleepovers as a child and later on in college, but also because it was one of the first video games I played with my dad.

Super Mario 3D World (Wii U)

Speaking of Mario, how about some more Mario? Super Mario 3D World has been long rumored for a release on the Nintendo Switch, after being one of the last major games stuck on the Wii U. It's a hotly anticipated game, if ever a port could be, because 3D World is such a fantastic game. It took the approach and foundation placed by the Nintendo 3DS' Super Mario 3D Land and expanded upon it beautifully to a bigger and better game. And this time there was multiplayer, which brought all sorts of chaos, both intended and unintended, into the fold. The levels were the stars of the show, and they were made immensely more enjoyable by playing with one, two, or even three other players. Super Mario 3D World shined as one of the best experiences on the Wii U, and here's hoping we finally see it arrive on the Nintendo Switch so others can experience the game for themselves, too!

LittleBigPlanet (PS3)

From one platformer to another, LittleBigPlanet was a jack-of-all-trades in the platforming genre, offering the ability to play, create, and share levels with others in LittleBigPlanet community. This intricate and exceptional system would be the predecessor to what we see now with Media Molecule's massively marvelous Dreams game, which launched earlier this year on the PlayStation 4. Really, I could pick any LittleBigPlanet game from the trilogy as a multiplayer favorite, but it's the first game I handpicked as the representative of the franchise due to how much time I spent with the game. Far more than LittleBigPlanet 2 or 3. Whether playing with my brother through the campaign of curated levels that were created by Media Molecule themselves or hopping online with a group to play through created levels from the community, the memories I have of LittleBigPlanet are some of my most cherished on any PlayStation platform.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles IV: Turtles in Time (SNES)

Let's conclude this edition of the Tuesday 10s with a game that kicks a lot of shell. It's Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles IV: Turtles in Time, my absolute favorite beat-em-up. It helps that I adore the heroes-in-a-half-shell to this day, and that the actual game itself is one of the most brilliant beat-em-ups around. Smashing through wave after wave of Foot Soldiers, beating down bosses, and chucking foes into the screen seldom gets boring. Turtles in Time is a game that I can come back to time after time and enjoy myself. It's particularly a pleasure to play through with a friend or family member. Here's hoping COVID-19 clears out sooner rather than later so I can do just that once more!

The Worst Things About SuperPhillip Central's Favorite Games

The games that are my favorites are ones that have minimal or next to no faults in them. I'd be fooling myself if I said a game that I liked best was perfect. That's the purpose of this article: to try to delve into my favorite games, figuring out that one thing that isn't so perfect about them. Many of these may come off as nitpicks, and that's the nature of trying to come up with gripes, no matter how small, towards the games I adore most.

The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time (N64, 3DS)

Let's start with my favorite video game ever created, the masterful Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time. It's really cliche, I guess, as a choice for favorite game ever made, but it's not like the game isn't one of the most revolutionary, well paced, or creatively designed out there. Thus, there's a reason many consider it the best of all time.

Regardless, especially in the Nintendo 64 version, a problem that plagued many games on the system, especially those with high caliber graphics, is the frame-rate. It can go to the low teens in an instant, particularly in more action-intense sequences as well as more open areas like Hyrule Field. 

Another issue with the Nintendo 64 version is no stranger to fans of the game, and even harsh critics. I'm talking about an element of the Water Temple. The dungeon itself isn't annoying. The need to constantly pause and unpause the game to equip the Iron Boots from the Gear menu, however, is. I'm embellishing here, but one may spend more time in the menus than in the actual Water Temple itself because of how much you have to equip and remove the Iron Boots!

With the Nintendo 3DS version, which is the definitive version, in my mind, both the frame-rate (though there are modest drops in the 3DS version) and the Iron Boots were fixed. For the Iron Boots, they became an equipment item, much like the Boomerang or Hookshot. You could simply tap the touch screen to equip them and remove them instantaneously. 

The 3DS version did bring a new problem into Ocarina of Time, and that's when you have the 3D slider on of the Nintendo 3DS. Dark areas presented a ghosting effect with colors and images bleeding over into the darkness for a sullied look. A very small gripe, but a gripe nonetheless.

Resident Evil 4 (Multi)

With a new version of Resident Evil 4 coming to the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One later this season (making it the 101st official version across all platforms), it seems timely I talk about my favorite third-person shooter. And there's the rub. As a game to its lonesome, Resident Evil 4 is one of the most perfectly paced games ever devised. Its action is superior to most games, its design is superb, and it's absolutely dripping with macabre atmosphere. 

As part of the Resident Evil series, however, this game saw a shift in tone of the series. Future games acted more as third-person shooters with some horror elements instead of the pure survival horror gameplay longtime fans of the series had come to expect. It's only now that Resident Evil 7, announced at this past E3, seems to be taking the franchise back to its roots. 

I'm one of those whose first experience with the Resident Evil franchise was the fourth installment, hyping it up as the last big GameCube exclusive (we all know how that turned out). Thus, I didn't have as much at stake with the future of the franchise. Still, knowing where Resident Evil went after 4 and it disappointing so many fans is something that can be considered a flaw for Resident Evil 4. Seeing as that's the worst I can say about the game, that's mighty impressive.

Perfect Dark (N64, XBLA)

From a third-person shooter to a first-person shooter, I've always enjoyed objective-based FPS games like GoldenEye, TimeSplitters, and yes, Perfect Dark over games that focused more on running and gunning through either expansive levels or corridor-to-corridor design. Perfect Dark is a marvel of design with its many ways to clear a majority of missions, whether going in order or accomplishing each objective in the order you desire. 

A problem that haunts both versions really isn't too bad. That is that many of the missions in the game can take upwards of 15-30 minutes on Perfect Agent difficulty, the hardest difficulty in the game, sporting the most objectives, harder AI, greater damage, and no shields to add to Ms. Joanna Dark's defenses. One mistake can cost you those 15-30 minutes of progress thanks to the lack of checkpoints. 

Now, back when the game originally came out in 2000, one of my proudest gaming achievements (before Xbox and Microsoft made them an actual thing that people could earn for GamerScore) was beating all of the missions on Perfect Agent mode. It took a lot of time, a lot of patience, and a lot of "dammit, I almost had it-s" to do that. So, yeah, I did "git gud", but at the same time, it's a viable complaint if I had to pick one.

However, the Nintendo 64 version also suffers from tremendous frame-rate drops, running sluggishly in the teens with great consistency. And don't even get me started on dropping a certain bomb that drops the frame-rate in single digits.

Super Mario Galaxy 2 (Wii) 

We continue with this look at some of my favorite games of all time with Super Mario Galaxy 2. Generally, the motion control actions worked flawlessly. Now, even some longtime gamers couldn't adjust to the Wii's motion controls. I'm not referring to waggle as motion controls. Most of Super Mario Galaxy 2's functions were tilting the Wii Remote. 

That's exactly what one needs to do in the gliding sections of Super Mario Galaxy 2. This quest for a Power Star happens in two galaxies. The first isn't too bad at all. Not only does making it to the end of the course give you your much desired Power Star, but flying through five difficultly placed rings gives you a Comet Medal.

It's the second level late in the game that always gets my proverbial goat. Or, I guess bird would be the right word to use here. It's not so much making it to the end that's the problem. It's making it through all five rings, which are in some absurdly hard and fiendish locations. Twisting and tilting the Wii Remote to reach each can make you look like a contortionist. It's by far my least favorite part of Super Mario Galaxy 2, and even then, it's very much manageable.

Banjo-Kazooie (N64, XBLA)

Finishing off this first look at some of my favorite games of all time and their flaws (if you didn't guess, I plan to do more), Banjo-Kazooie takes center stage, my favorite 3D collect-a-thon style platformer. In the original game on the Nintendo 64, there were 100 musical notes scattered and hidden around each of the game's main worlds. If you died before collecting all 100, your top amount would be saved by the game. Dying wasn't usually too much of a scare for seasoned players, but one particular world of the game made death all too easy, Rusty Bucket Bay. I'm particular in talking about the engine room, where fans spin dangerously and platforms twist and turn constantly.

It's far too easy for a run at 100 musical notes to end in this section, making you have to start collecting them all over again on your next life. Thankfully, the Xbox Live Arcade HD port removed having to collect all 100 musical notes in one run. Instead, it saved every musical note you collected even after death. Thus, you just needed to go after missing notes if you for some reason bit the big one. So, then you have the Xbox 360 HD port fixing my one issue with the original Banjo-Kazooie. Well, maybe that final fight with Gruntilda is still a bit of a difficulty jump...

Top Five Desired Xbox IP Revivals for E3 2016

E3 2016 is less than a week away, and many publishers have already unofficially started the event by posting their E3 trailers for various games. However, Microsoft and Sony remain tight-lipped for the most part-- not revealing what they plan to reveal at the big show next week. For every Halo and Gears, there are a multitude of Xbox franchises that remain dormant. This list of five wanted franchise revivals for E3 2016 might just be wishful thinking, but they're the ones that I'd love to see a return to by Microsoft and its developing partners.

5) Project Gotham Racing

Formerly a Sega property and known as Metropolis Street Racer on the Dreamcast, Microsoft got around to owning the franchise, thus changing its name to Project Gotham Racing when it launched on the Xbox. After Bizarre Creations, the developer for the series, was purchased by Activision, the Project Gotham Racing franchise has been put on hiatus. With a much more arcade-centered focus than Microsoft's other racing property, Forza, it seems to me that the series could and should make a return, as both could coexist. That's why I'd love to see the arcade styling of Project Gotham Racing return to Xbox with an announced revival at this year's E3.

4) Kameo

The Legend of Zelda-like Kameo: Elements of Power was a wonderful launch title for the Xbox 360 which had a history of development across Nintendo's GameCube as well as the original Xbox before finally launching on the 360. The game allowed Kameo to transform into various creatures, each with elemental abilities used to beat down enemies and solve puzzles. A sequel was intended and in the planning stages, and judging by the discovered artwork, it was aiming for a more realistic direction. Here's hoping Microsoft and Rare have Kameo return in a big way this E3.

3) Battletoads

Whether it's the Xbox boss Phil Spencer wearing a Battletoads T-shirt or the appearance of the Battletoads via cross-marketing in Killer Instinct or the Xbox version of Shovel Knight, the not-so-subtle hinting and coy eye winking towards a new Battletoads make the series's return not a question of if but more a question of when. The use of Rare's storied IP by Microsoft has been flawed at best, so it would be nice to finally see the Xbox brand take advantage of some of the fan-favorite franchises that are held hostage by Microsoft. Seeing Battletoads in a revival this E3 (finally) would go a long way in starting to effectively use Rare's franchises and put them to good use.

2) Perfect Dark

While it was a sales success when it released at the Xbox 360's launch and the multiplayer was quite addicting, Perfect Dark Zero was not a well received by fans successor to the original Perfect Dark. Basically everything that made the Nintendo 64 original so well regarded by fans was ignored by the developers with Perfect Dark Zero. Fans like myself want a return to the N64 original, nixing the American Joanna Dark and insulting plot, while bringing back all that goodness that the 2000 debut of Perfect Dark brought to us. Perfect Dark is a more objective-based campaign than Halo, so it wouldn't really have to compete with Microsoft's marquis series. Instead, it would simply coexist.

1) Banjo-Kazooie

With Yooka-Layle by former Rare Golden Age staffers in development, it seems like the itch for a Banjo-Kazooie-like game has been scratched. However, what about for those of us who want to see Rare's bear and bird duo given a new chance to shine? After the wonderful but not-quite-what-fans-were-looking-for Nuts & Bolts, it's about time that Rare and Microsoft give Banjo and Kazooie a new, more traditional platforming adventure for fans to enjoy. It would fill a hole in the Xbox's lineup while capitalizing on the much desired by fans (as apparent by the success of the Yooka-Layle Kickstarter) 3D platformer genre.

SuperPhillip Central's Favorite VGMs - Ready for a Fight Edition

SuperPhillip Central's Favorite VGMs is ready for a fight this edition, leading off with Ryu's familiar theme from Street Fighter V. We then go soft with the main theme from Naughty Dog's The Last of Us, one of the more critically acclaimed games from last generation. Then, we go back to more fighting with music from Bravely Default. Next up is some rockin' credits music from Perfect Dark, and finally, we do even more fighting, except this time it's for our lives, with music from Resident Evil 5.

If you want to keep track of all the VGMs previously spotlighted on SuperPhillip Central's Favorite VGMs, look no further than the VGM Database.

v1101. Street Fighter V (PS4, PC) - Ryu's Theme

Fighting game fans know Ryu's Theme as sort of an anthem of sorts. Sure, it doesn't go with everything like Guile's does, but it's a heroic and triumphant theme all the same. Street Fighter V released last month to lots of criticism for its drip-feeding of content. There isn't much to the game right now, embarrassingly so, but over the months content will come to the game.

v1102. The Last of Us (PS4, PS3) - The Last of Us Theme

The Last of Us soundtrack features plenty of subdued and forlorn sounding songs to it. This main theme from the game has an acoustic guitar playing the main theme supported by occasionally harsh chords, leading to a foreboding sound.

v1103. Bravely Default (3DS) - Fighting to the End

One of several boss battle themes from the imperfect but still worthwhile Bravely Default, Fighting to the End is a magnificent masterpiece of a composition crafted by the composer Revo. Conflicting schedules disallowed him from working on the soundtrack for the sequel, Bravely Second, releasing in April, but I'm hopeful that the sequel will have a soundtrack that I enjoy, though probably not as much as Revo's wonderful work.

v1104. Perfect Dark (N64) - Credits

Rock on with the credits theme from Perfect Dark, one of my favorite first-person shooters of all time. This theme is a perfect (pun intended) end to Joanna Dark's mission after reaching the Skedar home world and taking down the leader of the alien race. This song got a lot of play during multiplayer matches via the superb Combat Simulator.

v1105. Resident Evil 5 (PS3, 360, PC) - A Big Despair (Digital Version)

With the Resident Evil series celebrating its 20th anniversary tomorrow, it seemed like an opportune time to bring in a VGM volume for one of the games from the franchise. This theme from Resident Evil 5 is a boss track, and it's quite intense, perfect for a battle that has you fighting for your life.

Review Round-Up - July 2015

It was a month led by two strong women. Perfect Dark rarely misses
 the mark, and she certainly didn't in the 600th review on SPC.

SuperPhillip Central saw nine new reviews posted in the usually quiet summer month of July. Things kicked off with a return to the world of Castle of Illusion with Castle of Illusion Starring Mickey Mouse, a remake of the Genesis classic. It earned a B. Then we went old school with a retro review of Mega Man 8, busting Dr. Wily's robots and getting a B+ in the process. The game of the month, and also SuperPhillip Central's 600th review, Perfect Dark shot and scoped its way to an A. Next, we went a bit wacky with Rayman and friends with the Vita version of Rayman Legends (B).

Following Rayman was another platformer, Giana Sisters: Twisted Dreams. Its busy art style led to a lot of cheap deaths, leading me to give the game a C+ score. Then two Wii U eShop games were reviewed, Tiny Galaxy and Canvaleon. The games earned a D and a C- respectively. Finally, the other big woman spotlighted this month of reviews, Bayonetta, earned herself a respectable B, and Mercenaries Saga 2: Order of the Silver Eagle surprised with a B+.

August is going to have a bunch reviews for it as well. Will we reach nine? That's the plan at least!

Castle of Illusion Starring Mickey Mouse (PSN, XBLA) - B
Mega Man 8 (PS1, SAT) - B+
Perfect Dark (N64, XBLA) - A
Rayman Legends (Vita) - B
Giana Sisters: Twisted Dreams (PSN, XBLA, Wii U eShop) - C+
Tiny Galaxy (Wii U eShop) - D
Canvaleon (Wii U eShop) - C-
Bayonetta (Wii U) - B
Mercenaries Saga 2: Order of the Silver Eagle (3DS eShop) - B+

The other femme fatale of July, Bayonetta,
delivered fun in every "witch" way.

600th Review! Perfect Dark (N64, XBLA) Retro Review

Here's where the true fireworks are tonight! It's time for SuperPhillip Central's 600th review! Think of all of the books on figuring out world problems like hunger and curing cancer that I might have written with the words used instead for the previous 599 reviews!

...Actually, don't. Instead, let's celebrate this occasion with one of my favorite video games of all time, Perfect Dark! This game comes from a genre I don't hold much love to, so it's obviously something special if it managed to hook your buddy, jaded old Phil! See why I love Perfect Dark so much with my review!

You're really on the mark, Ms. Dark.

I'm a bit of an old fart when it comes to certain gaming genres. For instance, the first-person shooter has come really far as a genre, especially this past decade. However, I still enjoy the basic gameplay of games like GoldenEye, and yes, the subject of this review, Perfect Dark. There's something special about how these games were designed that make them preferable to me than something like Halo or Call of Duty-- though I'm not saying both of the latter series are totally similar. To this day I find Perfect Dark one of the greatest first-person shooters around. It's a philosophy and foundation that developer Rareware had that makes this game still so enjoyable to me that we don't see in first-person shooters of today. A real shame, too, as I'd probably love and play the genre more if more games went the Perfect Dark route with its design.

Perfect Dark has the lead Joanna Dark, an up and coming special agent for the Carrington Institute on her premiere mission, an extraction at the DataDyne Corporation of a person of great interest, Dr. Caroll. What follows is a (pardon the pun) dark scheme and conspiracy that runs all the way to involve the presidency and two alien races. The story unfolds throughout the single player campaign in cutscenes, and these are relatively acted out okay. No big expense was given to the voice actors, as most are from Rareware's own developers. Still, it's an engaging enough story with some clever dialogue sprinkled in to keep players hooked if the missions don't do so themselves.

However, this is probably impossible, as the missions in the single player campaign are absolutely superbly designed. Unlike the majority of first-person shooters out today, Perfect Dark uses an objective-based mission system instead of the typical corridor shooters available en masse on the market nowadays. Levels feature split paths, multiple ways of completing missions, and plenty of ways to succeed and fail at the many objectives in Joanna's missions. Sometimes the objectives can feel a bit obtuse, making the player a bit confused as to what he or she actually needs to do to succeed and complete them. However, most of the time one can simply pause the game and read the mission briefing details to get a better idea on what needs to be accomplished.

A secret agent always has to dress the part, right?

There are three main difficulties in Perfect Dark, and each of these brings a different number of objectives each per mission to complete. Sometimes the location of objectives changes as well pending the difficulty. On the easiest difficulty, Agent, it's usually as simple as doing one or two objectives while not really having to worry about the poor aim and weak damage Joanna takes from gunfire. While on Perfect Agent, there are a multitude of objectives, enemies do greater damage, have better aim, and there are no shields, an extension of Joanna's health bar, to acquire whatsoever. To this day beating Perfect Agent mode back in my younger high school days is one of my proudest gaming accomplishments, as the mode is quite taxing, but all the enjoyable. Sure, it can be distressing to fail at the tail-end of a mission, meaning you have to make up ten minutes or more of gameplay as there are no checkpoints to be found, but the effort and satisfaction when you finally beat a difficult mission are something special.

Though I'm starting to think Joanna's finding
dressing up for missions to be a bit stimulating.

Completing missions in Perfect Dark awards players with cheats that can be used a la GoldenEye 007. These are things like big head mode, using certain weapons that you otherwise wouldn't be able to use in a particular mission, and much more. Also like GoldenEye, the more worthwhile cheats are locked behind beating target times in levels on particular difficulties. These cheats require the most work to unlock, but the rewards are usually well worth it. For example, who doesn't want invincibility, unlimited ammo, or the ability to not need to reload weapons!

Play cooperatively with a friend...

The solo campaign can be played cooperatively or competitively with another player. It is a lot of fun splitting up objectives or teaming up to take down squadrons of enemies effectively and efficiently. Both players have less health to work with than in solo, but if one has a great partner, the cooperative campaign is a hell of a lot of fun. Conversely, two players can compete against one another with one serving as Joanna Dark, trying to complete the mission while the other player has an endless amount of enemies they can play as, trying to thwart the Joanna player from completing their objectives. This is a nice twist to a classic mode offering, and it only makes the entire package all the more enticing an feeling fully loaded.

...Or turn a friend into an enemy with the Counter Operative mode.

An agent's only as good as his or her guns, and Perfect Dark offers a robust set of amazing weaponry. Most single-hand weapons offer dual-wielding functionality, and every weapon in the game brings with it a secondary function. For instance, even something as simple as grenades have a unique hook as their secondary function allows them to bounce off ceilings and walls like a ball in a pinball table until an enemy (or if your luck is bad, yourself or a companion) winds up in their proximity.

There is also a myriad of guns that feel excellent to hold and unleash death with. There are assault rifles that second as grenade launchers, fly-by-wire remote controlled rockets, a gun that takes the form of a laptop which can be tossed onto a wall or ceiling to be used as an automatically firing sentry gun, combat knives that can either slash into or be chucked into a foe's flesh, a gun that can enter an enemy into psychosis, flushing drugs into them that makes them turn on their allies, and so many more awesome guns. The creativity in the weaponry is only rivaled by the Ratchet & Clank series, which is high praise, if not a weird contrast-- one mature shooter and one cartoony action-platformer.

From shotguns to high capacity machine guns,
Joanna Dark has a license to kill and thrill.

What makes Perfect Dark even better and giving players an immense amount of replay value is the multiplayer, known as the Combat Simulator. This multiplayer mode features an abundance of options for players locally and, for the Xbox Live Arcade verison, online to create the match types of their dreams. You can select which of the great amount of weapons they prefer to have in the match; which of the wide range of large, but not too large maps to play in, featuring plenty of hiding spots, points of contention, and places to explore and become familiar with; how many bots (yes, hallelujah! Bots are here as should be mandatory for any first-person shooter) are in the match, what their personalities are (you can make bots go after the player that last killed them, have a bot only use their fists, have a bot that doesn't mind blowing himself up to get a kill, and so on), what difficulty they are set at, and so much more; set up teams; set player handicaps; set the music for the match (or just have what is essentially a mixtape for the match play); and so many other options that cannot fit into just one paragraph. The Combat Simulator's range of options is absolutely immense and might be a bit intimidating at first, and I'd argue that the multiplayer's myriad options have yet to be matched by most first-person shooters since.

Yes, even some GoldenEye relics have returned
for Perfect Dark's multiplayer madness.

Along with matches with other players in the Combat Simulator there are dozens of challenges for up to four players to take on. These put you into different scenarios that pit you against a team of bots with certain victory conditions. Some require a simple kill limit, while others put all players into slow motion, have one hit kills, or utilize one of the multiplayer's many modes, like Capture the Case (a version of Capture the Flag), Hold the Briefcase (the goal is to find and hold onto the briefcase to earn points over time), and Pop A Cap (essentially a mode where you must target and eliminate the person who is designated as the "cap"). Completing challenges unlocks new costumes, new weapons, and in the Nintendo 64 version, new arenas, of which there are over a dozen easily.

Perfect Dark is one of the Nintendo 64's best looking games, and it's because of the expansion pack that so much content is available. For those without the necessary peripheral inside their Nintendo 64, most of the game is locked away, so it's really important to acquire that accessory. Meanwhile, the Nintendo 64 version can suffer some tremendous slowdown at times, putting the game in single digit frame-rates at times. The Xbox Live Arcade version is in full HD, offering little in the way of slowdown. Its controls take some getting used to (it is particularly hard to move at maximum speed with the default controls), but overall it is the better version. Both versions utilize the same extraordinary soundtrack that switches between regular and action-packed versions of themes when the action gets intense.

Not exactly dressed for this sort of thing, is she?

It is for all of these reasons why I still love Perfect Dark and find it to be my favorite first-person shooter of all time. Some things have been done better by future FPS games, but at the same token, a lot of things still haven't been beaten that Perfect Dark mastered. If you're looking for a content-heavy first-person shooter with an engaging single player campaign full of different ways to go about fulfilling objectives and completing missions, a robust multiplayer mode that is bursting with options, and a presentation that is top-notch, Perfect Dark is the game that is most on the mark in those categories.

[SPC Says: A]