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Conker: Live and Reloaded Review: Should You Buy?

conker box art

Conker: Live and Reloaded Review: Should You Buy?

Conker: Live and Reloaded is a platform style video game that was exclusively released for Xbox by Rare in 2005. Conker, in case you don’t know, is not a game for young children despite the rather innocuous look of the cartoonish cast that looks like it would be at home in a Disney studio. Conker has more in common with Andrew Dice Clay than Chip and Dale or Woody.

New-and-Improved Conker: Live and Reloaded

Conker: Live and reloaded with gun
Conker: Live and reloaded with gun.

Conker is a foul-mouthed mammal that revels in his adult content to good effect. The original game, Bad Fur Day, had a lot more to offer than just the novelty of a swearing squirrel. The gameplay was fun and diverse. In fact, it practically rivals the GTA series for diversity. Live and Reloaded attempts to recapture that vibe and take the title to new heights with online play. 

Compared to the old game the new one is different. Some parts are easier, the graphics are improved, some levels and situations are missing, while some new content has been added. Overall, the gameplay seems a little bit more serious this time around. Some parts are really tough and are guaranteed to have players swearing right along with Conker.

Conker: Live and Reloaded Skillset and Puzzle Solving

Conker fighting monster
Use cool weaponry to take on enemies.

The gameplay is more difficult than it should be and it’s not due to lack of skill, players just don’t get enough information on what to do and where to go. There are times when the entire game comes to a complete stop because players are unsure of what’s going on. There is no map for guidance and the puzzles are arbitrarily presented. Half the time players won’t know if they’re involved in a puzzle or just totally lost and can’t find their way out. Dealing with weapons and skills in the multiplayer mode is too deep for most gamers. Players have to level up characters in RPG fashion. Just switching weapons can be a complex affair.

Conker, as a game, has been made much more personal. Players really have to spend some time with it to get used to the control system and all of the options, especially in the multiplayer mode. There is a single-player mode that replicates the multiplayer mode. It’s actually less stressful and more fun than playing against real people online.

Outrageous Characters and Hit or Miss Play

Conker on the phone
Conker calling in reinforcements for upcoming fight.

There are lots of crazy characters to control and interact with including a vampire bat that has to drop feces on the villagers down below. The overall tone of the game is rude. It’s funny and shocking at the same time. The combat is a real war scene complete with gruesome bloodbaths.

Online play is hit or miss. If the game is full of eight players, the action is on. It’s full tilt all the way. Things are flying all over the place. If you only have a few players, the pace slows down considerably. Using Deathmatch as a base the gameplay tends to get complicated with class systems that allow players to use specific weapons and vehicles.

It takes a lot of patience to upgrade characters. At first players will have to beg for scraps of weapons that dead enemies leave behind. The only way they’ll get ahead is to gain experience and upgrade their character so that they can use a better class of weapons and transportation vehicles.

Closing Remarks

This game is in real time and players don’t have the luxury of perusing the interface like ordering dinner at Denny’s. This system is too deep and frustrating. There’s no excuse why this shouldn’t have been simplified. Another complaint is that even with the improved weapons it takes numerous shots to kill an enemy and that includes head shots. For a patient gamer this game would be well worth the time, however, for those not so patient maybe a rental is the way to go.

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