GamesRelay

Name: Perfect Dark

Ten years, that's how long it has been since Perfect Dark released on the Nintendo 64, claimed to be the spiritual successor to Goldeneye 007 it had an intriguing sci-fi storyline and was the staple of success with its multiplayer, only hampered by its occasional frame-rate problems. So have these 10 long years been kind to the game? Has Rare really done wonders in re-creating the classic shooter and bringing it into the HD era?

Back when Perfect Dark was released it had some of the most impressive visuals currently in a video game, given the N64's capabilities as a console at the time. Bringing a game which by today's standards of widescreen HD sets looks, and let's be honest, terrible, is no easy feat, and so Rare have had quite a job converting a 10 year old hit into something which looks a hell of a lot better than what it used to be. First things first, and the most noticeable improvement, is the resolution and textures, now the original game released in a time when TV sets were mostly square, in the old 4:3 standard, and thus the resolution was extremely low, usually far below the old 640x480, these days the HD standard is 1920x1080 for full 1080p HD and as you can see from the numbers, there's quite an improvement. The whole world has been given a face lift but still has the same classic look from the original. Thankfully the frame rate has also improved, no longer does it drop when the action gets to heavy, it all runs nice and smooth, even during multiplayer.

The campaign and levels haven't aged so well which isn't surprising given the age, for those that never played its original incarnation it can make things difficult and confusing as you wonder where you need to go and what you need to do. Most of the levels are a maze of dead ends, locked, or abandoned rooms, and it certainly doesn't help that the majority of doors and places looks mostly the same, usually it's down to pure luck that you happen across the location you were looking for. Each of the levels throughout the campaign have numerous objectives which have to be completed to progress and if you make a mistake you'll usually find the mission ends which can become very frustrating, particularly when it wasn't your fault. Once you've played for a while the games level design and the objectives start to make sense and you'll remember where you need to go and what needs to be done making the game much more enjoyable. This understanding becomes particularly helpful if you fancy your chances at the speed runs, each level has an unlock which you receive if you complete the level and its objectives under a certain time so knowing where to go will make a huge difference, especially if you're trying to get a good score for the games online leaderboards.

Perfect Dark really made its name from its multiplayer and not much has really changed, the multiplayer aspect still has more options than nearly all current games this generation. There's six game modes set across 16 maps and 43 weapons to deal death with. Then you have the plethora of different personalities the bots can take on if you don't want to play against up to eleven other real players online. The N64 never had internet capabilities 10 years back and so Perfect Dark was strictly a local multiplayer split-screen experience and the game was made around this, it's included in this remake and it's still a lot of fun, but it doesn't really compare to getting online with a group of friends and blasting away at each other. Competitive multiplayer isn't the only experience you'll have however, co-op is also included. There are two forms in Perfect Dark; Counter-Op which lets a second player take control of the enemy AI as you try to stop your friends attempt at completing various missions, and Challenge mode which lets four players pit themselves against the computer on different levels.

The only major issue with the game and something which age hasn't done any favours is the controls. The N64 controller only ever had one analogue stick and the Xbox 360 controller has two, so they've had to be adapted to accommodate, yet due to the limitations of the games engine, aiming has never been a strong point. It's difficult to aim up a perfect shot, usually you have to let rip and hope for the best, or die trying, this becomes most apparent when using a sniper rifle. Other than the aiming issue however, it's a joy to play, everything is fast paced, there's no walking around, you can run and attack with speed, pulling off some great battles. The controls take a little getting used to but something which any shooter fan should be able to pick up fairly easily after a few games.

The Xbox Live remake of Perfect Dark is pretty much the dream of every fan that played it all those years ago. It is packed with more content than you can shake a stick at and leaves you wondering why modern day games don't come with a similar amount of options. The game still looks old however, even after its face lift, but you should never judge a game by its graphics and if you're looking for a fast paced action shooter with online multiplayer, then look no further because Perfect Dark is the game for you.