Seeing so much effort put into every aspect is refreshing and it shows a level of care that is rarely seen with remakes. The voice work was redone a bit as well and sounds cleaner with higher-quality samples being used alongside some button prompt changes. In going through the game again, it’s clear that a lot of care was put into the remake - and with this modern era of remasters and remakes becoming a bit of a blur, having something that completely rebuilds things from the ground up still stands out in 2019. With so much time passing between then and now, however, it’s interesting to take a look back and see if those changes cripple the experience or merely hobble it. It was a weird move at the time and one that led to the Xbox version not receiving nearly as much critical acclaim. This kept the violence intact, but reduced the swearing – which also hurt some of the game’s musical numbers. Despite the Xbox being the “mature” system of its day alongside the PS2, Microsoft released a censored version of the N64 classic. The original release was set to be Live and Uncut before the name change and that led to quite a bit of controversy. This led to a desire for a remake of the game on the Xbox when Microsoft bought Rare in 2002 and that finally got a release in 2005. It was a cutting edge game on the N64, but its visuals didn’t age well into even the next generation. This mature take on platforming featured a ton of bloodshed and swearing that wasn’t normally seen on Nintendo consoles and the infusion of Rare’s signature British humor helped it stand out even more. Enter Conker’s Bad Fur Day, a revamped version of what was originally going to be a kid-friendly 3D romp. They created a lot of light-hearted fare and infused it with comedy, but hadn’t really done anything bold on the platform. Rare itself found a new golden age with the system and found itself at a crossroads towards the end of the platform’s life. From the system’s launch with Super Mario 64 to the collectathon nature of Banjo-Kazooie and Banjo-Tooie, every major base was covered. The N64 was a haven for all kinds of 3D platforming action.

You’ll see both good and bad souls unearthed every month as we search through the more… forgotten…parts of history. Inside, we’ll be digging up games that have long been without a pulse. Watch your step, for you’ve just entered the Graveyard.

Conkers bad fur day live and reloaded