Review – Perfect Dark (XBLA)
Perfect Dark is a first-person shooter, which was originally released for the N64 in 2000. Created by Rare, it was recently ported by 4J Studios and released for XBLA as part of the House Party promotion.
Joanna Dark
I missed the Perfect Dark boat back in 2000, and it’s something I kicked myself over until I finally got my hands on Perfect Dark Zero for the Xbox 360. Sadly, that experience (as Twitter followers already know) was more than enough to put me off the franchise. So it was with more than a little reluctance that I downloaded the full version recently, when it was released on to the XBL Marketplace.
I’ll say it once, and once only, I’m really glad I did!
Set in the year 2023, Perfect Dark places the player in the shoes of Joanna Dark, a young secret agent working for the Carrington Institute. Originally tasked with the rescue of an important intelligence asset, Joanna’s mission quickly escalates as the fate of the world hangs in the balance.
Cassandra
With a variety of missions within the single player campaign, Perfect Dark will see you deploying stealth tactics at one moment, and running in with all guns blazing the next, as you tackle a number of creatively thought out objectives.
However, if you’re expecting to breeze through each level, forget it; Perfect Dark comes loaded with an old school difficulty level that will see you tearing your hair out. Most of the things that you have probably come to take for granted over the past few years are missing. Health doesn’t recharge if you duck and run for cover, and with a complete lack of health kits each hit you take counts. There is no map, nor a magic guiding line to help you find each objective, you’re on your own kids.
Daniel Carrington
While most people will be put off by this, I found it strangely refreshing. It’s something that pushed me to perfect everything, as I memorised level layouts and enemy placements. That’s not without its downside though, as some levels involved dying numerous times as I attempted to discover every nook and cranny.
As a HD remake of an old classic, Perfect Dark features fully updated visuals while still maintaining everything from the original N64 version. It’s an impressive port, and successfully takes it’s place amongst my favourite remake titles currently on the Xbox Live Arcade (which are Rez HD, Prince of Persia: Classic, and The Secret of Monkey Island: Special Edition).
Split Screen Action
The control system has been reworked to incorporate the 360′s controller, instantly making it familiar (and easy to control) for any FPS fan; however I found that the pinpoint aiming system seemed far too sensitive. Reworking the controller’s sensitivity didn’t seem to fix this problem, as I found that even the lowest setting was still far too sensitive. For the most part this isn’t an issue (you can avoid looking down the sights of your gun), however when attempting to get a head shot through a sniper rifle, it does become frustrating.
In closing, Perfect Dark for XBLA is a faithful recreation of a classic title. The reworked graphics help bring it up to date, and its old school gameplay should provide more than a challenge for newcomers and die hard fans alike. If, like me, you missed out on the original, don’t hesitate; buy Perfect Dark today!
8/10
Support Old School Gamer
You can help support Old School Gamer by purchasing Microsoft Points (you’ll need 800 for Perfect Dark) from the following sites: -
ShopTo: 2100 MS Points, 4200 MS Points.
Amazon: 2100 MS Points, 4200 MS Points.
Play.com: 2100 MS Points, 4200 MS Points.
Perfect Dark (XBLA)
Perfect Dark is a first-person shooter, which was originally released for the N64 in 2000. Created by Rare, it was recently ported by 4J Studios and released for XBLA as part of the recent House Party promotion.
Set in the year 2023, Perfect Dark places the player in the shoes of Joanna Dark, a young secret agent working for the Carrington Institute. Originally tasked with the rescue of an important intelligence asset, Joanna’s mission quickly escalates as the fate of the world hangs in the balance.
I missed the Perfect Dark boat back in 2000, it’s something I kicked myself over until I finally got my hands on Perfect Dark Zero for the 360. Sadly, that experience (as Twitter follows already know) was more than enough to put me off the franchise. So it was with more than a little reluctance that I downloaded the full version recently when it was released on the XBL Marketplace.
I’ll say it once, and once only, I’m really glad I did!
With a variety of missions within the single player campaign, Perfect Dark will see you deploying stealth tactics at one moment, and running in with all guns blazing the next, as you tackle a number of creatively thought out objectives.
However, if you’re expecting to breeze through each level, forget it; Perfect Dark comes loaded with an old school difficulty level that will see you tearing your hair out. Most of the things that you have probably come to take for granted over the past few years, are missing. Health doesn’t recharge if you run and duck for cover, and with a complete lack of health kits, each hit you take counts. There is no map, nor a magic guiding line to help you find each objective, you’re on your own kids.
While most people will be put off by this, I found it strangely refreshing. It’s something that pushed me to perfect everything, as I memorised level layouts and enemy placements. That’s not without its downside though, as some levels involved dying numerous times as I attempted to discover every nook and cranny.
As a HD remake of an old classic, Perfect Dark features fully updated visuals while still maintaining everything from the original N64 version. It’s an impressive port, and successfully takes it’s place amongst my favourite remake titles currently on the Xbox Live Arcade (Rez HD, Prince of Persia: Classic, The Secret of Monkey Island: Special Edition).
The control system has been reworked to incorporate the 360′s controller, instantly making in familiar (and easy to control) for any FPS fan, however I found that the pinpoint aiming system seemed far too sensitive. Reworking the controller’s sensitivity doesn’t seem to fix this problem, as I found that even the lowest setting was still far too sensitive. For the most part this isn’t a problem (you can avoid looking down the sights of your gun), however when attempting to get a head shot through a sniper rifle, it does become frustrating.
In closing, Perfect Dark for XBLA is a faithful recreation of a classic title. The reworked graphics help bring it up to date, and it’s old school gameplay should provide more than a challenge for new comers and die hard fans alike. If, like me, you missed out on the original, don’t hestitate; buy Perfect Dark today!
8/10
