Console Review: Mischief Makers

Mischief Makers

(Nintendo) N64

Just when it seemed Nintendo had got their act together and the steady trickle of great releases for the N64 was about to become a raging torrent, they offer us the rather disappointing .

A 2D platformer, the game casts you as a robot who breaks with her programming to rescue her master from a gang of kidnappers. Her search takes her to the Planet Clancer where she becomes caught up in a battle against the forces of evil which are hell bent on conquering the planet.

The storyline is a good one and could have provided the basis for an interesting game. Unfortunately, that promise hasn't been fulfilled. With the emergence of real-time 3D platformers, of which Mario 64 is the supreme example, seems like a step backwards - it really is just a bog-standard side scroller. Such games were all well and good in the 16-bit era, but we expect more from the next generation consoles. The main sprites are too small, the landscapes limited, and the whole thing moves along very slowly. On the plus side, some of the animation is quite nice and with more than 50 levels, you won't finish it in a hurry. However, the chances are it won't sustain your interest long enough for that to be much consolation.

would have been a decent game five years ago, but it looks out of place in today's market. It does have its moments, but they're pretty thin on the ground.

On release, pounds 49.99