If there were any one game that I would give to my 12-year-old self in 2001, it would be Conker’s Bad Fur Day. So it stands in 2025 as it was when it first came out… A perfect game.
So perfect that I still watch walkthroughs and cut scenes on YouTube from time to time. It was a bit of a risk for Rareware and Nintendo to make and release this game in 2001 due to all the dirty F%^&%^G language, but young or old, this cheekiness helps cement its status as one if not the best Nintendo 64 games of all time!
Conker: Crazy From the Start
If you’re a long-time Nintendo fan, you might remember Conker as one of the racers from Diddy Kong Racing on the N64 or from the family-friendly Conker’s Pocket Tales on Game Boy Color. But from the moment you start up Conker’s Bad Fur Day on your Nintendo 64, you are introduced to something truly special with Conker, the cute cartoon squirrel sawing through the N64 logo (or Microsoft Logo in newer re-releases).
This always got a buzz out of the people watching for the first time, and shows you, this isn’t your average kiddy platformer like Mario or Banjo-Kazooie.
Conker: A Cultural Time Capsule
Conker’s Bad Fur Day’s solo playing mode is essentially a parody of the 3D Platforming genre that the N64 was so famous for. A swansong to the genre, as it was one of the last games on the system. This, however, had an adult twist, paying homage to various violent movies such as Saving Private Ryan, A Clockwork Orange and other recent movies of the time, such as The Matrix and Van Helsing (which may not have had the cultural impact the rest of these films did).
You run around with Conker smashing things with his Frypan as he tries to make his drunken, hungover self back home to Berri, his super hot girlfriend.
A Cast of Memorable Moments and Characters
They just don’t make characters like these anymore.
The Great Mighty Poo
This game has some amazing set pieces and memorable moments. “I am the great might poo and I’m going to throw my shit at you” I mean this line still holds up to my more mature 36 year old self and a bloody fun part to play in the game because of the cut scenes. Conker’s Bad Fur Day feels more like a movie than a game at times, its cut scenes are that good. Another highlight in the game is the slow-motion shooting of guards, Matrix style, in the building lobby. This is perfectly executed, allowing you to slow down time and shoot at the guards all the while flying in the air. Hats off to the game designers at Rareware for this one, as you reach a state of flow in that it’s just the right level of easiness vs hard to make it thoroughly entertaining to play.
Gregg the Grim Reaper
Perhaps the biggest laugh in the game is when you first die and meet Gregg the Grim Reaper. His cranky pissed off attitude is hilarious to watch as he complains almost as if mumbling to himself but letting Conker know that he is ‘dead but not quite.’ Collect as many Squirrels’ tails as you can to gain an extra life. You can’t complain about that deal but Gregg will complain about anything he can really, especially those ‘sodding cats’ the way they ‘meow and piss everywhere’ and their ‘shits smell bloody awful.’
Conker The King
King of all the land. Did I mention he is having a Bad Fur Day? At times you will be dodging bullets full Matrix Style as you make your way into the….. well…. I don’t want to give it away, so you’re going to have to play the game itself (or just view it on YouTube). But look out for the Panther Type King – he is a bad guy! When first beginning as hungover Conker, you are first greeted by Birdy the Scarecrow, who teaches you how to play the game, and if hanging around watching all the fabulous cutscenes is not your thing, just press the L Button to skip.
For Mature Audiences Only
Conker’s Bad Fur Day is rated M for mature audiences, and despite the swear words being censored and bleeped out, it certainly earns this rating; however, it can still be enjoyed by all ages. Blood and death aren’t necessarily anything new to video games, even for Nintendo, but sexually based themes and jokes, such as seen in various parts of the game, particularly the Big Breasted Sunflower. It is not by any means pornographic, but some parents might not want their kids playing a game with scenes like this, but personally I wouldn’t have any problem with my kids playing CBFD at any age.
Okay, Wise-Guys – Multiplayer in Conker’s Bad Fur Day
Now the multiplayer in Conker Bad Fur Day is next level so so many different game modes to slice and dice your friends with a Samurai Sword, fire a Bazooka to save the day at the heist, flee the country to safety as a refugee or even run around as a Baby T-Rex eating as many players as you can. You can do 2v2 or even 3v1 modes. It feels like there is an unlimited number of ways you can play in this game in multiplayer. And if none of your friends are around to play, you can play against the computer’s AI bots however you like, which was always fun.
Listing all the multiplayer game modes from least favourite to favourite, I would say:
Race
This is just a standard Mario Kart-type racing game with only 1 map, however, you can play either ‘Race A’ or ‘Race B’, which blocks one of the paths, making it slightly different, but a lazy excuse for a second level.
Heist
Here you rob bags of money from the Federal Reserve Bank.
Beach
You can play as either Evil TEDIZ shooting from a tower or running to safety as a refugee up from the shorefront.
War and Deathmatch
These are both quite similar third-person shoot ’em ups with various ways to play. Cute squirrel soldiers running around with teddy bears feel innocent enough until someone pulls out a samurai sword or chainsaw and carves the other one up.
Raptor
This one’s lots of fun as you can play as stone-age men called “Uga Bugas” to steal the Raptor eggs and throw them into a giant frying pan, or as Raptors who can take an Uga Buga back to its babies to feed them. Each of those actions gets you 2 points. You also receive 1 point for killing members of the opposing team.
Tank
Lastly, and my favourite in CBFD would be Tank, where you move around in tanks attacking each other and trying to retrieve the Chemical Weapon with the main goal of destroying as many tanks as you can while staying alive.
Overall, Conker’s Bad Fur Day is a great game, no matter how old you are! Now time to press the L Button!
