N64 Magazine Issue 5

Introduction

The August issue promised plenty of brand new games, as the team finally reported back on an impressive showing from that years E3 games show in Los Angeles. These was the first look at important games like Banjo and Goldeneye, as well as more information on F-Zero and Extreme-G. There were also previews of some games a long way off like Hybrid Heaven (released in late 1999) and Conker’s Quest (released nearly four years later in 2001) - however the games in this issue showed that there were plenty of reasons to be excited about the N64’s immediate future.

As expected, the news this month focussed on E3 and the plethora of new games announced. There was also the unfortunate news that Starfox’s UK release was delayed until October, as well as a manufacturing issue with some Mario Kart 64 cartridges. Jason Moore also reported on several obscure retro things in his Retroworld column. Max Everingham also gave us the next chapter of his Tokyo diaries, this time looking at how Tamagotchis were about to be released on the Game Boy in Japan.

UK reviews were a bit thin on the ground on this issue, with Blast Corps the only UK release - Jon Smith scoring it at 88% - with praise for the way it utilised the N64, although it dropped points for it’s lifespan, as it was extremely quick to run through. Import reviews had a bit more to offer, with racing game Multi Racing Championship (MRC) scoring 81%, shooter Hexen scoring 69%, platformer Go Go!! Troublemakers scored 90% and beat-em-up Dark Rift scored 72%, showing that there was plenty of variety coming to the N64, albeit not quite ready for UK release just yet. James also had a look at the Japanese release of Shadows of the Empire, scoring that at 75%.

There wasn’t much in terms of guides in this issue, however Tim showcased his E3 diary, which gave a good idea of what his week was like in Atlanta. This issue also kicked off its Mario Kart 64 championship, with the aim to track down the best Mario Kart player in the UK, this was alongside looking at the multiplayer modes of the game. There was also the final part of the Mario 64 guide, covering how to get all the coins in the last 5 courses of the game.

At the back of the mag, they concluded their overview of the developers currently working on games for the N64, this time covering Europe, including big hitters like Rare, Ubisoft and Acclaim.