N64 Magazine Issue 56

Introduction

The last few issues had been building up to this, the reveal of the Gamecube at E3, and this issue definitely didn’t disappoint, with 20 pages detailing all the new games. Of course E3 was the first time anyone had seen any of the GameCube games being played, rather than the tech demos of Spaceworld, so there was plenty on offer. Nintendo had held back on the next Mario and Zelda games until later in the year, but instead showcased Luigi’s Mansion and Super Smash Bros Melee as their big games. Rare also had lots of new games to show off, with a playable Starfox Adventures (a revamp of Dinosaur Planet) and Kameo, as well as a proof of concept for Donkey Kong Racing - such a shame we never got anything after Star Fox before Microsoft bought them out. There were plenty of other games on offer, showcasing the support that the Gamecube was going to get from many of the popular publishers, almost the complete opposite to the N64.

Elsewhere it was also time for the UK release of the Game Boy Advance. They tore down the handheld, looking at all the inner workings of the pocket beast, as well as new reviews of all the launch games. As last month the same four games got five stars, although they had more information on each of the games. Pokemon Puzzle Challenge (a cut down version of Puzzle League) also scored five stars on the Game Boy Color. There were also previews of several GBA games from E3, including the first look at Sonic Advance and Lady Sia.

There was only one UK N64 review in this issue, and it was a re-review of Excitebike due to several delays in the publishing; Alan gave it a respectable 90%, praising the visuals and the general quality of the game. In Japan Animal Crossing got a release, and although it was hard to understand, Geraint scored it at 80%, praising the uniqueness on offer. Dr Mario 64 was also reviewed from the USA, although the less said about that the better. With all the E3 coverage, there wasn’t anything other than the usuals at the back of the mag.

Unfortunately this issue marked the end of Andrea’s time at the magazine, meaning the retirement of her big stick. Mark was due to take over from issue 57, and the start of the new Gamecube oriented era of the magazine.