Robotron 64
{{Short description|1998 video game}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=April 2019}}
{{Infobox VG| title = Robotron 64
| image = Robotron64.jpg
| developer = Player 1
| publisher = {{vgrelease|NA|Crave Entertainment|EU|GT Interactive}}
| designer =
| engine =
| released = {{vgrelease|NA|January 5, 1998{{cite web |author=IGN staff |date=January 5, 1998 |url=https://www.ign.com/articles/1998/01/06/robotron-64-ships-to-retailers |title=Robotron 64 Ships to Retailers |website=IGN |publisher=Ziff Davis |accessdate=December 17, 2020 |archive-date=November 17, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201117073244/https://www.ign.com/articles/1998/01/06/robotron-64-ships-to-retailers |url-status=live }}|EU|June 1998}}
| genre = Multidirectional shooter
| modes = Single-player
| platforms = Nintendo 64
}}
Robotron 64 is a 1998 multidirectional shooter for the Nintendo 64. It is a port of Robotron X, which itself is an updated version of the 1982 dual-stick shooter Robotron: 2084. The game was originally scheduled to be released by Midway Games in the summer of 1997,{{cite web |author=IGN staff |date=June 21, 1997 |url=https://www.ign.com/articles/1997/06/22/e3-robotron-64-update |title=E3: Robotron 64 Update |website=IGN |publisher=Ziff Davis |accessdate=December 17, 2020 |archive-date=June 27, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140627100912/http://www.ign.com/articles/1997/06/22/e3-robotron-64-update |url-status=live }} but the game was put on hiatus before it would see a new publisher and a release date of January 5, 1998.{{cite web |author=IGN staff |date=August 26, 1997 |url=https://www.ign.com/articles/1997/08/27/robotron-64-dead-in-the-water |title=Robotron 64 'Dead in the Water' |website=IGN |publisher=Ziff Davis |accessdate=December 17, 2020}}
Plot
The player is a mutant scientist trapped in another dimension trying to save the last human family. His mutant powers allow him to defeat the evil robots that are trying to kill all of humanity.
Gameplay
Robotron 64 uses the dual-stick control scheme of the original Robotron. The player has the option to use a single controller using the analog stick for movement and the C-buttons for firing, or use two controllers to allow use of both analog sticks for movement and shooting.
The soundtrack consists of electronica and techno music.
Reception
{{Video game reviews
|MC = 72/100{{cite web |url=https://www.metacritic.com/game/robotron-x/critic-reviews/?platform=nintendo-64 |title=Robotron 64 for Nintendo 64 Reviews |website=Metacritic |publisher=CBS Interactive |accessdate=December 17, 2020}}
|EGM = 7.75/10{{cite magazine |last1=Ricciardi |first1=John |last2=Hsu |first2=Dan |last3=Kujawa |first3=Kraig |author4=Sushi-X |title=Review Crew: Robotron 64 |magazine=Electronic Gaming Monthly |issue=103 |publisher=Ziff Davis|date=February 1998 |page=106}}
|GI = 5.5/10{{cite magazine |title=Robotron 64 |magazine=Game Informer |publisher=FuncoLand |issue=58 |date=February 1998}}
|GSpot = 5.9/10{{cite web |last=Gerstmann |first=Jeff |authorlink=Jeff Gerstmann |date=March 25, 1998 |url=https://www.gamespot.com/reviews/robotron-64-review/1900-2545114/ |title=Robotron 64 Review [date mislabeled as "April 28, 2000"] |website=GameSpot |publisher=CBS Interactive |accessdate=October 11, 2020 |archive-date=August 3, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210803091038/https://www.gamespot.com/reviews/robotron-64-review/1900-2545114/ |url-status=live }}
|Hyper = 65%{{cite magazine |last=Toose |first=Dan |url=http://www.nintendo64ever.com/scans/mags/Scan-Magazine-687-79.jpg |title=Robotron X [sic] |magazine=Hyper |publisher=Next Media Pty Ltd |issue=57 |date=July 1998 |page=79 |accessdate=December 17, 2020 |archive-date=September 17, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230917013346/https://www.nintendo64ever.com/scans/mags/Scan-Magazine-687-79.jpg |url-status=live }}
|N64 = 75%{{cite magazine |last=Nash |first=Jonathan |url=http://www.nintendo64ever.com/scans/mags/Scan-Magazine-483-65.jpg |title=Robotron 64 (Import) |magazine=N64 Magazine |publisher=Future Publishing |issue=12 |date=February 1998 |page=65 |accessdate=December 17, 2020}}
|NGen = {{Rating|3|5}}{{cite magazine |url=https://archive.org/details/NEXT_Generation_39/page/n111/mode/2up |title=Robotron 64 |magazine=Next Generation |publisher=Imagine Media |issue=39 |date=March 1998 |page=108 |accessdate=December 17, 2020}}
|NP = 2.275/5{{cite magazine |url=http://www.nintendo64ever.com/scans/mags/Scan-Magazine-441-95.jpg |title=Robotron 64 |magazine=Nintendo Power |publisher=Nintendo of America |volume=99 |date=August 1997 |page=95 |accessdate=December 17, 2020 |archive-date=November 27, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231127012640/https://www.nintendo64ever.com/scans/mags/Scan-Magazine-441-95.jpg |url-status=live }}
}}
Reviews for Robotron 64 were mostly positive, though many critics questioned whether the game ultimately offered anything over the original Robotron 2084. Dan Hsu proclaimed in Electronic Gaming Monthly, "Finally, a good update of Robotron! This version fixes all of the problems that plagued the PS version. R64 is fast, frantic and sure as hell hard to put down." Nintendo Power likewise described it as "just as fast and wild" as Robotron 2084, while having upgraded graphics. Next Generation was more measured in its praise: "Add to that new bosses and power-ups, hundreds of levels, and a decent non-stop techno soundtrack, and this tiny 4MB cart stands as proof that size isn't everything – it's what you do with it that counts. It still may not improve on the original, but it's much better than expected." On the negative end of the spectrum, Hsu's co-reviewer Sushi-X criticized the low difficulty and the lack of the full-screen overhead view of Robotron 2084 and summed up Robotron 64 as "one last attempt at reviving a game that seems better left to fond memories." Jeff Gerstmann, reviewing the game for GameSpot, also felt it was too easy and concluded it "simply isn't up to snuff. You'd be better off playing the original Robotron 2084." The game holds 72/100 on the review aggregation website Metacritic based on six reviews.
GamePro disagreed about the game being easy, arguing that it only appears easy because the first 30 levels allow the player to breeze through while accumulating a number of surplus extra lives, and that the remaining 170 levels, which comprise the bulk of the game, are a challenge to master.{{cite magazine|author=Bro' Buzz |title=Nintendo 64 ProReview: Robotron 64|magazine=GamePro|issue=114|publisher=IDG|date=March 1998|page=88}} While noting the music is a little repetitive, critics overwhelmingly praised it for its appropriately frenzied pace and mood. Gerstmann disagreed, saying the music is hampered by the storage limitations of the cartridge medium. The vast majority of critics found the graphics to be functional but wholly unimpressive, though there was a dissenting voice on this point as well, with GamePro applauding how well the character graphics and animation stand out among the game's chaotic action.
Other commonly praised elements of the game included the huge number of stages and the way the camera views provide a much better view of the action than the PlayStation's Robotron X. However, the most widely acclaimed feature of the game was the ability to use two controllers at once, which critics said evokes memories of the original Robotron 2084 arcade machine's dual joysticks while giving the control an impressive level of analog depth. Matt Casamassina of IGN, for example, commented that "It sounds odd, but it is absolutely ingenious and replicates the same double-joystick control of the original arcade machine. It allows for so much movement possibility that addiction is inevitable."
References
{{reflist}}
External links
- {{moby game|id=/n64/robotron-64}}
{{Robotron: 2084}}
Category:Crave Entertainment games
Category:Nintendo 64-only games