Game Review: Rare Replay

30 games for $30....Awesome deal but well they all can't be winners

   Re-releases and compilations have become all the rage lately and not to be outdone English developer Rare have jumped in with both feet with a collection of games spanning their entire history. The gimmick here is you get 30 games for $30 and sure enough thats exactly what you get, now if only the quality was consistent.

   So lets start with the good, if you're one prone to nostalgia then your going to be in your glory here. Games like "Perfect Dark", "Battletoads" and the "RC Pro-Am 1 & 2" immediately stoke that feeling. Just seeing these games in action is sure to take you back to your younger days. The "Pro-Am" series in particular still holds up as a solid racing game with a surprisingly well-done upgrade system. "Blast Corps" is still ridiculously fun to play, i mean a game where the point is destroying buildings with various different vehicles? Its just begging for an HD remake/reboot and the "Viva Pinata" games are the same sit on your couch and zone out fun that they've always been.

Just roll one up and turn your brain off

   Not only do these games get those nostalgia flames burning but some of the games are still as fun as you remember them and still hold up quite well today. The previously mentioned "Blast Corps" and "RC Pro-Am" still bring the fun and other games like "Cobra Triangle", "Grabbed by Ghoulies" and "Kameo" are just begging for you to jump back in, especially if you missed them years ago.

Still fun 30 years later......incredible

   Its very interesting to watch the progression of not only the graphics but also the gameplay. This is a collection that spans everything from "Jetpac" and its simple two-button and one screen design all the way up to "Banjo-Kazooie". Its a testament to how far game design has come and also Rare's ability to not only put out solid games but stay profitable long enough to have 30 years worth of quite varied material. This isn't a company that stuck to just one genre and you'll find platformers, RPG's and first person shooters all in here. Like side-scrolling beat 'em ups or fighting games? Got you covered there as well.

   On top of the wide variety of games they are also presented in an excellent old time way with tons of extra content like video histories and interviews with developers. The aesthetic of curtains and old music while selecting games is nice and puts you in the mood to just have fun. Plus all the extras will have you playing along to just unlock everything. There's also the matter of the 4000 gamerpoints for Xbox that are available for relatively minimal effort. You get 15 gamerpoints just for playing a game for the first time and especially on the older games you can grind your way to a massive point pick up relatively easily. Even notoriously hard/cheap games like "Battletoads" can be beaten now thanks to a sort of rewind button built into some of the games. It takes away from some of the hair pulling that would result from some of the more difficult games.

Looking at you pain in the ass hoverbike level

   All that good stuff though means we do have to discuss the bad. There are some GLARING omissions in this collection. Neither "Goldeneye" or "Donkey Kong Country" are on the disc for various licensing reasons and considering the cache those games hold in gaming history their absence is noted. Also a few of the games have either aged horribly or weren't that good in the first place. If you can play "Atic Atac" or "SabreWulf" more the once you're a better man then me. Also "Killer Instict Gold" actually hurt any good feelings i had for those old games. Its by no means unplayable but if you remember it being a good fighting game you're in for a rude awakening.

Not having either of these is SUPER notable as a collection

   These issues shouldn't be taken as you shouldn't pick this game up. If you're a fan of Rare then this is a must have. I mean the sheer volume of gameplay available here makes this a steal at $30. Despite it being a bit uneven at times in terms of quality overall there's more then enough content and fun to be had to recommend that you give this one a chance. 

Overall Score: 7/10