Hands-on: Custom Robo

Otherwise known as "Sam Kennedy's favorite game," Custom Robo is a very hard game to find in this country, due to reluctance on the part of import shops to pick up import N64 software. However, if you're an N64 owner and you don't have a PlayStation or Dreamcast, you might want to take a look at the screens we've compiled.

Having scored a copy on our recent excursion to Japan, We have found that Custom Robo is as close to Virtual On as an N64 owner is likely to get. While the majority of the regular game environment is handled like an old-school super-deformed RPG (think Harvest Moon 64), the battle scenes are what make this game. Viewed from an overhead perspective, the game offers a wide assortment of attacks you can use against your opponent. Control is tight, and the action is fast.

As an N64 game, Custom Robo suffers from the usual softness in the visuals, and it lacks the visual impact of even the Armored Core series. However, the gameplay more than makes up for it. And judging by what we've played so far, we believe Nintendo should definitely bring the game to the States, especially with its lack of strong titles for 2000.