Conker's Bad Fur Day excels in every way. It's an enjoyable, refreshing break from the cutesy platformers of the day.
After having a few too many beers with his friends, Conker the squirrel decides to call it a day and head home. On the way, Conker gets lost and passes out. The squirrel wakes up with a hangover, no idea how to get back home, and a fairy-panther-king after him. This is the setup for the strange events to follow, such as a giant turd for a boss, a war, a gladiator fight, the slaughter of wasp-thieves, exploding mice, and much much more. The spoofs in this game are right on, and their are plenty of them. Hilarious spoofs of Jaws, Saving Private Ryan, Aliens, The Matrix, The Godfather, and Gladiator will appear throughout the game.
The gameplay is nearly flawless. There are a couple of different actions you can do, such as the helicoptery-tail-spinny-thingy (yes, that's it's real name) and the backflip, but the real innovation in Conker is the "context-sensitive" buttons. You walk over a big circle in the ground that reads "B" and a light bulb appears over your head. Press the B button and you will get what you need at that particular point in the game (explosives, alcohol, slingshot, etc.). Everything about these buttons is scripted, so don't think that you can go through the game with one. They are placed right where they need to be, so it eliminates the "find the item that you need to get through/over that obstacle!" routine we all grow tired of.
Puzzles, platforming, and combat are all handled brilliantly. There is alot of variety in the different tasks you do and the various puzzles you solve. You never feel as if you're not getting anywhere, or that what you're doing is pointless. The multiplayer modes are also a blast. If you ever grow tired of the single-player adventure, you and your friends can switch to the many different multiplayer modes.
The technology is very good for a game on the N64. Facial animations and expressions to accommodate the voice acting in the cutscenes are a treat. The environments, characters, and items all look fantastic. The ambiance to each area is great. Whether you like gunshots in the distance, the moan of zombies (that's right, zombies!), or the growl of a dinosaur (dinosaurs!), you won't be disappointed with the sound effects.
Even with the amazing technology, gameplay, and story,the one thing that makes this title stand out is the fact that it is FUN. There is an Xbox port called Conker: Live and Reloaded, which is good, but if you have an N64, go with the original.