Nagano Winter Olympics '98
Reviewed by Stephen
Konami transform its popular Track and field series into a winter
wonderland of snow-filled fun and cool multiplayer action with
Nagano Winter Olympics '98. The game's not without its flaws , but if
you rather play the Olympics than watch them on TV, then Nagano should
satisfy all you want to be athletes suffering from commercial-induced
gold fever.
Graphics 4.0 out of 5.0
Nagano's graphics race by faster speeds than the Playstation version's
while the games realistic moving characters fly to glory in ski jumping
and crash into place in the bobsled. some noticeable breakable and
draw-in problems exist, but they're not as bad as the Playstation.
Music and Sound 3.5 out of 5.0
The audio is a mixed bag of slush and hush. Skiers slice down slopes to
the realistic sounds of wind and crushed snow, but the sparse announcer
and mediocre music fail to capture the Olympic spirit.
Game Challenge 4.0 out of 5.0
Nagano storms the N64 with Olympics and Championship modes and 12
challenging events from downhill skiing to curling. The game tracks all
the medals you've won, your best times and performances, and even how
you rank against your friend in each event.
Game Play-Fun 3.0 out of 5.0
While those features are cool, it's what's missing from the Nagano's fun.
Both a practice mode and a variable skill setting were carelessly left out.
So if you stink at certain events, you not only can't practice them, but you
can't even make your computer opponents any easier to beat. And if you're
too good at Nagano, your only competition comes from the fun multiplayer games.
Controlling 4.0 out of 5.0
Controlling your athlete in certain events like speed skating and the giant
slalom takes more skills than the constant button bashing of Track and
Field, some events like the snowboard half pipe are just too passive. All
you do is strike a series of button combos, then watch as your snowboarder
a tick. Boo.
Overall 6 out of 10
If you're trying to choose between the Playstation and N64 versions,
Nagano for the N64 is definitely the better buy. It's a fun multiplayer
game that will have you and your friends laughing about who choked
and who won the gold long after the '98 Olympics are over.