Neon Genesis Evangelion 64 (Nintendo 64)
Reviewed by: Seifer
Reviewed on: 9-Dec-2004
- Summary
- This is how an anime game should look.
- Ratings
- Overall: A-
- Gameplay: B-
- Graphics: A
- Learning Curve: A-
- Replay Value: B
- Sound: A
- Pros
- The graphics are great
- Not hard to play
- Follows the anime series
- Has pretty good voice acting
- Cons
- Very limited movement
- It's in Japanese
- Links
- Images
Description
Neon Genesis Evangelion 64 is a great game for fans of anime and fans of robot simulations. It follows the storyline of the anime series with the Earth being attacked by the beings called "Angels" and the private organization that builds up a team of robot pilots composed of teenagers. The game looks just like the anime series (or close enough to it for being on the N64).
The game has voice acting and anime clips from the series. The graphics look great. I was shocked that the robot looks just like it did on the show. The graphics are 3D cell shaded, which really makes the game come to life. The anime video clips that are present are pretty good also. After, or sometimes before a mission, the game will either show a clip of what's going on or, if you used a strong weapon like a high powered cannon or something, they will show the effects of the blast, which looks extremely good for a N64 game.
There are two modes to the game. First, you have story mode, which will make you feel like you are actually a part of the anime (and yes, that is a good thing). The furthest that I've made it in story mode is up to mission 4. The game has a pretty good learning curve, but the difficulty, even if it's on easy, is kind of hard on players. First, in story mode you might see a problem, which may be an "Angel" that has invaded the city or one that is approaching the city. Then you will prepare your robot for battle (with anime clips of course
). Then you get to see a pretty cool launch of the robot that you will be controlling. After that, you will begin your battle. The battle or mission could be anything from aiming a high powered rifle at the enemy to chasing down an "Angel" through the desert. Like I said before, the developers didn't hold back when they tried to recreate the feel of the anime series throughout the game.
The second mode is simulation mode. In simulation mode, you try to fight you way though the "Angels" just as you would if it were a real mission in story mode. It's kind of like preparing you for future fights or teaching you how to get a firm feeling of the controls. But I will slightly recommend that you try simulation mode before you try to do a mission.
Now on to the game's battle system. There aren't a lot of moves that you have to execute against the enemy, unless it's a part of the mission. You basically have a punch move and a throw move. You also have a block move, but against certain enemies, it is useless. During certain missions, you get extra things like guns, knives, and such, but even then you may still end up getting beaten by your enemy. In battle, you have your life gauge (in the upper left), your opponent's life gauge (in the upper right), and a picture of your face in the bottom center of the screen. When you get hit hard or thrown, your portrait will show your character's reaction to what just happened. You also have other characters from the anime popping up across the screen shouting at you.They can sometimes help you out if the right person comes onto the screen and says the right thing, but other than that, they can get pretty annoying. Some missions will have you button mashing at the beginning of them unless you can understand Japanese, but the game isn't at all hard to pick up on. The controls are simple at best, and there's not a lot to learn about the buttons unless you get a mission where the controls of the robot change from fighting to targeting or something.
Overall, the game is a great example of how anime games should be presented and brought forth. I hope fans can find or get a hold of this game some way as it is only available in Japan. It's a great anime game.
The game has voice acting and anime clips from the series. The graphics look great. I was shocked that the robot looks just like it did on the show. The graphics are 3D cell shaded, which really makes the game come to life. The anime video clips that are present are pretty good also. After, or sometimes before a mission, the game will either show a clip of what's going on or, if you used a strong weapon like a high powered cannon or something, they will show the effects of the blast, which looks extremely good for a N64 game.
There are two modes to the game. First, you have story mode, which will make you feel like you are actually a part of the anime (and yes, that is a good thing). The furthest that I've made it in story mode is up to mission 4. The game has a pretty good learning curve, but the difficulty, even if it's on easy, is kind of hard on players. First, in story mode you might see a problem, which may be an "Angel" that has invaded the city or one that is approaching the city. Then you will prepare your robot for battle (with anime clips of course
). Then you get to see a pretty cool launch of the robot that you will be controlling. After that, you will begin your battle. The battle or mission could be anything from aiming a high powered rifle at the enemy to chasing down an "Angel" through the desert. Like I said before, the developers didn't hold back when they tried to recreate the feel of the anime series throughout the game.The second mode is simulation mode. In simulation mode, you try to fight you way though the "Angels" just as you would if it were a real mission in story mode. It's kind of like preparing you for future fights or teaching you how to get a firm feeling of the controls. But I will slightly recommend that you try simulation mode before you try to do a mission.
Now on to the game's battle system. There aren't a lot of moves that you have to execute against the enemy, unless it's a part of the mission. You basically have a punch move and a throw move. You also have a block move, but against certain enemies, it is useless. During certain missions, you get extra things like guns, knives, and such, but even then you may still end up getting beaten by your enemy. In battle, you have your life gauge (in the upper left), your opponent's life gauge (in the upper right), and a picture of your face in the bottom center of the screen. When you get hit hard or thrown, your portrait will show your character's reaction to what just happened. You also have other characters from the anime popping up across the screen shouting at you.They can sometimes help you out if the right person comes onto the screen and says the right thing, but other than that, they can get pretty annoying. Some missions will have you button mashing at the beginning of them unless you can understand Japanese, but the game isn't at all hard to pick up on. The controls are simple at best, and there's not a lot to learn about the buttons unless you get a mission where the controls of the robot change from fighting to targeting or something.
Overall, the game is a great example of how anime games should be presented and brought forth. I hope fans can find or get a hold of this game some way as it is only available in Japan. It's a great anime game.