Excitebike 64

Excitebike 64[lower-alpha 1] is a video game published by Nintendo and developed by Left Field Productions. It was released for the Nintendo 64 on April 30, 2000 in North America, June 23 in Japan, and June 8, 2001, in Europe. It is the second installment in the Excite series, acting as a sequel to Excitebike on the NES, and is the first 3D game in the series. Many real-life dirt bike gear brands are extensively featured throughout the game, such as Bell Helmets, Alpinestars and No Fear.

Excitebike 64
Developer(s)Left Field Productions
Publisher(s)Nintendo
Composer(s)Matt Furniss
Chris Lamb
SeriesExcite
Platform(s)Nintendo 64, iQue Player
ReleaseNintendo 64
  • NA: April 30, 2000
  • JP: June 23, 2000
  • EU: June 8, 2001
iQue Player
Genre(s)Racing
Mode(s)Single-player, Multiplayer

The game received positive reviews from critics and was later re-released for Wii U via the Virtual Console in 2016. A third game in the series, Excite Truck, was released in 2006 for the Wii.

Gameplay
Top: Canyon Chasm track with stunt, Excite 3D, Editor original Excitebike
Bottom: Soccer, Desert Track, Track Editor

Players can choose from one of six riders, each with their own pre-set handling attributes. Players control the bike by using either the control stick or D-pad. They can use the gamepad to accelerate, brake, slide and use turbo boost. As in the original, holding down gives the player more air on jumps, while holding up aims the front wheel forward to enable landing on slopes. The player can also tilt the bike to the side while in the air, to adjust the angle at which they hit the turns, and can sideswipe their opponents.[1] Besides the tracks main course many of the levels have hidden shortcuts, that require the player to slow down and change direction, or use a speed boost for jumping over chasms, from hill to hill, over other vehicles and buildings, choosing to follow the original game in its "extreme" jumps and physics.

Features

The main game features a 20-track season mode. Completing races unlocks more tracks and features. There is a tutorial that teaches players how to play through the 17 different tracks. There are a variety of exhibitions and time trial modes that lets players do more activities other than the main game. A major feature is the track editor, where players can create their own fully functional track and save it into the game. The announcer, Limua, shouts out the tricks and crashes throughout the race. Also featured is an emulated version of the original Exitebike and a 3D remake of it with the same obstacles called Excite 3D. There are also several other mini games such as a Stunt Course, Hill Climb, a Soccer game with a giant human sized soccer ball, and an "infinite, randomly generated" Desert Track where the player needs to put out ten campfires by driving over them, which Nintendo Power called "one of the coolest concepts ever".[2] As bonus features to the game, cheat modes were introduced, requiring the player to press buttons in a certain order to unlock a hidden "Cheats Menu". From there they could enter passwords that unlocked additional features, such as Invisible riders, Big heads, Debug mode, Midnight mode and even unlocking a picture of the programmers in the game's credits.[3]

Development

While in development some of the main features they concentrated on were the game's sense of speed, the jumps and the ability to perform tricks, similar to the original game, as well as taking inspiration from the earlier released Wave Race 64.[4] To recreate the riders movements and tricks the developers used a technique called 'inverse kinematics' to create a life like feel.[4] While other parts of the tracks were littered with bumps, log bridges and streams to run through. Using the N64's Rumble Pak allowed the player to feel these game experiences, as well as such things as making a hard landing.[4] Besides the standard tracks, several mini games were also added as unlockable content. The Desert Track was fractally generated for an endless desert, but despite the random building of its dunes, it also keeps the current configuration in the game's memory, allowing the player to return to the same spot that they once left.[4] The game was revealed by Nintendo to the public at the pre-E3 conference on May 12, 1999.[5] The game was shown playable the next day.

Reception

The game received "generally favorable reviews", just two points shy of "universal acclaim", according to the review aggregation website Metacritic.[6] In Japan, Famitsu gave it a score of 29 out of 40.[11]

N64 Magazine mentioned the low quality of other similar games released around the same time and said, "After the lackluster efforts of Jeremy McGrath and Supercross 2000, we now have an intelligent racer."[1] IGN commended the game for its "fantastic 3D engine, delightfully realistic physics, intuitive control, brilliantly detailed graphics, ingenious subtleties and tons of options."[19] GameFan stated, "In addition to the superb animation, the game sounds awesome... Its dirt bikes actually sound like the real thing--none of that high-pitched tin squeal you'll find in other sub-par racers." Michael Wolf of Next Generation stated that, "With all the secrets and special tracks, not to mention the realistic physics that'll make you wince during crashes, this is one motocross racing game that will entertain for hours on end."[21]

While the game received high praise, certain publications voiced complaints. GameCritics stated that "The game isn't perfect — I would have liked even more tracks to race on as well as a few more racers."[23] GameSpot stated that "Some will cry about the frame rate, and some will wish the game featured real riders."[17]

Another problem the game encountered was that it was one of the last games released for the N64 in Europe, having been released there over a year later than the Japan and U.S. releases. The delay was due to Nintendo's struggle to keep up with the demand for the games Pokémon Stadium and Perfect Dark.[24] This led some to feel that it was released too late in the system's life and if it "Had appeared earlier... it would have been a bigger hit."[25]

Nonetheless, the game ultimately went on to sell approximately two million copies, according to information provided by former employees of Left Field Studios.[26]

See also

Notes
  1. Japanese: エキサイトバイク 64, Hepburn: Ekisaitobaiku Rokujūyon

References
  1. Maddrell, Alan (July 2001). "Excitebike 64". N64 Magazine. No. 56. Future plc. pp. 56–59.
  2. "Excitebike 64 Guide". Nintendo Power. Vol. 132. Nintendo of America. p. 23.
  3. "Excitebike 64 Cheats & Codes for Nintendo 64 (N64)". CheatCodes.com. Retrieved May 20, 2012.
  4. Nintendo Power, Volume 121, page 84-85, Nintendo of America Inc.
  5. IGN staff (May 12, 1999). "Excitebike 64 Tears Up E3". IGN. Ziff Davis. Retrieved January 29, 2020.
  6. "Excitebike 64 for Nintendo 64 Reviews". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved July 29, 2011.
  7. McCall, Scott. "Excitebike 64 - Review". AllGame. All Media Network. Archived from the original on November 14, 2014. Retrieved January 29, 2020.
  8. "Excitebike [64]". Consoles + (in French). No. 99. April 2000. p. 127. Retrieved January 30, 2020.
  9. Edge staff (July 2000). "Excitebike 64". Edge. No. 86. Future plc.
  10. "Excitebike 64". Electronic Gaming Monthly. Ziff Davis. 2000.
  11. "エキサイトバイク64 [NINTENDO64]". Famitsu (in Japanese). Enterbrain. Retrieved January 29, 2020.
  12. McNamara, Andy; Fitzloff, Jay; Reiner, Andrew (June 2000). "Excitebike 64 - Nintendo 64". Game Informer. No. 86. FuncoLand. Archived from the original on December 10, 2000. Retrieved January 29, 2020.
  13. Buchanan, Levi (May 2, 2000). "REVIEW for Excitebike 64". GameFan. Shinno Media. Archived from the original on June 20, 2000. Retrieved January 30, 2020.
  14. Rodriguez, Tyrone "Cerberus" (June 2000). "Excitebike 64". GameFan. Shinno Media. p. 64. Retrieved September 4, 2020.
  15. Mylonas, Eric "ECM"; Weitzner, Jason "Fury"; Ngo, George "Eggo" (June 2000). "Excitebike 64". GameFan. Vol. 8 no. 6. Shinno Media. p. 12. Retrieved September 4, 2020.
  16. The Freshman (May 2, 2000). "Excitebike 64 Review for N64 on GamePro.com". GamePro. IDG Entertainment. Archived from the original on February 12, 2005. Retrieved January 29, 2020.
  17. Provo, Frank (May 19, 2000). "Excitebike 64 Review". GameSpot. CBS Interactive. Retrieved January 29, 2020.
  18. Ellis, James (September 2000). "Excitebike 64". Hyper. No. 82. Next Media Pty Ltd. pp. 70–71.
  19. Casamassina, Matt (May 1, 2000). "Excitebike 64". IGN. Ziff Davis. Retrieved January 29, 2020.
  20. Green, Mark (July 2000). "Excitebike 64 (Import)". N64 Magazine. No. 43. Future plc. pp. 58–61.
  21. Wolf, Michael (August 2000). "Excitebike 64". Next Generation. No. 68. Imagine Media. p. 91. Retrieved July 8, 2020.
  22. "Excitebike 64". Nintendo Power. Vol. 132. Nintendo of America. May 2000. p. 123. Retrieved January 29, 2020.
  23. Weir, Dale (June 30, 2000). "Excitebike 64 – Review". GameCritics. Retrieved January 29, 2020.
  24. "Fast News: Mario Party and Exite Bike delayed until September". Nintendo Official Magazine. No. 94. July 2000. p. 91.
  25. Fox, Mat (October 20, 2006). The Video Games Guide. Pan Macmillan Ltd. p. 136. ISBN 0-7522-2625-8.
  26. Brian (November 28, 2015). "Excitebike 64 devs on the game's development – origins, Miyamoto feedback, more". Nintendo Everything. Retrieved May 24, 2016.
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