Conker: Live & Reloaded

Conker: Live & Reloaded is a platformer released for the Xbox in June 2005. It is a remake of Conker's Bad Fur Day, and was developed by Rare and published by Microsoft Game Studios. The game's most notable addition is its new multiplayer mode, Xbox Live & Co., and its two new wars between the Squirrel High Command and the Tediz: the Old War and the Future War.

On December 14, 2006, the Xbox 360 had a backwards compatibility update, allowing Live & Reloaded to be played on that platform. However, it does suffer from several minor glitches. On April 17, 2018, the Xbox One received an update allowing Live & Reloaded to have backward compatibility with the console. It was available as a digital download or the normal disc could be inserted.

Single player
The single player portion of Conker: Live & Reloaded is a complete remake of Conker's Bad Fur Day, albeit with several small changes, such as improved graphics and enhanced sound effects.

Multiplayer
The Multiplayer mode has the same third-person perspective as the single-player game. It is accessible from the Xbox Live & Co. option of the main menu, and it consists of various game modes such as Capture the Flag or the standard Deathmatch modes. The player may also as a member of the SHC or Tediz. As well as a choice of soldier, the game has a choice of "classes", which significantly affects play style. On April 15, 2010, online support for Live & Reloaded and other original Xbox titles were discontinued.

Classes
Each class has its own special equipment, special abilities, and physical capabilities. Each class is designed for a distinct purpose, and more often than not, the class a player chooses will determine that player's fighting strategy. Each class is designed to have advantages against certain classes while being vulnerable to others. For example, the Thermophile's Sinurator inflicts extreme damage on neekers and Long Rangers, who have less health, but is somewhat useless against the Demolisher. Each class comes equipped with a primary weapon with unlimited ammunition, (although reloading of the weapon is still required), a limited stock of Grenades, and at least one special Ability. The classes also can choose from several Specialist Ordinance items, as well as access Mobile Unit terminals to ride vehicles unique to each class, which can be obtained at stations in team bases (however, an option is available to the host of a server to disable one or both features). Abilities common to all classes are the Open Hand, which is the ability to shoulder all weapons for extra running speed, and a Spray Can that can be used to apply the player's Avatar image to walls to mock human opponents. Scattered throughout the arenas are yellow Upgrade Orbs, which grant a player more equipment and abilities when obtained. A player loses his Upgrade Orb upon death, allowing for another player to obtain it.

Grunt: The most versatile class available, novice players often underestimate them because of their short stature and lack of any specialization. Grunts use a "Sturm" 21 SMG which can be set to fire in bursts, fully automatic, or single dum-dum rounds. They carry frag and stun grenades, a medigun for healing allies, and have the coveted self heal ability. When upgraded, they receive a magnova (EMP) grenade and a powerful "Hogster" grenade launcher, which can be set to a timed fire frag, impact, or triggered grenades.

Sneeker: The most tactical class, Sneekers are the fastest moving class available, but are also the weakest. They carry a sabre, limiting their attacks to mêlée range, but they can achieve combos which can behead an opponent. When using the sabre, Sneekers can offensive or defensive stance, defensive mode rendering them invulnerable to normal bullets, and allowing them to power up a powerful spin attack. Sneekers can cloak or feign death for "Sneek" attacks. They carry magnova (EMP) and flash-bang (stun) grenades, a device for hacking locked doors and terminals, and a remote controlled robotic camera known as the "Snoopa" for spying on the enemy. The Snoopa also has the ability to self destruct, injuring or killing nearby players. The Snoopa normally takes five seconds to self destruct, but once a player has achieved 500 backstab kills on Xbox Live, the Snoopa is upgraded to detonate instantly (there is also a well known exploit, or glitch, which allows the Snoopa to be used indefinitely without needing to "recharge"; needless to say, this tactic draws the ire of many players online). Just use it once then disguise (upgraded ability) leave disguise then use it again (this will work any amount of times). When upgraded, Sneekers receive a set of daggers which can be thrown or stabbed with, a gas grenade, and the ability to disguise themselves as an enemy. Sneekers can climb walls by jumping against a wall twice allowing them to reach otherwise inaccessible areas.

Demolisher: Physically, the demolishers are the slowest of the six classes, however they also have the most health to counterbalance this disadvantage. Demolishers carry a bazooka, giving them devastating firepower at the cost of a slow reload time. They can fire either straight rockets, or anti-aircraft missiles. They can enter a berserk state, which shoulders their weapons in exchange for more health, faster movement, and a deadly pound attack. Demolishers carry nepalm (fire) and smoke (kills and blocks sight) grenades and an arc weld for repairing vehicles and terminals. When upgraded, they can fire guided missiles, which are controlled from a first-person view, receive a frag grenade, and a powerful, but awkward, "Strayfur" chaingun.

Long Ranger: The anti-thesis of the Sneekers, Long Rangers carry a "Widowmaker" sniper rifle that has two zoom modes, and can fire either 7.62mm (anti-infantry) or high velocity DU tiped (depleted uranium) (anti-armor) rounds. The bullets inflict limited damage with body hits, so only head shots are a guaranteed kill. The widow maker also has a combination laser sight/overcharge which increases damage and accuracy, but the very visible laser beam reveals the player's position. Long Rangers carry magnova and flash-bang grenades, a medigun, and have the “infravison” ability. When upgraded, they receive the self heal ability, an extra zoom for their widow maker, a frag grenade, and a pair of "Krotch" 45 pistols (revolvers) for close quarters combat. It is generally regarded as the most difficult Sniper in any shooting game to master.

Sky Jockey: Sky Jockeys are a very specific class, being virtually useless on foot. Their only armament is a pair of weak DP500 pistols, which can be set to fire in bursts or single concentrated shots. Their only grenade is a magnova. They are, however, the only class that can use flying vehicles, giving them an unprecedented advantage on maps with air vehicles. They carry an arc weld to repair their vehicles, and a parachute so that they can bail out if need be, or jump safely from a great height. They also receive the infravision ability with an upgrade, which is nearly identical to that of the long ranger.

Thermophile: Represented as pyromaniacal, Thermophiles are the best suited for close quarters combat. They carry a "Sinurator" flame thrower, which can fire either flaming napalm for setting enemies aflame, or acid for destroying armor. A single Thermophile can engage multiple enemies, but they are limited to short range, are one of the slower moving classes, and are very prone to causing friendly fire. They carry napalm and gas grenades, a medigun and also have the self heal ability. When upgraded, they receive a frag grenade and a "Fauster" lasergun, which is very powerful against vehicles but awkward to wield and requires pin-point accuracy, for 3 seconds, to kill infantry.

During a game, players can earn Career Points (CP) by killing enemies, completing objectives, and various other tasks that contribute to the team. On Xbox Live, CP accumulates and if a player earns enough CP, the player will reach a higher rank. A player's rank does not affect gameplay, but it does show how experienced a player is. Players can also gain medals with more specific requirements (500 kills, 500 Victory Condition CP, etc.) Medals provide bonuses to the player, such as faster reloading or a larger magazine.

Terminals
Terminals are found in every mission, usually near a base. Terminals are computers that dispense useful items or vehicles, and can be accessed by a player during the game. When accessed, the player is given a menu of the available items. When an item is chosen it can be picked up at an adjacent dispenser area. The objects received from the terminals disappear upon the death of the player that obtained them. Terminals may be neutral and available to both sides, or under the control of one side. Terminals can be attacked and disabled, but not destroyed. If damaged or disabled, they can be repaired with an arc weld, issued to the Demolisher and Sky Jockey classes. Neutral or enemy-controlled terminals can be hacked with a Sneeker's hacking device. There are two types of terminals: Specialist Ordinance terminals, and Mobile Units terminals.

Specialist Ordnance Terminals provide useful items to the player. They also restock any used grenades when accessed. A player may use only a limited number of items. The items available from a SO Terminal are:

Mines: Available to Demolishers, Thermophiles, and upgraded Long Rangers. Mines are dispensed in stacks of three for Demolishers and Long Rangers, and stacks of 2 for the Thermophile. They are invisible to the enemy and are not triggered by allies, but will detonate prematurely if caught by a magnova grenade.

Earth Guard: Available to Grunts, Long Rangers, and Thermophiles, and Demolishers and sky jockeys with an upgrade, Earth Guards are automated turrets that attack any ground unit in range. Very powerful, but can be temporarily disabled by magnova grenades.

Sky Guard: Available to Sky Jockeys, Grunts, and Long Rangers; these are similar to the Earth Guard, but attack aircraft, with missiles, instead of ground units.

Gate-Maker: Available only to the Sneeker, Gatemakers are a set of two gates that form a one-way teleportation field. The "Out" gate is placed before the "In" gate.

Mobile Units Terminals are only found in a select group of missions and have huge dispenser areas. Vehicles are obtained from MU Terminals and Each class may use only one or two types of vehicles. Upon obtaining a vehicle, the driver must move it out of the dispenser area with-in 8 seconds or it will self-destruct, and the other players will need to wait for a few seconds before they will receive their chosen vehicles. PLayers can't access the mobile units 2 with-in 30 seconds. Vehicles are damaged by anti-armor ammo, and explode when destroyed, so heavily damaged vehicles should be avoided. The vehicles available from a Mobile Units Terminal are:

'''"Toad Mk." II:''' Available only to the Grunt, the Toad is a Jeep similar to Halo's Warthog: It has a gunner position in the back that can be controlled by another player or by the driver. The Toad has a good mix of speed, armor, and firepower, and is free of any serious flaws, aside from the flaw all vehicles in the game retain of being huge compared to the size of the soldiers, much like the class that uses it.

'''"Toad" Mk. IV:''' Available only to Thermophiles, the Mk. IV is similar to the Mk. II, but the rear turret is replaced with a flamethrower.

R-Hog: Available to Long Rangers, Sneekers, and upgraded Grunts, the R-Hog is an ATV that is very fast, but difficult to control and is completely unarmed (except for its bumpers, and is meant for quickly getting around. The R-Hog also has a speed boost ability. If the R-Hog crash and tips upside down there is a high probability the driver can get killed or he will fall off at the right moment and the vehicle will be upside down but then jump high into the air and crush you if it lands on you so drive carefully.

Tankus: Available only to Demolishers, the Tankus is a slow-moving, but very powerful, tank. It can turn on the spot, making it easy to control. It is the toughest of all vehicles, but presents a large target that is usually prioritized by the enemy. Unfortunately, the Tankus has no targeting reticule (aim mid-top of screan) for its dual mortar cannons and is best used for long range bombardment. Like the Toads, the turret can be controlled by another player.

Steed: The bread and butter of the Sky Jockey, the Steed is a fighter that fires missiles, chainguns, and anti-aircraft missiles. The Steed is very fast, extremely maneuverable, and is capable of hovering, and boosting.

Mule 52: Another form of aircraft, the Mule is only available in New War missions. The Mule is a combination Dropship/Bomber. The pilot can only drop bombs, but another player can operate a gunner turret. Six other players may ride in the Mule, allowing for fast deployment, but putting them at serious risk, as the Mule is sure to attract a great deal of enemy fire. The pilot can bail out if necessary but can end up killing any passengers as they can't bail. Rarely used to transport troops due to the attention it attracts and the lack of parachutes for non sky-jockeys.

Other objects
Apart from terminals, players may encounter these other objects during a mission.

Turrets: Large, powerful chaingun turrets that can be controlled by a player. Turrets can both deal and endure a lot of damage, but the operator is exposed and vulnerable to well aimed attacks. Turrets are damaged by anti-armor ammo, and because they so powerful, they are often a prioroty target and usually will be destroyed in the first few minutes of a game.

Fuel Barrels: Obviously, they explode when hit by anti-armor ammo. They can be very effective traps, but players should note that the enemy can also exploit them (Just destroy the barrels on you side before the other team does).

Force Field Doors: Only encountered in Future War missions, these doors guard key points around the map. Like terminals, they are either affiliated with one faction, or neutral and thus bar access to both sides. Doors can be hacked via a nearby locking terminal. Doors only work one-way; a player can pass through an enemy door from behind. In some missions (Beach Dead, made of wood, thick layered gas barrels, wires, or steal vaults), similar doors will guard primary spawn-points. These cannot be hacked.

Auto-Guns: In some missions, these automated turrets guard primary spawn-points to discourage opportunistic players from killing enemies as they respawn. Autoguns are invincible and can slaughter entire scores of enemies in mere seconds (3 shot kills, 8 shots per second), so it is prudent to avoid them.

Dumbot Names
In the director commentary for Conker's Bad Fur Day, the developers had mentioned that the dumbot names in Live & Reloaded are anagrams. This is a list of the Dumbot names.


 * Earl Yoist
 * Pat Sonic-Omen
 * Consultant Tift
 * Sir Hank Morril
 * Scarlet Romp
 * Henry Homesweet
 * Urchin Pig Girl
 * Babe Chorbi
 * Odin Toelust
 * Count Cutflaik
 * Elmo Chipshop
 * Shats Bassoon
 * Stayelusive Igor
 * Soapy Illusion
 * Fabian Gladwart
 * Jobflobadob Yob

The only name that can be nearly confirmed is Babe Chorbi which re-arranged is Robbie Bach. Robbie Bach was the president of the entertainment and devices division at Microsoft. He led the division that is responsible for the Xbox, Xbox 360, Zune, Windows Games, Windows Mobile and the Microsoft TV platform until he retired in 2010.

Censorship
During development, the game was originally titled Conker: Live and Uncut and featured an uncensored single player experience. Some time during development this was removed and the game was released in a heavily censored form that bleeped many minor obscenities (such as "shit", "twat", "ass-hole" and even non-obscenities such as "fellatio") that were present in Bad Fur Day. This drew heavy criticism from fans of the original, especially as it detracted from comedic highlights such as The Great Mighty Poo Song.

The multiplayer portion of the game is uncensored if the player finishes the single player mode. Players have the option to turn off bleeps, the option named "Potty Mouth" and features heavy use of obscenities, such as fuck, shit, bitch, asshole, motherfucker and cocksucker. A code to uncensor the words in the single player game was created but was removed because of concerns that some retailers would refuse to sell the game. The only audio file uncensored in single player is when Count Batula said 'shit' upon being killed.

The audio files on the game disc were "pre-censored" and contained the bleeps, meaning they were not censored by the game engine. This indicated that the uncensored gameplay was removed early in development.

Even in its censored form, Wal-Mart refused to sell the game (although some Wal-Mart stores sold the comparatively uncensored Nintendo 64 game).

Graphical differences

 * Updated character designs - Though a lot of changes were made to the game's art style, these differences are the most evident.
 * Conker is now a brighter orange colour as opposed to the more definite red of the previous iteration. His jacket and shoes have been updated with the incorporation of yellow into their colour schemes, he wears green track shorts, and he now no longer wears gloves. He is now completely covered in lush, fluffy fur, as are most other furred characters in the remake.
 * Berri is similarly covered in fur, though it's notably more subtle than Conker's. Her bottom was refined and made to look slightly pink against the creases of her shorts. Notably, her face has been refined heacily to look cuter. Lastly, her top now has a 69 on the back of it, adding more innuendo to an already sexualized character.
 * The Tediz have been heavily overhauled in design, now resembling actual anthropomorphic bears made from patchwork as opposed to generic teddybears. Notably, the Mutant Tedi Surgeon has been modified to look even more distinguished from the normal surgeons.
 * In general, almost all female characters have been given softer faces in the remake to make them appear friendlier and less uncanny.
 * The Panther King has been updated so that his attire appears more regal.
 * Heinrich was completely recoloured from black to a tiger-striped teal.
 * Some enemies and background characters no longer have their usual look with their googly eyes on top.
 * General graphical differences:
 * Most textures have been redrawn or scaled up heavily from the original.
 * Liquid particles have been made much more subtle and are capable of splashing onto the screen, matching the colour of the original fluid they came from.
 * Fur particles have been added to most furred characters as well as certain plant patches.
 * The blocks in Barn Boys now have geometry that matches their textures. Some of them have been scaled up because of it.
 * Water looks far more realistic and has distortion and ambient occlusion effects added.

Presentation
Aside from censorship, the game conveys itself differently to the player in other ways.


 * Audio:
 * The game's music has seen a massive overhaul. Most synthetic instruments from the original have been completely replaced by real instruments (the Harmonica in Windy). The only track left completely the same is the Rock Solid music, with minor ambient edits.
 * Most of the voice lines in the game were bumped in quality, while some were outright rerecorded entirely (the Gargoyle scene, Great Mighty Poo).
 * Most of the game's dialogue was censored in comparison to the original. All instances of "fuck" are censored, "twat" is censored, all but one utterance of the word "shit" are censored, the single uses of the words "fellatio" and "cunting" are also censored, as is the "ass" portion of the word "asshole".


 * Conker the Squirrel:
 * Conker's main weapon, the Frying Pan, was replaced with a Baseball Bat. This is because in the Hungover chapter, Conker attempts to defeat Gargoyle with the Frying Pan, which he did in Bad Fur Day. Gargoyle did not fall off the bridge this time, and explained the Programmer changed the gameplay. He tells Conker to find another way to defeat him. In response, Conker takes out his Baseball Bat and hits Gargoyle on the head. Gargoyle stands up and falls backward. The impact caused a large boulder to fall on him and kill him.
 * Conker never dual wields guns but uses only one gun. Additionally, he is able to jump while armed, previously impossible in Bad Fur Day. Movement and aiming is much more fluent and precise.
 * Conker can hold his breath underwater for much longer, over twice as long, before running out of air. Additionally, he will lose health at a slower rate should his oxygen be depleted.
 * Conker can now walk around and urinate while he is intoxicated from alcohol consumption.
 * Conker is able to take some small gunfire before losing health. He will still flinch from being shot, though will not stop moving if he is shot while running. Additionally, a rocket launcher depletes half of Conker's health instead of causing an instant death. This increased defense could possibly be attributed to Conker's new army outfit.


 * The Great Mighty Poo:
 * His singing voice was re-recorded to sound like his speaking voice. His eyes also no longer move.
 * Before the boss battle, the player must throw a Sweet Corn in the poo, walk up the path, throw two more in, and then walk up the path and throw three more in. In Live and Reloaded, the player only has to throw one in each time.


 * It's War chapter - It's War received the most changes out of every chapter in the remake.
 * In Bad Fur Day, Conker had to defeat an Electric Eel in the It's War chapter to restore the power. In the remake, he restores it by turning on a switch.
 * Hangover is also sealed at the beginning of It's War chapter, even though Conker has to go through that area after the Spooky chapter.
 * Instead of a Tediz being in the big gun in the It's War chapter, Tediz are guarding it.
 * When the soldier is electrocuted, he is electrocuted longer and his eye falls out. In a similar case, Berri is shot more.
 * During the fight in the Tediz operating room, there is an added short cutscene depicting the "Mutant Tedi" breaking out of a liquid-filled vat.
 * After Conker gets guns in It's War, he must simply shoot the lock off the door. But here, Tediz assault him before he enters.


 * Other:
 * A majority of characters have better mouth animations that better sync to their voice.
 * The in-game Cheats feature from Bad Fur Day didn't carry over.
 * Clang Goblings are now common enemies and most can be killed. However, the ones that return from Bad Fur Day can not be killed manually. Also, new doll enemies appear.
 * Originally, the waterfall below the bridge in the Windy chapter leads into a shallow lake that Conker can walk in. It was later changed into a never-ending chasm, and should Conker fall down, he would return out of a pipe near the bridge.
 * When Wayne and the Wankas were killed, the first wasp was killed off-screen. Later, the second time they are killed, the boss, Wayne, flies further before he gets killed.
 * The entrance to Barn Boys is sealed at the night, possibly due to space issues as the nighttime variant of Windy seems to be completely retextured.
 * After exiting the barn and escaping the sewers, the water tower's water is now seen draining.
 * While riding Bugger Lugs, Conker only has to ram into Mavis and Olive once before they go to drink the Prune Juice. In Bad Fur Day, they only had to be hit two and three times respectively.
 * The green Lady Cog in Bats Tower was relocated from the second circular room and into the main room with Mr. Big Cog.
 * A 90 second timer is now displayed in the part where Conker is assigned to throw a Bomb to kill the Uga-Buga race. In the original, Conker had the same time limit, except no timer is displayed.

Cameos

 * Banjo can be seen above the fireplace inside the pub, while the protagonist from Grabbed by the Ghoulies, Cooper, can be seen vomiting in the toilet in the Game 3 section. Kazooie, who appeared in the first game as a 2D umbrella in the Chapters section, reappears in this remake; however, she has not been updated.
 * In earlier builds of Live & Reloaded, Conker read a magazine with Halo's on the cover. The cameo was removed from the full game.