The Squirrel's Tail

Lore & Background

The game is set in the Fairy Panther King's Kingdom. The morning after a night of binge drinking, a drunken Conker loses his way and awakens lost with a hangover. The Panther King, missing a table leg, orders his servant Professor Von Kriplespac to solve the problem; Von Kriplespac suggests using a red squirrel as the fourth leg. During his quest home, Conker finds cash and becomes sidetracked, leading to encounters including a giant opera-singing pile of feces called The Great Mighty Poo, the Weasel Mafia, a vampire ancestor, and a war between grey squirrels and Nazi-like teddy bears called the Tediz. Conker ultimately finds Berri, but she is shot and dies. The Panther King is killed by a Xenomorph-like creature named Heinrich, created by Von Kriplespac, who reveals they are in a spaceship. Conker opens an airlock, expelling Kriplespac and the corpses into space, and battles Heinrich.

In Their Own Story

Conker woke with a skull-splitting hangover, the world a blur of spinning colors. He stumbled out of a bar, only to be immediately accosted by a weasel demanding payment for a tab he didn't remember running up. 'Look, mate,' Conker slurred, 'I just want to get home to Berri.' The weasel laughed, pointing a crossbow. 'You'll pay, or you'll be a squirrel rug.' And so began a day of being chased, conned, and catapulted through a kingdom that seemed to exist solely to make his life worse.

Reader's Guide

The game is a platform game with later shooter elements. The player controls Conker through 3D levels. An overworld allows transitions between levels, many blocked until Conker earns cash. Gameplay involves completing linear challenges—defeating bosses, solving puzzles, gathering objects, racing—for cash rewards. Conker can run, jump, smack enemies with a frying pan, swim underwater, climb ladders/ropes, and push objects. He regains health by eating anti-gravity chocolate. Context-sensitive pads grant temporary abilities (e.g., Alka-Seltzer, anvil, shotgun, blow torch, throwing knives, slingshot). Multiplayer mode supports up to four players in seven game types: Beach, Raptor, Heist, War, Tank, Race, and Deathmatch.

Did You Know?

• Conker's Bad Fur Day was originally intended for a family audience and titled Twelve Tales: Conker 64.
• The game was released in North America on 5 March 2001 and in Europe on 6 April 2001.
• A remake, Conker: Live & Reloaded, was released for the Xbox in 2005.
• The original version was included in the Rare Replay compilation for Xbox One in 2015.