The hit game show, Jeopardy, and the former host, the late Alex Trebek, are known to many around the world. The popular show has been running for decades and has spawned numerous spinoffs, and, for the topic of discussion for today, video games. This Nintendo 64 version of the game was panned upon release and still catches some flak these days, but is it really that bad? That’s exactly what we’re here to talk about. Let’s get into it.
Note
If you are unfamiliar with Jeopardy (let’s say if you didn’t watch it growing up, etc.), the premise is simple. It’s a quiz show, however, instead of answering the questions, you are first provided the answer and THEN respond with question using, “What is/are…” It might sound kind of confusing if you weren’t brought up with it, but that’s the main difference between this and other similar game shows around the globe. Now that you have a frame of reference, let’s dive into this N64 version of the game.
Gameplay & Modes
Jeopardy lacks modes, per se, but you do have the ability to play by yourself or with a total of three players (the maximum number of contestants on the real show). Before kicking entering the game, you have a few options. You can select the following:
- Computer Opponents’ Skill Level - Easy, Average, Expert
- Player Settings - Here, you can choose how many human and computer players you would like to play with. After that, you can select your character from the six that are available. If you’re playing single player, the opponents will be selected at random.
- Response Entry Options - There are three options here with loose spelling accepted, computer assisted responses or the exact spelling required.
- Question Difficulty Level - There are three options from here, as well. Easy Questions Only, Easy and Average Questions, or Easy, Average and Expert Questions.
- Response Display Settings - After an incorrect response, the computer can either display the correct response or not display the correct response.
For most of my time with the game, I just went with the default settings for difficulty - Average skill level, computer assisted responses, Easy and Average Questions, and for the correct response to be displayed if the computer makes an incorrect response. Upon hopping into the game, you are treated with a brief clip of Trebek, who introduces the contestants (kind of), and then the topics for the first round. There are a total of two sets of questions, a Final Jeopardy question and Daily Doubles in each round. Just to note, the Daily Doubles are hidden on the board at random with one in the first round and two in the second. Contestants can try their hand to answer and potentially earn more cash than usual.
After a question is chosen, there is a ten second lockout period to give contestants some time to read the questions. This is indicated by a timer. Once this time has passed, players are free to try their luck at the question. Typing is pretty much what you would expect, but playing with computer assisted responses, you can see some suggestions appear above the keyboard. If you agree with what the CPU is suggesting, pressing R will autofill the rest of the response. This is handy because it can save you quite a bit of time (you only have one minute to input your response) when inputting your response.
Playing with a mix of easy and medium level questions was pretty enjoyable. Of course, with the game being released in early 1998, some of the questions might be a bit tough if you are not familiar with some of the categories. Given that this game was targeting a bit of an older audience, some of the more pop culture questions are geared toward those who weren’t kids at the time. Specific questions about TV shows and huge events from the 1960s are well outside of my wheelhouse, but your mileage may vary.
Even with that said, I found the default settings to feel pretty good, for the most part. Some of the responses call for very specific phrasing or word choice (I input “bush” instead of “burning bush” for a question related to the Old Testament and was wrong), but the CPU suggestions can help you avoid making these mistakes as long as you’re at least somewhat close. The multiplayer aspect of the game also seems to be pretty fun. I don’t have anyone around to check out this aspect of the game, unfortunately, but if you have some similarly minded buddies, Jeopardy could make for a fun game night.
Visuals, Audio & Presentation
There’s no getting around it. The visuals in Jeopardy on the Nintendo 64 are underwhelming. From the static 2D contestants to the simple game board, developer Gametek came nowhere close to making full use of the N64 hardware. Given the nature of what they’re trying to replicate here with a game show, I can understand this to an extent. It would have been nice to see some more effort put into perhaps 3D models for the contestants, or at least better looking 2D versions. At the same time, if Gametek went all out making 3D models for the in game characters, that might have aged even more poorly. I still would have liked to see them take that chance. The audio is also a bit muffled and the tiny video clips versus full screen versions are definitely due to limitations with the cartridge size.
Despite the negatives, the game does have a bit of charm. Sometimes, it’s a bit humorous to essentially hear Trebek say how wrong you are, even when you’re actually pretty close to the correct answer. I haven’t played any modern versions of the game, but from what I’ve seen at a glance, they seem to be going for more of a broad quiz show appeal and not necessarily taking on the Jeopardy moniker in earnest. I think that’s a disservice to the franchise and where this N64 version actually excels. Is it perfect? Of course not. However, the short video and audio clips of Trebek, theme song and overall presentation (despite issues with the system limitations) nail what makes Jeopardy what it is - or WAS in the 90s, in this case. If you watched the show back then, this is going to be a real nostalgia trip for a myriad of reasons.
Conclusion
Despite the bland visuals and audio, Jeopardy! on the Nintendo 64 is an enjoyable game if you set the correct expectations. While the quality is laughable for the platforms in some regards, it nails what makes Jeopardy, Jeopardy. Are there better versions of the game out there? Yeah, probably. I think it’s easy to dismiss this game just on the lackluster visuals alone, however I think the presentation with all of its flaws nails the game show aesthetic. If you have any nostalgia for Jeopardy as it was in the 90s, you should try to track this one down and pick it up if you can find it for cheap.
But let’s turn things over to you. Did you play Jeopardy on the N64 back in the day? Or, are you like me, and didn’t try it out until much later in life? What do you think about it? Sound off in the comments down below. We’d love to hear from you.
by Danny Bivens
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