Conker's Bad Fur Day is notorious as one of the few mature-rated titles that was available for the Nintendo 64. March 5, 2021, marks its twentieth anniversary, and there was a flurry of activity today across multiple mediums as many rose to celebrate the occasion.
Conker's Bad Fur Day came from the developer Rare still in its infancy, with a myriad of employees that struggled to figure out what the right niche for Conker to occupy in a space that existed within the realm of Banjo-Kazooie and Super Mario 64. The employees managed to band together and release a critically acclaimed commercial failure, due in no small part to its as of yet untapped Mature audience. It was widely heralded for its impressive graphics that introduced a plethora of advanced techniques, and the music that accompanied the title.
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One such composer, by the name of Robin Beanland, saw the day as a fitting moment to celebrate the twentieth anniversary of Conker's Bad Fur Day by playing a brass horn to accompany the theme music of the title. The composer also had a pint readily available, noting the title's perchance for alcohol, and an orange stuffed animal featuring none other than the alcoholic squirrel. Fans received the tweet with praise for the composer's ability to play the theme.
Robin Beanland has been composing for the video game industry since 1994, beginning with works on Donkey Kong Country in 1994 and GoldenEye 007 in 1997, to note his notable performances. The composer received a British Academy of Film and Television Arts award for Conker's Bad Fur Day. His works have continued well into the modern era of the industry, however, prominently scoring Sea of Thieves and receiving "special thanks" in the credits of the 2020 remake of Battletoads.
Robin Beanland's work within Sea of Thieves earned the composer the Ivor Novello Award for the Best Original Video Games Score, marking a time of prominence and familiarity with the composer that has been in the industry for well over two decades. Now aged 52 and living within England, the artist continues to work on modern titles, with the upcoming Everwild prominently listed by the artist.
The consistently drunken squirrel Conker has seemingly fallen to the wayside over the years. With video games now readily embracing alcoholism, explicit scenes, and violence, the internet came together today to recognize the brilliance of Rare with multiple artists covering the Conker's Bad Fur Day theme song to much jubilation. For those players that have experienced the title, however, it's far more than a tune.
Conker's Bad Fur Day is available to play on both Nintendo 64 and Xbox through the Rare Replay collection.
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