Milo's Astro Lanes review (Nintendo 64)

One of the biggest highlights about Milo's Astro Lanes is the music. OK, if space-age bachelor-pad muzak isn't your thing, shrug your shoulders and move on. But for those out there who can appreciate a little pop-cultural kitsch, Milo's will have you humming for... well, hours (days would be pushing it). Taking into consideration the oft-associated connections between bowling and lounge, the soundtrack here is entirely appropriate and really likeable. Again, all usual kitsch disclaimers apply. The sound effects, on the other hand, are dismally run-of-the-mill - just the usual bleeps and bloops to indicate action, motion, impact, etc. Simply turn up the music and play the game. No need to ignore the sound effects, as they eventually seem to fade into the background.

While Milo's Astro Lanes gets a resounding nod of approval for its daring immersion into subculture (albeit, three years too late), there's very little here to recommend a purchase. The multiplayer game of specials and anti-specials is certainly inventive and challenging, but poor physics and simplistic controls will keep return visitors at bay. There are a lot of good ideas at work in Milo's Astro Lanes; it's just too bad Player 1's innovations on an established genre landed it a gutter ball.