Jet Force Gemini was a game I loved as a kid, yet was never able to fully complete. I loved it when I played it again on Rare Replay a few years ago, and I still love it now. I played the Rare Replay version again due to better widescreen (the original was just letterboxed) and the control options – the “Modern controls” make Jet Force Gemini play great, especially when manual targeting (which I did for 95% of the game).

Despite the passing of time, Jet Force Gemini still manages to feel fresh, there’s a mixture of classic video game tropes and more modern gameplay, combined with a sense of fun that makes Jet Force Gemini feel special.

You play as three space heroes – a brother and sister called Juno and Vela, and their dog Lupus. A race of little bears have been captured by Mizar and his ant army, so it’s up to you to help the Tribal King Jeff (I don’t know why I love that his name is just Jeff) rescue his people. The game is bright and colourful, and has a “kids cartoon” aesthetic about it. Then you start shooting and limbs, heads, and guts start flying everywhere.

There’s something oddly satisfying about this juxtaposition, as it’s just part of the game, it’s not for shock value or anything edgy, it’s just fun. This isn’t just applicable to the bug enemies, either, as you can end up blowing up the little bears if you’re not careful. Then collect their heads, which is counted in your inventory, for pretty much no reason (technically you can unlock cheats, but you’re much more likely to do that by collecting ant heads).

You start the game as Juno, but can play as Vela and Lupus as you meet up with them. They all have their own set of levels as they work their way to Mizar’s Palace. It’s mostly a linear path for each one, although there are a few secrets to find, and you may notice a few sections you can’t reach.

During Juno’s journey, you’ll also repair a flying robot called Floyd, who you can use for some on-rails shooting sections. A second player can also take control of him to help you shoot your way through the bugs (and possibly “accidentally” shoot the Tribals). If the game ended at Mizar’s Palace, it would still be a great game and a decent length, but that’s just part of it.

As Mizar slips away, you need a new ship to reach him. Jeff turns up with some upgrades for everyone – some jetpacks for Juno and Vela, plus Lupus now drives around in a hover tank. He also reveals a spaceship that you need to use to reach Mizar’s new base. There’s one problem – the ship is missing most of its components, so you’ll need to hunt for ship parts. Using the various abilities of each character (Juno can walk on lava, Vela can swim, Lupus can hover without fuel) and the keys they’ve collected, you now have to explore previous worlds to find new areas and routes to new levels that contain these ship parts.

For the most part, this is great, and there are lots of things to discover, including two different racing games – a 2D top-down one and a 3D one, both feel great – and new weapons to find. It’s also not just checking old places, as planets are made of multiple sub-levels, and the new routes lead to more. There’s a ton of stuff to find. However, there’s one ship part that causes the most trouble, one that King Jeff has, and he won’t give it to you until you’ve saved every Tribal in the game.

Whenever you finish a sub-level, everything is reset each time you return, both the enemies and Tribals. The issue with rescuing the Tribals is that you need to save all of them in one run of the level. Leave the area without finding them all, or have any die, and you need to start again.

This means you have to learn where they are and be careful. Not only are they in hidden areas, but sometimes they’re in the middle of fighting spots, next to explosive barrels. This is what halted my progress as a kid, but when I tried the game again when I got Rare Replay, I actually didn’t find it that bad, and didn’t take as long as I expected.

Jet Force Gemini is an immense amount of fun, and there’s something about it that just keeps you smiling. The game is surprisingly dark in moments, but the game never acknowledges it or points it out. For example, some enemies will surrender and throw their gun away. As doors are tied to the life of enemies, you have to execute them. Of course, if you do turn your back, they’ll throw a grenade at you.

It’s a lovingly created game that feels like everything is there because the developers wanted to do it. It’s also likely why this was published by Rare themselves instead Nintendo, but it works wonders for the sheer fun of Jet Force Gemini.

Fave

How many times have you seen an enemy run away from you if you storm towards it, lobbing grenades in its general direction, only for it to pop out of its hiding place and shoot you in the head when you turn your back? Never in any other console game, that’s for sure. The Drones in Jey Force do all that and more. They find alternative cover if you blow up the box they’re hiding behind, they duck behind shields, scatter, return mob-handed, and even break off a battle to execute a prisoner – just to wind you up. The fact that they behave so naturally makes killing them all the more satisfying.

Martin Kitts, N64 Magazine #34. Review Score: 93%

Remake or remaster?

While the Rare Replay version is a great version of the game, I’d love to see a proper remaster. The controls could still do with a little adjusting, having a toggle for manual aiming and allowing you to jump while in that mode would be perfect. A reworked final level to let you choose who you play as (you’re stuck with Juno) would also be nice. Other than that, some slight graphical improvements to just improve the quality of the textures (but keep the style). And perhaps a better way to keep track of Tribals.

Official ways to get the game.

Jet Force Gemini is available as part of Rare Replay on Xbox One/Series.

Re-releases.

2015: Rare Replay (Xbox One/Series)

2023: Nintendo Switch Online (Subscription Only)