Developer: Rare Publisher: Nintendo Release: 08/25/97 Genre: FPS
Goldeneye 007 should not have been a success. There were a number of factors working against it. It was released in 1997, two years after the film hit theaters. It was released in a climate where awful movie licensed games such as Cutthroat Island and Batman Forever were almost enough to sink a publisher. And finally it was a console first person shooter. While there were various ports of Doom and a few original titles like Battle Frenzy it was clearly the domain of the PC. That Goldeneye 007 not only turned out so well but was practically revolutionary is nothing short of legendary. Goldeneye is one of the best Nintendo 64 games of all time and still pretty fun to run through even today.
The game largely follows the plot of the movie. Agent Bond along with Agent 006 must stop the Janus Syndicate from obtaining the Goldeneye satellite and destroying London. It smartly expands upon certain minor events from the film create levels. I am sure I’m not alone in that I had no expectations of Goldeneye. With the frequent delays and very little hands on prior to release it seemed like a disaster. Yet somehow the team at Rare managed to beat the odds and create a game that most remember more than its movie. Imagine that!
Goldeneye evolves the first person shooter genre in its structure. Rather than a straight killing spree on the way to the exit each mission has objectives. These range from finding specific documents, blowing up supply depots and even a little bit of hacking. The mission objectives make you feel like Bond himself along with his many gadgets. Each map is huge for a reason; playing on higher difficulty levels adds more objectives. The implications of this format are massive. On lower difficulties you can ignore entire sections of each level. Once you tackle 00 Agent you will learn to appreciate how well designed every level truly is.
There are a number of reasons why the single player campaign is so enjoyable. Mission variety is extremely high. There are many Doom style levels for those that need that adrenaline rush. But there are just as many that require a more tactical approach. Guarding Boris while he hacks the Goldeneye satellite is one of the most frustrating but extremely fun missions in the game. Stealth missions force you to consider the sound of your guns, security cameras, and patrol routes. Even the enemy AI, as rudimentary as it may seem now, was impressive for its time. Guards actively try to dodge bullets, rolling out of the way or ducking behind cover. If it gets too hairy they will even try to sound the alarm. The pacing and polish are why I still enjoy the campaign even to this day.
Sneaking around is all well and good but this is still a first person shooter. Bond comes loaded for bear with a ton of weapons that are incredibly satisfying to use. Your standard pistols, automatic rifles, and machine guns are supplemented by an assortment of strange oddities. There’s the useless Klobb, the Phantom machine gun, and my favorite, the RC-P90. Goldeneye also has one of the most satisfying sniper rifles to this day. A large part of what makes the gun play fun is the generous auto aim which makes up for the lack of mouse and keyboard. The other is location specific damage. This is another area Goldeneye innovates. Head shots equal instant death while a shot to the hand might cause a soldier to drop his weapon. You can even target their legs to make them hop around, buying you time!
As much as I’ve gushed about the story mode Goldeneye’s multiplayer mode is the reason it became a phenomenon. With the exception of Mario Kart 64 Goldeneye was the reason every N64 owner had four controllers. The wealth of options were unheard of for a console multiplayer fps. Eleven maps and 31 characters are available as well as some exclusive weapons. There are nine scenarios or modes that alter the rules of each. Aside from standard deathmatch, capture the flag and team deathmatch there are a few based on movies such as You only live twice (you have two lives) or my favorite, License to kill mode. This single hit death mode nearly ruined many friendships after hours long sessions of carnage.
It may not seem like a big deal now as first person shooters are everywhere but in 1997 this was huge. Nearly all of the ports of Doom omitted multiplayer or reduced it to two players. With its four controller ports the N64 became the system for multiplayer. However the years have not been kind to this once great game. We were able to look past the low frame rate that dipped into the single digits frequently back then. Now Goldeneye’s multiplayer is more of a novelty.
In Closing
That aside Goldeneye is a classic. The innumerable awards it garnered speaks to that achievement. Goldeneye is often cited as one of the best games ever made with good reason. It helped popularize the genre on consoles and is still a great game today.
