I am looking forward to hearing the Pods take on Goldeneye; this was the go to game on my N64 in Mutiplayer between February of ’98 until Perfect Dark was released in 2000. The game saw me through much of my free periods in sixth form (hooking up a tv and pooling controllers to get a 4 player match up and running) and many a Friday evening spent playing licence to kill into the early hours of the morning. Although aside from Oddjob there was little difference between the multiplayer characters, one friend I remember selected a red jumpered nobody taken from the single player streets level on one occasion, dubbing him “psycho civilian”, won the round, and could not be persuaded to part from him henceforth, however irrational it seemed!
The single player really drew me into an FPS for the first time, unlike Doom, whose fantastical setting had left me cold. Once past the first Dam level, I realised that:
- I could choose to kill with stealth to improve my chances of success
- That guards would react depending on where you shot them
- That a lock could be shot off to gain access to a new area
Following these revelations, I was completely immersed, and eager to play through the whole experience.
Over a four month period I worked through all 3 difficulties over the 20 levels available, and then scaled the next challenge by besting some insane times to unlock the rare cheat codes. Obtaining invincibility on Facility in less than 2.05 on 00 Agent was particularly fiendish, as mission critical Dr Doak turned up in a number of different locations, which could make meeting the time limit impossible, and cued much swearing!
Still owning my N64 today, going back to Goldeneye, while noting the graphical appeal has faded with the passing of time, I find from an audio perspective that it still impresses me, which is remarkable given the N64’s notable shortcomings during the era in that particular department. Each level has a tune with a different spin on Monty Norman’s classic theme, which does the job of differentiating each mission fantastically well. Rare even made pausing the game mid mission an event, as this triggered the Q watch face graphic, alongside memorable background music. I’d be humming away to that pause screen for days at a time. You can even buy a cheap version of the watch for yourself
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZrA72YBejlA apparently, so I don’t think it was just me who recalls this specific dimension of the game fondly!
Aside from the positives, I can see that there are some very weak single player levels, which even at the time felt like low points, such as “streets” and “depot”. Perhaps in an attempt to follow the story arc of the film, Rare tried to persevere with levels that should have been left on the cutting room floor, but it is easy to appreciate how driving a tank with a city at your mercy must have seemed like such a great idea in brainstorming sessions. In reality it was a dull level, with the minor exception of running over enemy soldiers, whose screams gave it some small merit. The NPC AI will not be winning any awards today either, and I get cold chills at the memory of your sidekick Natalya walking in front of pitched battles, and ending up dead time and again with her apparent ignorance of the dangers of flying lead.
I do think that this game deserves the classic status that it is given; Goldeneye showed that the FPS could sell on consoles before
Halo, and it excelled in both single and multiplayer.
My 3 word review
Console Stealth Works
