Awesome game for Nintendo 64!

With the release of Blast Corps, a game that displayed Rare's newfound sense of innovation and risk, many gamers and critics were unclear as to how the British-based company would approach the two-year old movie-licensed title, Goldeneye 007.

Just prior to the June Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3), the game suffered at least two unofficial postponements, and no word was heard as to why. In typical Nintendo fashion, Nintendo surprised nearly everyone when the game was announced to be a four-player game that was also Rumble Pak compatible. After seriously playing the game for weeks, N64.com can sincerely say that Goldeneye 007 is a intelligently conceived and brilliantly executed diamond of a game, building its spy-style adventure smartly on the foundation of the first-person genre, and unleashing the full power of Nintendo's four-player capabilities.

The gameplay deftly evolves the first-person perspective action genre, enabling gamers to immerse themselves in spy-style tactics and covert operations, and forcing gamers to think before they rush in to blow the heck out of everything in sight. Goldeneye 007 is built around 18 varying levels that must be played through in linear fashion in the easy mode, which then open up the possibility of playing the game in medium to hard difficult levels, each level afterward fully chooseable in any order.

Gamers will quickly learn that weapons and ammo can be gleaned from dead enemies, and that some weapons are clearly better in certain situations. In level one (Dam), the Sniper Rifle enables gamers to pick off Russian guards from distant towers with its high-powered telescope; while in level 10 (Statue), a high-powered, automatic shotgun is the clear choice. Gamers will have the thrill of double fisting enemies with one gun in each hand in level 7 (Frigate), learning the ancient art of throwing knives, or blasting their way across the level 18 (Cradle) with the awesome ZMG (9mm).

Learning how to use your gadgets, and becoming efficient in learning when not to kill enemies is also part of the game. The interface is absolutely cool as well, and clearly incorporates the most fun Bond elements into the game. Modems, magnet attract watches, camera, data thieves, key analyzers, laser watches, and other classic James Bond-style spy toys all play minor parts in weaving your way through multi-objective-based missions. Discovering how to free yourself (and find a set of knives) in level 9, the second bunker, when you have no weapons at all with your magnet attract watch is just plain cool.

The game's depth come in all shapes and forms. Playing the first-person mode presents levels that range from nearly straight Doom-style play (all shooting and no brains), to search-and-destroy missions (requiring more strategy), to a wide range of carefully designed information-acquiring levels; all blend together to create a satisfying title that will intrigue new gamers as well as hard-core, multi-platform owners. The four-player mode is outstanding and provides tons of options in weapons (at least 10), environments, characters (at least 8), game length, health, control style, and the kind of game you want to play, i.e., a timed match, five kills to a match, You Only Live Twice (two deaths end the game), team play, etc. Slowdown is the multiplayer mode's only weakness, but the fun far outweighs this weakness.

GoldenEye 007 (N64)

Upon first seeing GoldenEye at the E3 convention, I was underwhelmed. I mean, here was yet another first-person shooter, with the only features setting it apart being the neat-looking sniper rifle and the fact that it was based on a movie that just about everyone had forgotten about. I couldn't have been more wrong. GoldenEye not only lives up to the "quality, not quantity" mantra that Nintendo continues to tout, it surpasses it. The sheer joy experienced by putting a bullet in some Russian's head with the sniper rifle, from 200 yards, never gets old, and the countless mission objectives spread across 12 different environments and three difficulty levels ensure that the game has the staying power of - dare I say it - Mario 64.

GoldenEye closely mirrors the plot of the 17th James Bond movie, starting with the daring bungee jump sequence and ending with a showdown between 007 and Alec Trevelyan atop a huge antenna. In between, you'll shoot scads of soldiers, plant explosives, escape from a train seconds before it explodes, and execute other decidedly Bond-like maneuvers. The entire game takes place from a Doom-like perspective, except that holding down the R button allows you to aim anywhere on the screen, and with the sniper rifle, zoom in for a nice, clean head shot.

The graphics in GoldenEye are incredible. From installations deep under the snow to lush Cuban jungles, each environment looks really good, with a decent amount of detail. There is a slight bit of fogging at the edge of your view, but hey, St. Petersburg is a foggy place. The sniper rifle alleviates some of the fog, enabling you to zoom up and peep the action long before the guards are alerted to your presence. Also, the characters in the game look really good. When you run into Boris, he actually looks like Alan Cumming. The only character who doesn't transfer favorably into the 3-D world is Natalya, who looks a little too square.

The music in GoldenEye is absolutely perfect, and adds a lot of ambience to the game. For instance, one of the later levels starts in an elevator, complete with laid-back elevator music. When you exit the elevator, the level's real soundtrack kicks in. A minor point, sure, but it demonstrates the detail of the game. The only thing that could make GoldenEye's sound better is the inclusion of speech.

GoldenEye is the type of game N64 owners have been waiting for since they finished Mario 64. It has outstanding graphics and sound, and contains a certain depth in its gameplay that really entices you to finish it on all three difficulty levels. If more N64 games use this as a model, as opposed to Cruis'n USA or KI Gold, then perhaps the system really does have a shot at toppling the PlayStation's reign as the dominant game platform.

GOLDEN EYE007,5 out of 5,first person shooter. A- Grade

Countless nights of playing vs mode on mult-player,though i have never played the newer version of the first person shooter for nintendo 64 (perfect dark) I can only jugde this game to its time when it was released (1997).and judge it by playing controls,missions,graphics,spe​cial features,etc.As for me,007 goldeneye will always capture my love with first person shooter game especially vs mode as later did socom navy seals for PS2,then Halo series from xbox and xbox360 then finally COD modern warfare series for xbox360 and PS3.I would rate this game a good 4 out of 5 rating,but its graphics and game play would revolutionize the first person shooter game forever.so in that regards to me it makes an excellent for a perfect 5 out of 5.If you havent played Goldeneye 007 i would recomend you buy it just for the collection (nintendo64).Its like not having marioworld 64 or Zelda ocarina of time (incomplete).I do belive this game aint for everbody also.I remmeber 007 used to give me headaches when i used to play it for 15hours straght LOL.though fustrating when i try to relearn the controls,once i get back in the grove its like a trip down memory lane.Seems like i was better when i was a teen.LOL enjoy.

The Halo of N64. Instant Classic.

Goldeneye, which I will refer to simply as 007, for the N46 is an instant classic. Now with its dated graphics, limited gameplay, and sub-par AI, it doesn’t hold a candle to its successors, but it will always be in my mind as the game that introduced me to the real 1st person shooter genre.

Graphics: If you like squares and polygons, this is the game for you. With curves and angles that could rival a VW bus, it is certainly no breakthrough in graphical design, but in its prime it held its own against the games of the time. It did have some glitches and issues concerning contact points but for the most point you could tell what was going on. You could even tell where on the person you shot them depending on how close you were due to the red coloration on that body part.

Sounds: The sounds went well with the different weapons and characters you interacted with. The accents also went well with the characters and the locations (especially the local foot soldiers which you will be mowing down in large numbers with the finesse that only James Bond could).

Gameplay: Now this is where the game truly shines. It might be the simple point and shoot, but it rarely leaves its bread and butter. It does the point and shoot very well and rarely leaves it. A shot actually damages the person more when you shoot them in the head or the body compared to the leg or arm. The missions are usually linear and straightforward but they are engaging and sometimes require some backtracking to accomplish the goals set out. For the most part, the game follows the movie after which it is named with a few exceptions. At some points you get to drive a tank! It might be clumsy but you can run over people and cars just like you would want to in a tank in a game. This game might have limited missions to chose from (16 total I think), but the missions differ in location, objectives, and weapons which make every level a brand new experience.

Overall I give this game a 8.5 due to its dated graphics but it will never be left behind due to its groundbreaking gameplay of the time and the barriers that it crossed.

Classic gaming at its finest

This is a must have for any N64 players or collectors. Goldeneye is proof that first-person shooters could work and work well on consules, and not just the PC. The game is based off of the James Bond movie of the same name, but some additional content was added to the game to increase the length. Your standard guns and explosives that are common in first-person shooters are there as well as gadgets that were made famous in James Bond movies. The controls handle very well with the N64 controller and moving around, shooting, and aiming are reltively easy. The graphics may be outdated by todays standards, but they were top notch for their day, and pushed the limits of the N64 system. One of the best parts of the game is the multi-player. Up to four people can play and choose from several characters made famous in James Bond movies, not just Goldeneye. There are so many options and weapons to choose from, you could spend hours playing with your friends and not go through them all. Only the multi-player in Perfect Dark, Goldeneyes sucessor, has more content. All in all, if you enjoy these types of games, still play with an N64 or even if you are a collector, Goodeneye is a great and classic game to have around.