That’s right people, it back. 26 years after its debut on the Nintendo 64, Goldeneye 007 has returned in all of its awesome 64-bit glory.
When it was first released, the game, which closely follows the plot of Pierce Brosnan’s first outing as James Bond, defined the first-person shooter genre, ushering in an era of competitive shooters that continues to this day. It is now available on the Xbox Game Pass and the Nintendo Switch. Check out the Xbox trailer below:
Goldeneye 007 is dripping with nostalgia. The graphics have remained completely unchanged, and they are both absolutely awful and brilliant. The boxy character models are laughably out of date, but they remain distinctly recognizable avatars of the film’s well-known faces. Simultaneously, the game brings back memories of a time when this game looked to absolutely incredible in comparison to what had come before. In 1997, this was truly cutting-edge technology.
Although the overall look is unaltered, the tightness of the updated controls is a much-appreciated change. In hindsight, it seems absolutely mad that this game had become so popular because of the trident-shaped N64 controller, which had a definitive lack of dual analog sticks.
The fact that these controls were implemented is a godsend. Goldeneye 007 is an undeniable testimony that engaging gameplay and solid controls can truly make graphics totally unimportant in a gaming experience where 4k, ray-tracing, HDR, and 60 frames per second have essentially become the go-to thing with the newer generation of gamers.
Seriously, if you don’t believe us, go ahead fire up multiplayer mode with some of your mates and tell us you even give a damn that your opponents have heads shaped like hexagons. Friendships and enemies were formed with Goldeneye 007 back in the day, and the game has come back to do it all over again.
Multiplayer is available in both the Xbox and Nintendo versions of the game, however only the Nintendo version supports online gameplay. Xbox players are stuck with the ’90s-style split screen, which is unfortunate given Xbox’s online infrastructure and Nintendo Online’s lack of voice chat. But, as we mentioned, the game is completely unchanged, so this comes as no surprise. To be honest, we’re all glad that the game got remade at all.
With all this said, Goldeneye 007 is currently available as part of Xbox Game Pass and Nintendo Switch Online subscriptions. It will also be available for free to anyone who already owns the Rare Replay game collection. In case you were wondering, the theme song is STILL a hit.
What do you think about the return of Goldeneye 007? Let us know on Twitter.
