After all the hype (talking about 1998) MI failed to meet my expectations...
Graphics - Some levels look better than the others. In the outdoor missions there is lots of fog, blurry textures, problematic frame rate. Add to this the blocky characters and you have a title that's very ugly and disappointing in that area . The indoor environments -depending again on the level- have better texture quality and better frame rate( in the first level of the Embassy mission -one of the best in the game as far as the fun factor is concerned- the graphics are at least mediocre for a N64 title... then there are the CIA Escape missions that look much better but again nothing to be overwhelmed with). The presentation is average to good with nice briefings which also suffer from the foggy environments and the blocky characters. The animation of the characters is better. However for one more time MI disappoints and in that area -especially in comparison with games like Goldeneye and MGS- and feels strange, stiff and unnatural at times. .
Sound - The music theme from the series is in the game and there are a few nice sound effects... however comparing this to other N64 and PSX similar titles it's just an average attempt . .
Gameplay - MI was a very ambitious project. Some of the ideas behind it were excellent and at times the game IS fun to play. However the implementation of those ideas + the problematic technical aspects of the title create -most of the times- a very frustrating gaming experience. There are different kinds of gameplay. You 'll need to meet persons that are going to help you in your mission, to use special devices, to change appearances with the famous face maker -one of the first 3D games in which you could have that feature. All these things sound fun and at times they are. .
One of the best moments of the game was in the Embassy where you had to do specific things in order to take out the ambassador (i don't want to spoil this for you). MI isn't about shooting all the time and that was a nice change of pace in the 3d action/adventure genre. You had to disguise yourself , hide your weapon and avoid detection (if you were armed then people would start screaming and you would have a major problem).There were also moments in which you could finish a mission with more than one ways or without using all your special gadgets. .
However the game again mostly disappoints. Aiming in this title is very difficult and just doesn't feel right. There are areas in which you 'll have to make accurate jumps, and jumping in MI is again a problematic feature that 'll drive you in many unexpected deaths. Most of the times you 'll have to follow the approach of trial and error since each mission is very different than the previous ones (in such situations the game doesn't help you at all and you feel completely lost and frustrated). And since there is no in-game save system you are going to lose many times cause you won't know what exactly is going on (you need to fight? to kill? to stay in your disguise? ). .
There are a few missions totally unique in the title. The last level -that has good looking graphics- is a bit boring... you have to use a gunboat and destroy specific targets. Another one -reminding a bit of the film- has you on top of a train shooting bad guys, cars and helicopters... another frustrating experience. There are also two missions worth mentioning. 1. One of the missions recreates the famous scene from the movie with the terminal and although it's a bit difficult, it's a nice level -although VERY brief and 2. There is a mission in a train station in which you 'll have to use two different snipers in order to protect Ethan + you have to avoid killing innocent people (ugly graphics but fun gameplay). There are more cool moments in the title -using some of your gadgets and disguises- but these are few and become repetitive after a while. .
Value - Finish the game in "impossible" -not a difficult task except for the shooting stages- and then there is nothing else to do. I finished the title in about 25 hours of gameplay... .
Final Thoughts - 9 years ago MI was a BIG disappointment for all the gamers who expected this title to become the next-Goldeneye . Imagine how it looks today. Yes, there are some brilliant ideas behind this title + a few fun moments. However the bad graphics, the problematic gameplay features, the feelings of frustration ruin every positive opinion i could possibly have for MI. During these nine years there have been titles that took the ideas of this game and transformed them into amazing gameplay experiences like f.e. Hitman (Hitman2 has all these disguises and silent approaches). Play these games instead or (worst case scenario) rent the game and play it in "impossible" (it has more objectives, is more challenging and won't take long). Don't buy it. It isn't worth the money.