User Rating: 9.3 | GoldenEye 007 N64
I remember back in December 1997; Christmas came and I opened my presents. The last preset that I opened was the one my Dad had hidden inside the closet; he pulled it out and handed it to me. Fairly large box, and I had no clue what it was; I opened it and it was the Nintendo 64! I had a Playstation (1) and didn’t play it that much, so I wasn’t really excited for I though the 64 might just be like the Playstation (1). Boy was I wrong; latter that day I hooked it up to my television, and the game that my dad bought along with it was James Bond 007 GoldenEye! One of the most successful game of all time; best seller back then. The 64’s graphics where quite noticeably better than the Playstation’s (1) graphics. I played GoldenEye all the way into the next afternoon! GoldenEye 007 is what I call “the best all-time game ever”. The game had so much depth and charisma to it that I played it for hours, even though I should’ve been doing my homework. It had a dynamic range to it. Countless missions spread across different environments makes it a continues enjoyment to play, unlike other games, should I say Mario 64 (I liked Mario, but sorry, it got old right away with the “same o same o”). The controls were fantastic, along with the Nintendo 64’s joystick. What made it even better is that it is first-person. I want to feel like I’m that person, and actually be able to aim the gun for myself unlike other third-person games, such as Syphon Filter. The sound track from sound effects of bullets hitting off the wall behind you to the music themes, are all of top notch. The only thing that could make the sound better would be actual speech from characters. Definitely a must have game for the Nintendo 64, the sales record alone speaks for itself, “one of the all time best selling games”. The controls, graphics, and a certain depth in 007 GoldenEye “forced” me to beat the levels in all three difficulties! How many games do that? The graphics where incredible for its time, along with different environments. The control of the game was excellent; I could literally aim the gun myself without the crosshairs and auto-aim on. Holding down a button allows you to aim anywhere on the screen quickly and fairly precisely. The music was good and set the mode. On one level you start out in a elevator with elevator music; when you exit the elevator the real soundtrack kicks in, sure that’s not a big deal but I though it added some details to a well made game during its time. Not even the hard levels toward the end stopped me from playing; I beat the whole game. I no longer have the game (yet alone the Nintendo 64) since I no longer enjoy it, funny enough though, I still consider it one of the best games ever. Don’t be fooled by the new “GoldenEye” coming out of EA studios; I think they are just using the name for sales. Heck, they are already getting it wrong, you play the bad guy instead of James.
