Day 1: Goldeneye

[Fierce_LiNk]

Ok, I've booted up my N64 and Goldeneye and I've wiped one of my saved files...so starting this from scratch.

 

Just starting the Dam Level...

 

*and there's a knock at the door, which means the game is now on pause...ahah*

[Wesley]

Ah man! Okay I'm going to follow suit. I can't remember what we have to do. Just play and talk?

 

*slides in GoldenEye cartridge*

 

Feels good..

[Fierce_LiNk]

Just play, talk, and have a good time!

 

I've just done the dam level, forgot how good the level design was. Also, the scenary...the backdrop of the mountains, it's still astounding to this very day.

 

Yeeess...Facility. One of my favourite level designs ever.

[Wesley]

Okay, level 1 down. What difficulty did you play? I went special agent but forgot how good the old thumbs were. I still remember, as everyone must, where all the enemies are, so I think I'm going to go double 00.

 

..shoot you in the butt.

[Fierce_LiNk]

Okay, level 1 down. What difficulty did you play? I went special agent but forgot how good the old thumbs were. I still remember, as everyone must, where all the enemies are, so I think I'm going to go double 00.

 

..shoot you in the butt.

 

I went agent to start off with, but I'm going to restart it on special now.

 

Edit: Just re-did the dam level on special.

[tapedeck]

DAY ONE SINGLE PLAYER IMPRESSIONS:

 

I hit the single player too and it was still great fun.

 

Before getting 'stuck in' I went through all of the controller setups trying to get to grips with everything again and so I settled with the dual controller setup. The usage of two analogue sticks meant it felt more modern than using the C buttons - which can feel archaic.

Also, due to the wii I kept shaking the controller to reload Doh!

 

I must mention how it's funny that Goldeneye features more options in it's setup (for both visuals and controls) than many modern day titles have. Special mention must go to the cinematic screen which still gives off a being-in-the-movie's vibe. Brilliant.

 

Unfortunately I found the lack of cutscenes (which modern games bring) means the story can seem to jump about a lot. No doubt if you know the movie well enough this isn't a problem but for those of us who aren't familiar with the plot, confusion can come into play when you think "why is Bond in Siberia now?" Thankfully wherever Bond is, he still plays as beautifully as ever.

 

Little things like the restriction from falling off ledges still feels reassuringly solid and the simplicity (yet depth) of the controls and weapon types (which all use the same ammo types thankfully) means this is still an easy title to jump back into. Also, the flaw in which enemies cannot see you through glass meant I had fun spying on the guards. Bond is a spy right?

 

The level design, which was raved about back in 1997 still feels decent too. Having been spoilt by recent shooters I was pleased that the Goldeneye single player levels felt good. I was schooled on it afterall.

The title still shakes the feeling that your being funnelled through a level by offering many alternative corridoors and rooms. (Think of how many unimportant rooms were in the facility.) Yet the objectives remain realistic and more importantly believable within the world Bond inhabits.

You can tell that the levels were developed before the objectives were even thought of. This means there are 'pointless' sections of areas. True to life.

 

The AI of enemy soldiers was also enjoyable purely by its gung-ho approach. FPS gaming for many years leads to a greater stealth and accuracy to your game and when acclimatised to the controls I was sneaking, sniping and sliding my way through the levels. Yet the decision of getting the guy going for the alarm or killing the guys infront of you still makes the AI seem hyper-realistic.

 

I'll be hitting multiplayer later this evening yet 'oldeneye' still feels reassuringly solid with enough variation to remain alluring in it's single player mode.

[Fierce_LiNk]

Cheers for that, dude.

 

Ok guys! We're going to need some impressions about this game, any comments as well. The best ones will end up going onto the main-site.

 

So, up and away: game and write up!

[Cube]

At first I couldn't play the game at all. It just felt horrible to play, even after I had gotten used to the controls. Then I remembered the cheat menu, in particular "Turbo Mode".

 

So, with the game running at double speed the game was more than bearable, it was a lot of fun, and felt as good as it did back in the day (when Turbo Mode was stupidly fast). The music is still awesome and nice little touches like shooting off enemy hats means that the game stand up aesthetically, too.

 

The great thing about GoldenEye (and a few other N64 shooters) is that even though they are made up of lots of small levels, it never feels linear (unlike most modern FPS games). The levels have a decent amount of exploration and allows for a bit of freedom.

 

It hasn't aged quite as well as Perfect Dark...then again, Perfect Dark was always a massive improvement over the great GoldenEye.

[Fierce_LiNk]

Whilst booting this up earlier today, I couldn't help but be transported back to my childhood. Hearing that oh-so familiar theme music made the hairs on the back of my neck stand up, and I armed my PPK ready to do battle once again.

 

Some games lose their magic over the years, and some even have your questioning why you liked them in the first place. Thankfully, Goldeneye doesn't fit into either of these categories. It's a true classic, and it still sucks you into that other world, even to this day.

 

Whilst the multiplayer is hours of fun, the single player missions are where this game truely excels. Based on the first Bond movie to star Pierce Brosnan, you start off the game at the Dam. For a game that was created in the late 90's, a decade ago, this really doesn't look too shabby even by today's standards. The scenary is still marvelous to look at, particularly the backdrop of mountains. In my honest opinion, the area where this game really does excel is the pace of the gameplay. Very rarely in this game do you wander around or run aimlessly - the structure of the missions and the layout of the levels/maps are second to none, and would even teach shooters of this generation a thing or two.

 

The pace is brilliant. There's a perfect blend of stealth, where you are ducking and dodging both guards and bullets, and there's a more than healthy amount of action and gun-fighting. Before you open doors, you may find 4 or 5 guards aiming right on that pretty forehead of yours, or you may find a massive room where you need to silently take out each victim one-by-one.

 

I can't emphasise enough how much this game means to me, and I urge you all to give the single player one last go. It's still very challenging, and will leave you wishing you could go back to that special time in your life when the whole Nintendo community wore the numbers 007 on their sleeve, just like their hearts.

[ViPeR]

I played this not long ago. I always break it out every now and again. Thing is I always start off playing it innocently but I just know eventually i'm going to end up seeing how many different ways I can kill the scientists in Facility. Or creating a huge stack of remote mines, setting them off, then give the game slowdown for 10 minutes. Great success!

[Fierce_LiNk]

I played this not long ago. I always break it out every now and again. Thing is I always start off playing it innocently but I just know eventually i'm going to end up seeing how many different ways I can kill the scientists in Facility. Or creating a huge stack of remote mines, setting them off, then give the game slowdown for 10 minutes. Great success!

 

Haha, me and my brother did that in multiplayer. Basically, we were playing the Library level, and I lined up the whole room with mines. They were set up like dominos, so as soon as one mine went off they all did. I was in hysterics when he walked into a room and it turned into a chasm of fire.

 

Hahahahaha.

[tapedeck]

Having plunged three friends into a 1997 time warp and played Goldeneye in multiplayer for the last few hours I can report that it was a blast.

 

Getting three friends round to play Goldeneye wasn't a hard sell. Afterall these friends wasted their youth on Goldeneye. No, scratch the word wasted. These friends just grew up on Goldeneye. The nostalgia could be felt in the room as everyone discussed how much fun they had on the game back in the day.

 

We quickly decided that no-one should pick Oddjob nor Jaws and we went through every multiplayer map. From Facility to Temple to the Caverns and beyond. 'Slappers Only' brought about a cheer yet we went straight for standard multiplayer gun fights.

 

The speed of the title instantly killed our massive high hopes as it felt like playing through soup. Recent FPS titles run silky smooth yet the 30fps of Goldeneye feels archaic. Shame. Alarmingly, no-one said the graphics were bad. One player commented that he had recently played the title and thought the graphics still looked great, especially when put next to the 'blocky' 32bit platforms.

 

Gladly the gameplay still shines and after wrestling the controllers we were headshotting like pros. The maps were memorable to start with and age hasn't really changed this. Some of us remembered grates which you could walk through or secret walls in the Temple. This led us to many "oh yeah!" moments. Great fun. What all of us were bowled over by was the sheer depth of the multiplayer's gameplay - if not the actual modes of play. For something apparently "last minute" the multiplayer in Goldeneye is still worth your time with friends. Friendships were lost all over again yet the true friend we rediscovered was Rare's wonder.

 

Time may change most things but Goldeneye will always feel like an old friend. Same craic. Same faults. Same looks. Yet that same feeling of wonder pores from every piece of silicon. Play Goldeneye and you may just remember why you stood by your N64 even when the platforms releases were non-existant. A classic.

[Portlett]

lets face it woulld your life be the same if Goldeneye didn't happen?

[Goron_3]

I'm playing Facility atm. It's so amazing and by far my favourite FPS level ever.

[Fierce_LiNk]

I'm playing Facility atm. It's so amazing and by far my favourite FPS level ever.

 

I was playing it earlier, it's so awesome.

 

Get your comments and impressions posted up on here, and we'll get it added to the main-site, ladies and gentlemen.

[darksnowman]

I did it. After Doctor Who and Doctor Who Confidential, I unboxed the N64 for yet another hurrah.

 

Hail to the King, Baby!

Duke Nukem 64. It had to be the first thing in seeing as no one else seems to have bought it! I whipped through the opening three levels of Hollywood Holocaust, Red Light District and Duke Burger - "Go away, we're like, closed." I played Duke a few months ago, showing it off to a mate, and I found it kinda hard to get back into. But this evening, on my own I was straight back into it with no hitches. I made those alien scum pay.

 

What I always liked and appreciated about Duke was the quiet atmosphere (made you feel alone- moreso than any Metroid game. :wink:), and the amount of secrets to find in each level. There were tons of little vantage points, secret rooms and things to uncover and use. Where I found this came into its own was the multiplayer Dukematches.

 

I had some Dukematch action tonight- me versus the Dukebots. You can't do that in GoldenEye now, can you!? And trust me, there's nothing better than getting a jetpack, a shotgun and some explosive shells and taking to the skies above the stadium to pick off the Bots below.

 

Speaking of GoldenEye... you couldn't have a slash in the toilets in Facility, could you? Or fraternise with some strippers... well, we can let that one slide seeing as the Big N's censors got the strip clubs, nudity and swearing removed.

 

GoldenEye

Again, I played this a few months ago- but only in multiplayer. I threw on some cheats (paintball mode!) just because I could, and headed to the Dam. I hadn't realised how long it has been since I played GoldenEye in one player! As the camera panned in before the level started, I could almost smell and taste my early teenaged years. Good memories... and the game didn't disappoint. I switched the controls to Solitaire (you know it makes sense) and I paintballed my way to the bungee jump.

 

After that I played a few other levels which were also good- such as the Bunker. I had forgotten how to select the watch magnet, but I got there after a minute then me and Natalya were free to wreak havoc on our way to the control room, which she was obsessed with getting to. Sadly, Natalya got caught in some crossfire along the way meaning I laid waste to the control room when I reached it before escaping out to the helipad.

[Marshmellow]

Ooooh man this thread is depressing. I will never forgive meself for selling all my N64/Snes/Nes stuff. I will reclaim it all!...eventually.

[tapedeck]

Ooooh man this thread is depressing. I will never forgive meself for selling all my N64/Snes/Nes stuff. I will reclaim it all!...eventually.

 

Even sharing your memories makes you feel better.

 

Darksnowman, your opinions are now part of the feature

 

And YES! although I've not had time to mention it, I too loved Duke Nukem 3D. The atmosphere was so amazing. Scooting around in the cinema had more atmosphere than many games recently. The N64 version was really amazingly handled and (although not as smutty) was easily as fun as the PC version!

 

I loved (and owned) the Zero Hour game too and that was brilliant. "I'm gonna chew gum and kick ass, damn I'm all out of gum!"....Duke was awesome.

 

There is a reason people are still anxious for Duke Nukem Forever.

[mr_bogus]

So no one tried the South Park game then, with miles & miles of repetitive evil turkeys?

[Zechs Merquise]

I've posted my Goldeneye impressions over on the Wii Board. We should never forget the first Turok game, that was mindblowing too.

[tapedeck]

Don't know if anyone has played this gem of a shooter but here is a link for a Gameboy inspired 2D Goldeneye 64 clone

 

It's only 1 level, the Dam. It plays like any other 2D shoot 'em up: You run right and shoot stuff. There's a nice gun gimmick: Every time you kill a bad guy, you gain experience, when you get enough, you level your gun up. You can level up through 5 stages, each stage gives you a different gun from the GoldenEye 64 game.

 

DOWNLOAD HERE

 

It's really accomplished and actually good fun

[tapedeck]

Anyone try the Goldeneye shooter above?

[mr_bogus]

Anyone try the Goldeneye shooter above?

 

I downloaded it, unzipped it then realised it wasn't a gameboy rom after all - was a windows app & i'm not using windows will try it on a different PC...

 

Edit: Just tried it. Looks & sounds sweet! Only problem is the gameplay runs at about 1 or 2 fps for me

[Coolness Bears]

Anyone try the Goldeneye shooter above?

 

I tried it as soon as you posted the other day but forgot to say anything.

 

It's pretty cool. :awesome:

 

I like how the guns upgrades as you kill more enemies, I was annoyed when I was going through the level and killed the enemies but forgot to activate the switches. >___<

[MoogleViper]

Anyone try the Goldeneye shooter above?

 

I've just spent about 10 minutes dancing naked to the music. I haven't played the game yet, will have a go later.

 

(I didn't purposefully get naked to dance to it I was just about to get dressed when the music came on.)