Some activities necessitate the inclusion of more than one person. Ever seen anyone play TAG by themselves? Or a depressing game of Monopoly solo? Nope. The energy and motivation generated by the presence of others while gaming is indispensable, unforgettable and addicting in the best of ways, hence the much-adored multiplayer mode.
However, not all multiplayer games are created equal.
Nintendo Direct’s recent bombshell aboutthe upcoming release of GoldenEye 007 Remasteredstruck an immediate nostalgic chord with those who can remember sinking hours into this multiplayer hit with their buddies during the late 90s (guilty as charged). It’s hard to believe that a game with a multiplayer mode that wasthrown in as an afterthoughthas accrued such an ardent following. And yet here we are, counting the minutes and seconds until its release. But it begs the question, after so much elapsed time:will it still hold up?Does Rare studios have something new up their sleeves to reel in a generation of younger hipper gamers, or is it simply cashing in on nostalgia?
Based off of the eponymous 1995 film featuring Pierce Brosnan (his first of many Bond films), GoldenEye 007’s initial splash at the 1997 E3 was as muted as a silenced PP7.According to the game’s director, Martin Hollis, most people just strolled by the Rare booth without so much as a glance. Understandably so. Hardcore gamers were still loyally playing Doom’s pioneering multiplayer deathmatch, then the game-changing Quake released in 1996 and took the multiplayer mode to a new level. Clearly times had changed and gamers were no longer content to simply annihilate impersonal monsters/demons/et al. It was way more fun to blow away friends and acquaintances. Needless to say, the mood was grim for GoldenEye 007.
But then a miracle happened…
Similarly to box-office-bombs-turned-cult classics, GoldenEye 007’s sales steadily rose until it eventually surpassed 8 million copies worldwide. Why? In addition to its faithful adaptation of the movie, as well as its meticulous attention to detail (you can shoot just about anything, and itwillblow up), the secret was in the multiplayer deathmatch sauce. Where Quake and Doom required users to join its deathmatch via different servers on different computers (what kind of household had two computers in the 90s??), GoldenEye 007 brought the gameplay to your own living room TV with up to four players locally joining on a split screen.
Picture the scene: school backpacks thrown against the wall, you and three competitive companions take your strategic positions across the living room. With rumble pack controller in hand, your adrenaline begins to pump. It’s a good day to die. The TV screen divides into four symmetrical squares, and it’s on. From that point, the living room descends into a battlefield where the only objective is to blast the living daylights out of your dear friends in a violent and boisterous deathmatch. It’s a cacophony of cheers, taunts and threats with a good dose of profanity thrown in—if your mom wasn’t around.
The proximity to your friends/enemies was the key and enhanced the deathmatch experience to a degree previously unknown, which ultimately spilled out of the house and into more public arenas. I specifically (barely) remember full-fledged GoldenEye 007 deathmatch parties and events, most of which resulted in either bridges being formed, or burned beyond repair.
RELATED:GoldenEye HD Remaster Confirmed For Nintendo Switch And Xbox Game Pass
Whether you had beaten the actual game on either of its Agent, Secret Agent, or extremely difficult 007 Agent settings didn’t really matter. It seemed that Bond’s primary mission to stop the GoldenEye had been usurped by its much-more inclusive and far more fun multiplayer mode. And there was a lot to appreciate:
There were over twenty-seven characters to choose from, not least of all the un-lockable secret characters based on Rare developers themselves. From the blocky features of our favorite suave-yet-steely British spy, to a random Siberian guard, each avatar can also be modified via the game’s DK Mode, which exaggerates the characters’ proportions to comical levels. Also, it made itreallyeasy to rack up headshots.
Browsing through GoldenEye 007’s multiplayer weaponry was like Christmastime for gun enthusiasts. If you spent any time on the game’s story mode, then you were already familiar with the iconic KF7 Soviet, or the incredibly unreliable Klobb (lovingly named after one of Rare’s developers), but you were also given access to weapons that made your mouth water. Machine guns, proximity mines, and even rocket launchers, oh boy!
Rare’s decision to include five multiplayer modes switched things up in the best of ways. Naturally, you had the classic deathmatch option, as a well as a “capture the flag” variant, but I have fond memories of The Man with the Golden Gun mode, where you’re tasked with scouring the map in search of the incredibly lethal pistol without getting killed.
But enough of this sentimental reminiscing. What does the Remaster actuallymean?
For one, it warrants the question: is there even a place for GoldenEye 007 in the rapidly changing gaming world? It’s one thing to pine for the past, but it’s another thing to drag it into drastically different times. With the advances in technology, the clunky features of Bond and his cohorts may not have aged as gracefully as Rare suspects. One could argue it is akin to defrosting a mammoth simply because mammoths were insanely popular at one point in time. Granted, its importance to the FPS world is unquestionable, but the fact that it feels necessary to explain that fact to new gamers prior to playing almost defeats the point. GoldenEye 007 should speak for itself, and it did, just 25 years ago.
Another area of contention is the initial rollout. As the most marketable point of the GoldenEye 007 is its multiplayer, it would make sense for all updates and additions to bbe available to all intended consoles and mediums. If Nintendo Switch is indeed the only console eligible for the coveted online play option, then that could cut off the substantial Xbox Game Pass and Rare Play demographic from enjoying newly updated parts of the game, which is likely to cause backlash. Many players may instead opt for the “unofficial” Xbox 360 version for free, as opposed to shelling out $50 a year just to play GoldenEye 007 through the Nintendo Switch Online Expansion Pack subscription.
All that said, even if GoldenEye 007 doesn’t amount to anything other than a port to XBox and Nintendo Switch, that will probably satisfy the majority of expectant fans. A chance to relive the salad days with your ‘mature’ adult friends while immaturely playing blowing them away with a grenade launcher? Sign me up!
And you newcomers: if you enjoy a riveting deathmatch, a cinematic atmosphere, thick 90s nostalgia, Pierce Brosnan or proximity mine battles, then it just may hold some appeal for you as well. Avoid that Klobb though. Trust me.
