GoldenEye (1997) (VG)

Director:

Martin Hollis

Writers:

David Doak (screenplay)
Ian Fleming (character)

Release Date:

25 August 1997 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Adventure | Thriller

Tagline:

You are Bond. James Bond.

Plot:

James Bond must track down agent-turned-terrorist Alec Trevelyan to stop the launch of a powerful satellite.

Plot Keywords:

James Bond | Satellite | Train | Hostage | Captured By Enemy

Awards:

3 wins & 2 nominations

Cast

Kevin Bayliss	...	James Bond (voice)
Ken Lobb	...	Character Face

Also Known As:

Golden Eye (International: English title) (alternative spelling)
GoldenEye 64 (International: English title) (informal alternative title)
Goldeneye007 (UK) (video box title)

Country:

UK | USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Certification:

Australia:MA | South Korea:15 | Germany:(Banned) | UK:15 | USA:T

Company:

Rare

Trivia:

In the Silo you can get Ourumov's briefcase, but it serves no purpose. The programmers originally intended to have an easter egg you could unlock by getting it, but ultimately didn't go through with it.

Goofs:

Plot holes: When you meet Xenia Onnatop in the jungle, she implies that Bond and her have met before. While in the movie (upon which the game is based), Bond and Xenia had met several times by this point, this is the first (and only) time they meet in the game's continuity.

Quotes:

Alec trevelyan: Finish the job James - If you can!

Movie Connections:

References Octopussy (1983)

A fantastic game on many different levels

Having seen his friend and co-agent Alex Trevelyan killed during a joint mission, Bond is scarred but works on. Assigned to look into the theft of a newly developed helicopter, Bond finds himself on the track of master criminal Janus and is drawn into a race against time to prevent the deadly Goldeneye satellite weapon being hijacked and used against the Government. Little does he know though, that the job will take him into such personal areas.

In every conceivable way, Goldeneye has been superseded. Other games play smoother, look better, have more functionality, bigger weapons, you name it; but yet somehow, in a market that makes massive technological jumps on an annual basis, Goldeneye stands up to playing eight years down the line. Newer games may have more detail but personally I loved this game because the locations looked great while also lacking the distracting detail that makers feel they have to cram in nowadays. Visually it flows really well and only occasionally did it struggle (I always found the jungle to be a nightmare of hazy visibility). The characters are not the smartest but they do the job as well as could be expected, although I would have liked less predictability in their actions, particularly at the hardest level.

The gameplay is great fun and very nicely challenging. The story pretty much follows the movie and produces levels requiring speed, thought, stealth, skill and elements of them all. My personal favourite is the facility although all are good either for a big session or just playing a level and then putting it down. The multiplayer is superb and it is only looking with hindsight that I see the need for other real people as a drawback (Perfect Dark added the ability to play against computers). At my peak I was very strong at this aspect of the game and I still love playing it when I get the chance.

Overall this is a superb game that has stood the test of time really well and can still be seen having a major influence almost a decade later. You can keep your 360 because this still impresses and challenges me.