Goldeneye 007: Reloaded Review
Goldeneye for the Nintendo 64 was a landmark game for not only its generation but gaming as a whole. Along with Ocarina of Time, Metal Gear Solid and Super Mario 64, it helped further the maturation of gaming as a collective medium. So, I’m a little embarrassed to say I’ve never played it. I wasn’t into FPSs in my teens and I’ve never had a love of James Bond. I would hear tales of wicked 4 player split-screen action, but until last year’s Bloodstone, I had never played a Bond game.
Goldeneye 007 Reloaded is a re-release of a remake, in the loosest definition of the word. Goldeneye on the Wii felt like Activision compromising on a proposed deal to get the original Goldeneye released on Wiiware or PSN/XBLA. I can only imagine how much a of a nightmare the licensing of that game is. Reloaded is last year’s Goldeneye, up-res-ed and released on the big boy consoles, PS3 and Xbox 360. As someone that played the original, James was able to give his perspective on last year’s game in his review. My take is a bit different and it makes me feel like I’m doing it wrong.
From the start, Goldeneye Reloaded feels old. All the fight scenes, enemy placement, and level geometry are consistent with games of the 5th or early 6th generation, but I think that’s the point. Eurocom may be trying to capture the essence of the original without directly copying it. Once I got used to the feel of the game and the Playstation Move controls, it felt like what I would imagine a Call of Duty game on the Move would feel like. There’s alot of iron sighting, and the snap-to targeting is prevalent. With players’ demands, the splitgate hacks are also recently released which eases the gameplay.
This is the piece of the game that feels fresh and current. By using the twitch mechanics of COD, the player is able to aim, and fire at about half a dozen targets in just a few seconds. This makes the 20-15 enemy gun battles comfortable and in most areas extremely easy. If you’re carrying a shotgun and you iron sight alot, you are a murdering machine, and boy is it satisfying. What I’m saying is that if 1997’s Goldeneye and 2007’s Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare had a lovechild it would be Goldeneye: Reloaded.
One of the goals Eurocom had when adapting the the Goldeneye story, was to make it fit into 2010, by adding modern tech and removing outdated plothooks (I.E. Cold War references). This they nailed. Bond’s smartphone and terrorist plotline make the story fit a current time frame. Visually, Reloaded doesn’t look great. It looks better than it did on Wii, but considering the level of current gen graphics, the effects are hit and miss.
Another thing I was pleased with was the stealth gameplay. Outside of Assassin’s Creed, I typically loathe stealth gameplay mechanics. In Reloaded, the stealth is natural and fast paced. In addition to the stealth hand to hand takedowns, your silenced pistol can be used to off enemies with out alerting other guards.
A headshot kills guys, but a shot anywhere else on an enemy’s body triggers a audio queue, basically telling you that you have about a 2 seconds to finish this guy off or he’s going to start alerting his buds. This period of time should be used to put 2 more bullets in his back. This whole delay mechanic is a nice alternative to the “you miss one shot you’re dead” stealth that’s in other games.
I enjoyed Goldeneye more than I thought I would and that experience was greatly enhanced by Playstation Move. Sony should really be handing out the build tools for that thing for free. As much as I liked it, I couldn’t help but think that Goldeneye Reloaded was not made for me. As someone that didn’t play the original and has never seen the movie, I’m sure Activision wasn’t thinking I would be interested.
This brings me back to the “I’m doing it wrong” statement. This game is supposed to scratch an itch, its supposed to cater directly to players of the original game. Playing this as a full on current gen release is missing the point. Hell, Bond doesn’t even have grenades to throw. What kind of FPS comes out in 2011 without throwable grenades?
Seeing serveral difficulty levels, including 007 Classic is interesting. On normal Bond relies on Halo style regenerating health.
On 007 Classic, he has health packs. I’m sure a few old players will eat this up, but a some of the sequences in the game are unforgiving and I can see them getting stupid hard with health packs. By modern standards Goldeneye is decent at best, but considering the nostalgia attached to the story and game, I can see many people diving pretty deep into the experience.
Verdict: You already know if you are interested in Goldeneye Reloaded.
