GoldenEye Multiplayer Impressions

hile everyone was in line for Zelda: Skyward Sword and the 3DS, I strolled over to GoldenEye. Being developed by someone at Activision, I have many fears about it despite the fantastic trailer (the part with the gameplay, not with the strange people sitting at the table acting like they’ve barely know what a video game is, let alone are let out of their cages often.

Unfortunately, there is no single player demo available. At least, the gentleman I asked at the multiplayer demo said, “Not here- not today.” So I don’t know if that means there is a demo somewhere that isn’t the Nintendo booth or if he just means it’s not at the event. This is distressing if only because thats the main part of the game that I really want to try out. How is there new AI and mission structure? Did they add too much scripting? Can you open doors?

I have to say, though, that multiplayer was a blast. I chose the mutated version of 006 that doesn’t look like Sean Bean to play with. He wears a beanie and looks homeless. So I guess job well done, given that I wouldn’t suspect him of being a spy unless it meant spying where I put my wallet.

Two methods of control are available that I am ware of. Those being wiimote + nunchuck action, and the classic controller. I played with the latter, which worked really well. There’s a button for throwing grenades now, as well as melee attack option. All in all it feels like a solid first person experience, but didn’t feel like GoldenEye. This isn’t a bad thing, and honestly how can it feel like GoldenEye. It uses a dual stick setup. Also, rather than a red targeting reticle there’s the implementation of iron sights (like Call of Duty). And because it was a multiplayer demo I couldn’t see how detailed the game was with hit point precision. Can I shoot a guard in the hand and have them react to it? No one knows because in multiplayer the characters barely reacted to getting shot other than slowing down a bit, a feature I did not notice in the demo.

It felt more like Modern Warfare to me actually, except with a speed and level design fitting for what this game is trying to accomplish. And if you ever fantasized about being able to traverse GoldenEye multiplayer maps in news ways then you’ll be more than happy, as you can now clamber over crates, railings, and the like. It was this feature I appreciated the most of all the “new” stuff. Bypassing the stairs in Archives to surprise people a story below was fantastic.

I look forward to playing this game at home. The multiplayer is solid, I just hope that the single player stands up to the ultimate comparison, being one of the great classics of our time. But hey, it won’t be hard for them to beat those blurry graphics at least.