GoldenEye 64 probably isn’t as high and mighty as we all remember. Being a Nintendo 64 game and one of the first of its kind (on consoles) is a formula to age as well as Val Kilmer. That’s why we must never play it again. Ever since, it’s been easy to condemn Bond games as we await something to inject us with the same enthusiasm as blocky-Brosnan. Perhaps 007 Legends will be that game.
In honesty, I just want something amazing to commemorate 50 years since Dr. No. “A new storyline, based on missions from six classic Bond films” mightn’t sound like the brilliance we desire, but just wait, it isn’t half crazy.
Bond will almost certainly be played by Daniel Craig throughout the entire game. That will sour some fans, but it’s a matter of licensing issues and continuity. Unless it’s designed to be a “best of” collection, it will need one protagonist to form a coherent story.
It is, after all, a new story. To me that says it won't combine scenes from Goldfinger and Skyfall, but instead reference them in a new, flowing storyline. That could be exactly what Bond fans desire. A new story, designed for a video game, intertwined with nostalgic elements from 50 years of cinema.
The makings are there.
Throw Eurocom into the mix, and it all starts coming together. Their HD port wasn’t much to write home about, but the original Wii remake of GoldenEye was arguably the best game since, well, GoldenEye 13 years earlier. They are also credited with 2002’s Nightfire, which was a guilty pleasure of mine last generation. Eurocom knows how to make great Bond games, as arguably the best developer since Rare.
One of the reasons their Wii effort was so good, however, was its focus on offline multiplayer. Splitscreen has gone the way of Sydney’s monorail, which is a shame, because that’s where all of the best Bond games have really excelled. It also leaves us with one less reason to insult those Sydneysiders. A decent single-player is important, but it’s the multiplayer that we remember Bond games for.
007 Legends needs to combine dusty old splitscreen with the current generation’s infatuation with e-friends. It needs a dedicated offline mode that’s just as good, if not better than the online counterpart. Furthermore, it must offer the best of both worlds with splitscreen online. That would be perfect for a Bond game, as long as it’s done well. It could even work in free-for-all, as a little bit of screen cheating is always implied in Bond games, as long as you’re never implicated with hard evidence of your cheatish ways.
007 Legends could be fantastic. Nothing will ever rival the memory of GoldenEye 007 on the Nintendo 64, unless we foolishly try and replay it on HD TVs with controllers that no longer permit left turns. However, it’s time for another great Bond game. Something like Nightfire that is still a blast to play and does everything we want from a Bond game.
That game could be 007 Legends.
By Ben Salter - Tweet @Ben_Salter
Will 007 Legends be more than just another Bond cash-in?