Goldeneye tested on 12 year-old, fails 'timeless' test
by James Ransom-Wiley 
{ Jun 29th 2006 at 5:25PM }
AddictedGeek.com recently dropped a N64, four controllers, and a copy of the much-beloved Goldeneye in front of a 12 year-old. Mind you, said 12 year-old, while a "confirmed geek," has never played a game that predates 2001. His entire gaming collection is firmly rooted in a high end PC, Xbox 360, and PS2.So what was this young upstart's reaction to what many of us consider a 'timeless classic?' Well, the little bastard panned it:
"The single-player was one of the worst I have ever played ... I can see why it was so popular when it first came out, but nowadays very few aspects of the game stand out, and many more pull it back ... it wasn't long before we pulled out Halo 2." (Kids these days...)
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 3)
Sir Stank @ Jun 29th 2006 5:30PM
Loved that game.
yourenemiesfriends @ Jun 29th 2006 5:30PM
those little punks need to show some respect!
Sheir @ Jun 29th 2006 5:32PM
Wow, that kid sucks at life.
j. @ Jun 29th 2006 5:34PM
I actually liked it more back when you could predict the movement of the enemies. Now with all the AI improvements, it's trying to be more realistic, but it becomes less "game-y". And as frustrating as Natalya's (lack of) intelligence was in the Jungle level, it was so soothing to pop her just once in a while...
GoldenEye rocked.
Ahhh, when times were much simpler... when I actually had time to finish a 20+ levels game on every difficulty level...
[/end nostalgia]
Cameron @ Jun 29th 2006 5:37PM
A lot of 3D from the N64/PS era does not hold up. It is nearly unplayable nowadays. Doesn't take away from the greatness of those titles at all, though. That kid should at least understand that GoldenEye and a lot of other games are used as blueprints for what we have now. I totally understand him not liking GoldenEye due to the muddiness, blurriness, slowness, etc. But I hope he isn't going to flatout disrepect that game and the talent behind it.
ejflex @ Jun 29th 2006 5:37PM
Haha. To compare Halo 2... to taking out a Klobb for an extra long drawn out kill on some helpless weaponless Russian is insane.
ster @ Jun 29th 2006 5:38PM
well, at least he saw what was good in it
but he sounds pretty spoiled. lame
McWeen @ Jun 29th 2006 5:39PM
"Ahhh, when times were much simpler... when I actually had time to finish a 20+ levels game on every difficulty level..."
Amen to that
Zo K. @ Jun 29th 2006 5:39PM
Dear Lord, that is SO depressing. I'm not that old. -_-;
Little snot needs to learn his place. I, personally, don't think any console FPS has come close to Goldeneye 007, Turok, and Perfect Dark in terms of control without a keyboard and mouse. Not even the Halo games.
I think a little history lesson is in order.
slash @ Jun 29th 2006 5:40PM
Man I remember playing that one level with the bathroom.
You could use this trick to jump up into the vents,
Then we would load up with soo many guns and wait for people to come in to kill XD
hah good times
Mike Ray @ Jun 29th 2006 5:41PM
i don't understand the allure of goldeneye. it is ugly and i would rather play Doom.
I think Ocarina of Time still looks pretty despite its low polygon count.
James @ Jun 29th 2006 5:42PM
I am 14, so I was only about 7 when GoldenEye came out. I was too scared to play single player, but Multiplayer with my brother and sister was always a blast. GoldenEye was the last real console game my sister played (besides Mario Kart and Fuzion Frenzy); She never really got into Halo.
Armin @ Jun 29th 2006 5:42PM
Well, I can't understand why The Rolling Stones Are "Timeless". Or Doom.
It's a new generation, this always happens.
In '98 GoldenEye was a masterpiece.
I'm sure Half Life 1 would be crap for a 12 year old today.
N3k74r @ Jun 29th 2006 5:42PM
He can shove Halo 2 up his behind.
Quentin @ Jun 29th 2006 5:42PM
I can see why this kid snubbed this game. For crying out loud, he was barely potty trained when this game came out. He couldn't have much of any memory of this title at the time. The same could be said for me with the Atari and all pre-NES stuff. I could never really appreciate those games since I was never fully exposed to that stuff.
MegaMatt @ Jun 29th 2006 5:46PM
that kid can have his opinion but I will tell you this... I know there hasn't been a game since Goldeneye 007 for N64 that has given me as much fun as that game did, including Halo or Halo 2.
Brian (Magus) @ Jun 29th 2006 5:47PM
But Goldeneye, unlike Halo 2, is balanced*, and you can't regain your health by running around a corner and hiding.
*unless you play with the Golden Gun. But that's all in good fun. :-)
The3rdNuisance @ Jun 29th 2006 5:49PM
I had that game when it came out, I was like 6 at the time, but no matter how much I played it, I really didn't like it, I'd play it often with my older brother, but It got so boring after a while. I'll never understand how that game came to be so immensley popular. Even if that game had better graphics, it would still be rather boring. I don't see how its possible to not have played the original Playstation or the N64 by age 12 though.
MosquitoControl @ Jun 29th 2006 5:50PM
He's right. The single player was terrible. It never explained to you what the hell you were doing.
The multiplayer still holds up as much as it did when PD came out (which instantly dated it.) You just need to take half an hour to get used to looking for fuzzy motion. Unfortunately most of my friends refuse to dedicate that time.
Zacky V @ Jun 29th 2006 5:51PM
MS please bring this to marketplace (I'll pay over $20 for this) Goldeneye on Live and dual analog sticks...WOOHOO
epobirs @ Jun 29th 2006 5:52PM
Much as people loved Goldeneye, would most of them call it timeless? It's a genre that is intensely tech driven and demanding of developers to do more. Look at what happened with Doom 3. The novelty of the new visual splendor wore off rapidly as the game was still stuck in the early 90s.
Games with solid design that didn't overreach seem to meet the timeless description better. No mater how ugly or pretty you make it, Space Invaders has a solid play mechanic that is addictive. Nintendo could take Mario 3 and give it a graphic overhaul to match the recent DS SMB game. Long after te graphics had become overly familiar it would be the gameplay that sustains it without complaining that the koopas need to be a bit smarter.
DG @ Jun 29th 2006 5:52PM
One of the things lost about Goldeneye is how good a movie translation it was. I saw the movie after playing through the game, and was surprised how closely the movie was to the game, or the other way around.
Considering how bad movies-to-games often are, Goldeneye deserves a lot of credit in that regard.
Otherwise, these kids are idiots. I could easily sit and play the arcade Tron for hours right now, and that game came out when I was two. Like someone else said, they're spoiled.
Franky Digital @ Jun 29th 2006 5:53PM
Very interesting experiment. This post gets an A++. Would read again.
D @ Jun 29th 2006 5:54PM
what the hell do 12 year old kids know? They're all douchebags who love crap.
fashionfauxpas @ Jun 29th 2006 5:54PM
after 20+ years of playing video games, i think Goldeneye is the only game that i actually enjoyed getting 100% on everything. i remember soar thumbs, smashed controllers and even drinking games with Goldeneye. but i just viewed this a few days ago...
http://youtube.com/watch?v=tyBSU60ZOqk&search=GOLDENEYE
riffgod @ Jun 29th 2006 5:55PM
There are so many things wrong with that test I don't know where to begin.
As far as timelessness goes for 007, I guess I never thought of it that way, although I do agree. I also talk about 007 being a pioneer title. I also think that when you get it right the first time stop trying to fix it. There was no need to further this genre. Every first person shooter since was a waste of my time. (alright, I admit, that was an overstatement meant to rile of the fanboys)
Azrael @ Jun 29th 2006 5:56PM
Hahahaha lol, some of you guys sound so old when trying to make those remarks!
Of course he shows "no respect" for a 10 year old game, first of all ITS A GAME, second probably this kid first FPS was Halo 2 or Half life 2, what else did you expected?
Yes teens LAUGH at the games we used to play when we were young (a nephew of mine laughs at the original afterburner and altered beast). Kids dont understand old tech, Its a fact of life! get used to it. Actually If I havent played it in the arcade myself when I was a kid, I probably would laugh really hard at pong too. (I mean, seriously compared to anything else it doesnt even compare to a modern mini-game anymore)
bill pullman @ Jun 29th 2006 5:57PM
i remember a pal of mine bought Goldeneye upon launch and couldn't get enough. i tried multiple times to enjoy it, but could not. i had zero interest in it, despite my enjoyment of many other FPS action games.
to sum up, i think this is much less a statement about "kids today" or any sort of gaming-related generation gap, but more an opinion of a small group of individuals who happen to not like a particular game. where's the story in that?
case in point: my 14-year old brother has grown up playing the new stuff (360, PS2, GC, DS), but enjoys playing a great many classic NES/Genesis/SNES games.
Raynre @ Jun 29th 2006 5:59PM
Bring him a copy of Ocarina of Time and see how he hold up on the Water Temple. XD Betcha he wont be complaining then...
Jaded @ Jun 29th 2006 6:04PM
Wipe away the nostalgia and Goldeneye doesn't actually shine. Really most of what's still good about Goldeneye is that people played it so much that they know every nook and cranny of each level. It isn't even the graphics; gameplay itself has jumped forward immensely in the last eight years. If Goldeneye was really "timeless" don't you think that PDZ and Timesplitters, both essentially just Goldeneye with a new coat of paint, would have more of a following?
Now I'm not saying that Goldeneye wasn't the shit back in the day, but hell, even Starfox 64 has aged better.
Steven A. Hammock @ Jun 29th 2006 6:09PM
Okay... I am a 16 year old, and I grew up with Goldeneye. About a week ago, me and another friend who grew up with it, well, we decided to load it up and play.
After finally getting the cartridge to work, we played a few rounds. Not only did I find the game unplayable, but I started doubting my choice in games when I was younger.
For some reason the game didn't stand the test of time, at all. I loved the game the first time it came out, but now, it just isn't the same.
We did decide to fire up Diddy Kong Racing though, and that stood the test of time much better.
I am scared to think of what some of my other old favorites my be like.
Clay @ Jun 29th 2006 6:12PM
I wasted my entire childhood playing that game. What gives? Kids these days need to implode and die.
Kyoji @ Jun 29th 2006 6:13PM
Perfect Dark will awlays hold the crown for best mutliplayer, and the Compound for best map. You just cant beat that! And its not even nostalgia, I've logged WAy more hours playing Perfect Dark in the last year than I have any other FPS game from the past or present; the game just holds up in its fun factor. Goldeneye definetly paved the way for PD, though...considering it was the same people :P
KiySeph @ Jun 29th 2006 6:13PM
Why you ol' whippersnapper! Back in my day, we didn't need no fancy smancy Plasma Grenades to throw at our enemies! We had manly Remote Mines that we had to throw at walls and blow up manually!
GET OFF MY LAWN!
Grindstone @ Jun 29th 2006 6:15PM
I feel a sharp pain in my heart... and the sudden urge to hurt 12 year olds. Well, this is why I am not a big supporter of 12 year olds. The government should do something about them.
Anyway, I haven't played Goldeneye in 6 years or so. Nostalgia has a purpose in life, and if you try to return it, typically you ruin things. I know Goldeneye would be fun for me, but after a while, that fun wears off and the golden memory diminishes too. Sure, it is a lack-luster game by today's standards, but this 12 year old fails to realize the importance of Golden eye to console history, whish is huge. His Halo 2 pays homage to it's GoldenEye forerunners. Just as we older gamers pay homage to those that made gaming industry what it is today.
Stevie (aka Lord of Hair) @ Jun 29th 2006 6:18PM
"those little punks need to show some respect!"
-yourenemiesfriends
Exactly what I was thinking, makes me wish I had a little brother that could got beat some respect into him
Golden Eye was and for me still is one of the best FPS I have ever played, I would spend hours on four player in it without sleep and when I did sleep I'd be taking out my friends in my Dreams
I had a couple games of Goldeneye with my Ex Girlfrineds little brother(16 years old), he liked and respected it
we had much more time with Perfect Dark and he Loved it(he's a hardcore Halo2 player)
gotta love faceing down a few Darksims with Dual Magnums half my health gone
Stevie
23, NZ (damnit, can't remember my PD rank grrr)
TheVexedSoul @ Jun 29th 2006 6:19PM
Maybe he didn't like playing it because the N64 controller is a piece (only a piece) of crap.
Michael @ Jun 29th 2006 6:23PM
my nephew, who is 11, played a couple of the missions on my modded xbox with a buggy emulated version. he liked it and now has a copy, but no 64, he wants one though. of course though this kid is addicted to games and plays just about anything, even crappy games. but i think i've taught him well...
Jacob Gonzalez @ Jun 29th 2006 6:24PM
That kid is not spoil..... because if he was....then we were spoiled as well when we had out Nintendo 64.
BPM? @ Jun 29th 2006 6:24PM
I'm with KiySeph...
GET OFFA MAH LAWN!
Though I'm not big on FPS games in the first place, GoldenEye is one that I liked, and I never cared much for James Bond, either (don't hate him; just not a fan).
And I can't see what's so great about Halo 2, either... it's WORSE than the first one in many aspects, and still many people herald it as being OMG TEH BEZT FPS EVAR. Oi.
SickNic @ Jun 29th 2006 6:26PM
MS please bring this to marketplace (I'll pay over $20 for this) Goldeneye on Live and dual analog sticks...WOOHOO
Zacky V
God no. See thats whats also wrong with hollywood. Everybody wasnt to go back and remake the classics because it worked the first time around. NO. Let the classics be the classics. If you like the game, then play it on the n64. Leave the classics in the past and concentrate on new and amazing games.
striderhayasa @ Jun 29th 2006 6:26PM
@ Zoe K,
I second that! Those three games turned me into a first person shooter fan. Turok 1m then Goldeneye, then Turok 2 then Perfect Dark showed me the 64 was worthy of some consideration. It kills me how people will compare Goldeneye to Halo 2. It took a console with more than twice the power to do what the 64 did years prior.
Osiris @ Jun 29th 2006 6:28PM
The fact is, the more you play, the more your standards are raised.
It has nothing to do with this generation of 12 year olds, but just the fact that he has played games that are much improved over those from 10 years ago, and so will find it difficult to enjoy something that seems so flawed to him.
For those of us that enjoyed it back then, that was new, that was the best at the time, and that's why it brought so much fun.
The only reason we are still able to enjoy it to so much degree is because of the nostalgia it gives us.
This is the same for pretty much anything: films, books, music, LIFE.
Why do you think film critics are always up their arsed and hate every film created? They have seen too many, have come to expect the best, and can only enjoy the best.
bm @ Jun 29th 2006 6:28PM
It's ALWAYS a bad idea to go "down the ladder", i.e. playing Pong right after finishing Rockstar's new table tennis game for example. Instead, they should have let this kid play some Wolfenstein, then some Doom, and maybe some other early FPS games without any mission objectives, items, damange areas on the enemy, storyline, or even bilinear filtering or AA, and THEN let him have a go at Goldeneye.
Either way, you get much of Goldeneye's storyline through reading. There's stuff to read before each mission, and it helps a lot. I guess he wants everything in a flashy cutscene. He probably won't like Metroid Prime then. Or books. "Confirmed geek"?
heavyness @ Jun 29th 2006 6:32PM
no surprise here. it's called evolution. any one here play ball-in-cup, stickball, tiddlewinks, flying jennys, and or hit a wheel down the dirt road with a stick?
yes, there are some classic games, but this is a young, fast growing industry that has to evolve rapidly to survive.
if anything, this should be seen as a positive and just showcases how fast we are moving and an industry.
not the kid's faults.
monkyofdoom @ Jun 29th 2006 6:32PM
geez that kid who compared it to halo 2 was a idiot.
Im 15 and I think goldeneye is one the best games on the N64 and was one of the first games to get console FPS right.That's right kids if it wasn't for rare an Goldeneye there would be no halo.Thanks for playing kthnx bye.
youcantbadmouthgoldeneye @ Jun 29th 2006 6:33PM
everyone that i knew back during the n64/ps1 era loved golden eye. i have yet to see someone who hated it. maybe it's because you're a loner playing on the ps1 and never had the experience we had with our friends. i swear dude, n64 is a multiplayer beast, next was the dreamcast with marvel vs. capcom.
youcantbadmouthgoldeneye @ Jun 29th 2006 6:35PM
"it's not the kid's fault" i know it's microsoft and sony's fault. f'ing everything got to be streamlined and the same.
Raikage @ Jun 29th 2006 6:36PM
Ahh Goldeneye...And Perfect Dark...well PD I played once about 5 years ago...meh, then I played it about 2 months ago(I bought it like 2 years ago and didn't play it) and BAM that game is still awesome...FPS' have lost their fun. Sure carrying 37 weapons along with the Alt. modes isn't realistic but it sure is fun. And what ever happend with remote mines? Those were the best weapons ever...I p0w3d everyone with them (LOL when I was 10...wow I'm old:/). So yeah PD is still fun, well for the first time. 10+8...yeah I'm almost 18 and I've played everything just about (except the Sega Master System has eluded me....) why haven't these kids ever played these games. I swear if I have kids and they want to play games...I'll make them start with Mario on the NES (man...I beat that when I was 3...crazy)
P.S. Jet Force Gemini is still one of the coolest games ever...
The Raikage
J.Goodwin @ Jun 29th 2006 6:38PM
Goldeneye was good fun back in college. We had it in heavy rotation along with Wipeout, SEGA Worldwide Soccer 98, and Saturn Bomberman up until I imported a Dreamcast.
Never did play the first perfect dark.
What stood out to me about Goldeneye was really just the vibe of the level design. It didn't strike me so much at the time, but when you go back and play the Xbox version of Wolfenstein Tides of War, you end up in a lot of areas that are just complete homages to the levels from Goldeneye. IMHO the mines in Far Cry have that same feel as well. It's definitely made it's mark on gaming, whether it holds up well or not.