Rare’s classic FPS GolenEye 007 almost saw a release on Xbox Live Arcade. Almost. In the end, though, 1Up.com reports that Nintendo and Microsoft let greed get in the way of one of the most requested classic re-releases. It’s a shame about the greed, but is the lack of a release really a shame?

GoldenEye, if you didn’t know, is one of those games for which gamers hold an almost religious fervor. The game was tie-in with the movie of the same name, and was one of the first console FPS to really integrate story with gameplay. In other words, it was the Half-Life of consoles. Beyond that, though, it was a great party game. The multiplayer showed the potential for social gaming that Halo would capitalize on several years later. Having said all that, it was on the N64.

Games for the N64, like many of its PlayStation and Saturn contemporaries, have not really held up well over the years. While the sharp sprites of classic Super Nintendo and Genesis titles tend to age well, titles form the early days of 3D games do not. N64 titles, especially, not only suffer from bad cameras and low polygon geometry, but the textures tend to be super low resolution, and that’s to say nothing of the frame rates. In other words, GoldenEye hasn’t held very well graphically. Additionally, the gameplay which was fantastic for its day tends to pale in comparison with many modern shooters. The AI isn’t quite as smart and the general horizontal plane of gameplay doesn’t take full advantage of the vertical plane that modern titles do.

Still, the question remains if it’s fun, and the answer is yes. For those who cut their teeth on the Halos of the world the game would be a major disappointment, especially with all the reverent lore surrounding it. However, to those who remember actually playing the game upon its release, the gameplay remains fun, if not slightly simpler than you might remember. More than the game actually holding up, however, is the issue of nostalgia surrounding it. Gamers have waited years for the chance to play this game online (similar to those who still wish for an online version of the original Halo), and many would jump at it regardless of the quality. They remember the game as it was, and they still want the chance to relive memories from years ago. If you doubt nostalgia alone could make this a hit, ask why the Mario titles continue to sell by the truckload on the Virtual Console to people who have surely played these games millions of times before and likely own two or three versions already.

If you’re interested in having your voice heard (or perhaps conveniently ignored) on the issue of this title’s release, then sign one of the many online petitions that have sprung up in response. The gaming community is so enraged by this almost release, we’re sure to get a real release sooner than later.

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