Rare's GoldenEye 007 is still remembered as one of the most influential titles from the Nintendo 64 era. Not only was it among the most popular titles for the console, it also helped pave the way for the future of console-based first person shooters.
At this year's GDC Europe, game director Martin Hollis (now of Zoonami) went in-depth on how the project came to be in a rare classic game postmortem. An embedded video of that talk is now available for free, courtesy of the GDC Vault - a standalone version is also available.
While the game eventually became one of the biggest blockbusters on the Nintendo 64, Hollis said GoldenEye actually came from some modest beginnings.
For instance, Hollis originally pitched the title as a simple on-rails, Virtua Cop-style game rather than the free-roaming shooter that fans have come to adore. Perhaps even more surprising, Hollis revealed that the game's wildly popular multiplayer mode was shoehorned into the game at the last minute, and took only one month to make.
Along the way, Hollis shared anecdotes about how the team at Rare balanced the game's violence with a dash of humor, and why he believes some major design flaws actually made the game more charming.
To see for yourself how this seminal Nintendo 64 title came to be, be sure to check out the above video, courtesy of the GDC Vault.
Simply click the Play button above to start the video.
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Video: The humble beginnings of GoldenEye 007 for the Nintendo 64
GoldenEye 007 game director Martin Hollis offers an in-depth postmortem on this Nintendo 64 classic, telling the story of how the game evolved from humble roots to seminal console shooter.