Golden Gun. No Oddjob. Stop tanking, you crouching douche! Any of those vague, threatening words make you remember all the rage, root beer, and Ramen-induced nights you spent playing GoldenEye 007?
Well come January 27—that's right, two days from now—you’ll be able to relive those memories. The classic Nintendo 64 James Bond game, released in 1997, will hit Nintendo Switch and Xbox Game Pass this Friday. GoldenEye 007 marks a rare case in gaming history, where the title never left the gamer zeitgeist. It has been talked about, wished over, remade, and totally Frankensteined in the modding and emulation community. Well, in a welcome turn from Nintendo and Xbox, GoldenEye 007 will officially get a 2023 facelift. being remade. Hell, this is akin to a goodwill campaign, considering that anyone paying for either membership will get this nostalgic gem for free. Pizza Hut better be offering a '90s-style sleepover box this weekend, because I'm ready to spike my Mountain Dew with vodka. It’ll be just like the good old days.
Rare, a favourite game studio of mine—its crew is responsible for many of my childhood memories, making Banjo Kazooie, Donkey Kong Country, Perfect Dark, Conker's Bad Fur Day, and so many more—was always a Nintendo sweetheart. Until it was acquired back in 2002 by Microsoft. While Rare didn't pump out as many massive hits after the acquisition, the studio is responsible for one of my favourite games, Sea of Thieves. But arguably no game from those folks made more of a splash than Goldeneye.
Now, you may or may not want to pop the streamers, because the return of this classic comes with some odd caveats. Again, Microsoft bought Rare back in 2002, rumoured to be because the tech monolith wanted Donkey Kong. So of course, the return of GoldenEye is coming to Xbox, but it's also going to Nintendo’s virtual console—a part of the public romance between the two gaming giants. Here where stuff gets weird. Xbox will get a “faithful” recreation of GoldenEye with GoldenEye 007 HD. GoldenEye 007 HD is, well, GoldenEye 007 in HD, which will be available on Game Pass and to those who own Rare Replay. Now, Nintendo will be getting a port of the original GoldenEye 007. No high-def for them. GoldenEye 007 on Switch will be a part of the Nintendo Switch Online Plus Expansion Pass with the Nintendo 64 virtual console. Possibly the weirdest part yet? Only the Switch will have online multiplayer. That's right! It feels wrong, but the Switch will be the only official way to play GoldenEye with your friends far and wide. This is most likely due to Switch already having online capabilities with its online virtual console, which has come a long way since launch.
Regardless of all the release weirdness—which, let's be honest, makes sense between licensing, developer, and console logistics—I'm still hyped to pick up my 007 gadgets. While it may not be the perfect red carpet rollout, who cares: GoldenEye 007 is back, baby, and accessible by means that don't require computer viruses and a networking degree. So grab your golden gun—and spam those prox mines on every door in sight.
Cameron Sherrill is a former designer and writer for Esquire, where he covered technology and video games.
