During the September 2022 Nintendo Direct, the classic GoldenEye 007 game that originally debuted on the Nintendo 64 was revealed to be making its way to Nintendo Switch Online's catalog of emulated games from the retro console. While many may be excited about the chance to play the game on newer, more readily available hardware, many may also find disappointment in its presence on a platform as ill-equipped as Nintendo's online service. Furthermore, GoldenEye 007's original release in 1997 dates it quite a lot, and those used to the comforts of modern FPS games may find nostalgia isn't enough to overcome the game's technical shortcomings.
Standing as the game's one major upgrade as a simple port, Nintendo has announced that the game's multiplayer will be ported alongside the game to be experienced on Nintendo's frequently criticized online service. The online multiplayer for Nintendo Switch Online's classic titles is frequently hampered by lag and latency issues, which makes playing with online friends frequently frustrating. GoldenEye 007 is fondly remembered for its split-screen multiplayer, but with Nintendo's track record there may be issues recapturing one of the classic game's best qualities.
While a port of GoldenEye on the Switch is an exciting prospect, there are better ways the game could have been brought to Nintendo's latest hardware. A community of dedicated modders have already shown that the original game can be upgraded for modern hardware with improved controls and performance, without jeopardizing the original's vision. There is also an official GoldenEye 007 remaster confirmed to be in development for Xbox consoles, which may overshadow the NSO port even though it will reportedly be without online multiplayer.
GoldenEye 007 Has Not Aged Well Enough For The Switch
Causes for concern with GoldenEye 007 on the Nintendo Switch comes from the game's age. While graphics are not everything, able to be overlooked as a product of the hardware, the original game runs at an incredibly low frame rate, far below the 30fps bare minimum many players are now accustomed to. This combined with GoldenEye 007's stiff controls leaves a preference for a touch-up closer to the scale of that which was done for the 3D Classics line of games for the Nintendo 3DS (soon to be unavailable when Nintendo ends 3DS eShop support in 2023), complete with sharper graphics and a cleaner frame rate.
One game worth consideration when discussing GoldenEye 007 is the 2010 remake, GoldenEye 007: Reloaded. Given the game coming out for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3, it would not be unreasonable to think a port of this title could run on the Nintendo Switch, especially after a number of much more demanding games have been ported to the system. Given the mostly positive reviews of GoldenEye 007: Reloaded, this would make for a much preferable way to experience this game on Nintendo's modern console.
While having the opportunity to play the original, not remastered GoldenEye 007 has been something players have been asking for since the reveal of Nintendo Switch Online's N64 classics library, it may have just been better to let it rest. NSO's issues, paired with what is already an incredibly dated game, may leave the port of the classic FPS to be quite underwhelming compared to other ways it can be experienced, like emulation or even just playing GoldenEye 007 on original hardware.