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The spectre of N64 classic GoldenEye does not haunt Microsoft-owned developer Rare, its senior graphics engineer said.
Speaking to VideoGamer.com at the Develop conference in Brighton last week, senior software engineer Nick Burton said negative forum posts “sometimes get” to the team but Rare considers it “nice to see people still talk about it”.
Some fans of Rare’s N64 classics, including GoldenEye, Banjo-Kazooie and Killer Instinct, have criticised the studio’s output since its takeover by Microsoft Game Studios in 2002. Some have even suggested that Rare hasn’t yet made a game as good as GoldenEye.
However, Burton questioned whether gamers were looking back at GoldenEye with “rose-tinted spectacles on”.
When asked if GoldenEye haunts Rare, he replied: “No, not at all. I wouldn’t say indifference. It’s nice to see people still talk about it. But I also think, and a lot of us think this, that you look back at it and it’s still good fun to play, but if I played it now with my gaming tastes as refined as they are now, would I still have the same reaction or have I really got rose tinted spectacles on? It’s almost impossible to separate one from the other. I still look at it and think, no, it’s got great level design for instance, but then you think I’m saying that because maybe the control feels really good, but it’s not perfect. But it’s not perfect because the frame rate wasn’t high enough. It’s very difficult to separate your memory. As someone coined at work the other week. “You need some brain bleach” so you can get rid of the memory. Maybe I should get hypnotherapy to remove the memories. It’d be interesting. Then go an play it and see if it still stands up. We’re not “oh God, get over it” and we’re not like “urrggh, look, everybody still worships that thing”.”
He added: “I think sometimes it gets to you a bit when you a get a forum poster say “Rare’s not as good as it used to be”. In reality, if you look at our recent games, they’re better than they ever were. It’s just that the market has changed, and diversified and got a lot bigger, and we still appeal to the audience we appealed to.”
For more from Rare’s Nick Burton head over to part one of our week-long interview, from which you’ll be led effortlessly into part two and part three.
