GoldenEye Rogue Agent: Discover the Dark Side

In late 2004, a time packed with top-tier first-person shooters, Electronic Arts’ decision to release GoldenEye: Rogue Agent right after the sequels to Halo and Half-Life didn’t seem like the best move—and at the very least, it was surprising.

Even so, they took a risk with the 007 license, this time letting players step into the shoes of an anti-Bond—a rogue agent with the same skills and gadgets as the famous British spy but none of his rules, restrictions, or morals after his fall from grace. It’s a cool idea on paper, but sadly, it wasn’t executed as well as it should’ve been.

From its misleading title (familiar to fans of the N64 classic but with almost no similarities) to gameplay that tries to match Halo 2 but falls short, along with a complete lack of personality or variety, GoldenEye: Rogue Agent barely rises above average. It makes you wonder what the game was really aiming for.

A Different Perspective

Rogue Agent is an FPS that takes a fresh angle on the Bond universe, putting us in the role of an agent whose brutal methods get him kicked out of MI6. After a failed mission where Dr. No takes his eye, he joins Auric Goldfinger’s criminal organization. Thanks to Goldfinger’s scientists, he gets a bionic eye with experimental abilities like a magnetic shield and telekinesis, turning him into a cyborg.

But instead of making us empathize with the character or care about his downfall, the story gets more convoluted and loses its way. The fact that our antihero barely speaks and doesn’t grow throughout the game makes the whole thing feel flat.

A weak story wouldn’t necessarily ruin a game—after all, not every Hollywood plot makes for a great game—but this isn’t even close to being the sequel the N64 classic deserved. Aside from the eye implant gimmick, slapping the GoldenEye name on it feels like a cheap way to cash in on nostalgia.

The Fun of Being Bad

From the start, our job as the villain is to attack our boss’s enemies and take down Dr. No’s forces. With a Halo-style setup (two weapons and grenades), the game tries to reward dirty tactics—headshots, human shields, grenades, and bionic powers—but in reality, it’s no different from any other shooter. None of it feels as evil as the game wants us to believe.

If they really wanted to sell the "dark side" angle, they should’ve taken cues from Chronicles of Riddick or Manhunt instead of delivering a generic shooting fest that feels more like Ratchet & Clank. And since our final enemy is still Dr. No (someone Bond would fight anyway), working for Goldfinger doesn’t make us feel any more villainous.

Enemy AI is decent up close but clumsy at long range. When they get near, they’ll take cover, flank us, and switch weapons—just like we do.

Graphics

Despite the talent behind the game, Rogue Agent’s visuals aren’t impressive or memorable. The Bond-inspired locations fit the movies but lack detail in textures and structure, though character animations, weapons, and particle effects are solid.

The graphics feel limited overall, with low-detail textures and enemies disappearing almost as soon as they hit the ground, killing any sense of realism.

We do get brief appearances from Bond icons like Judi Dench’s M and a spot-on Auric Goldfinger (played by Gert Fröbe), but they’re more like set dressing than actual characters.

All three platforms support widescreen, but only the Xbox version has progressive scan for HDTVs. Xbox also has the best visuals, followed by PS2 and GameCube—though GameCube has better textures, while PS2 uses anti-aliasing for a cleaner look. All versions run at a steady 30 FPS, which works fine for gameplay.

Sound

Even DJ Paul Oakenfold’s soundtrack is just okay—complex rhythms but repetitive and uninspired. Sound effects, on the other hand, are strong: gunfire, reloads, and explosions all sound great. Voice acting is decent (typical dub work), though enemy barks get annoying fast.

Our protagonist barely speaks, and the mad scientist who gives us our bionic eye sounds like he crawled out of a crypt. At least the audio quality is high, with Dolby Digital support and good sound separation.

Better with Friends

Like most modern games (not just FPS), single-player isn’t everything, and Rogue Agent delivers with 20 maps for split-screen multiplayer (four players) and online play for Xbox and PS2 (up to eight players in tournaments).

With customizable settings, game modes, and iconic Bond locations (like the pyramids from The Spy Who Loved Me and the GoldenEye satellite), multiplayer is easily the strongest part of the game. The deadly traps from the campaign are even more fun here, offering creative ways to take down opponents.

Xbox Longplay - Goldeneye Rogue Agent (OLD)

Final Thoughts

Sadly, GoldenEye: Rogue Agent isn’t the sequel fans hoped for. It lacks the personality, charm, or story that made earlier Bond games great. At best, it’s a generic FPS that tries to mimic others but doesn’t stand out—except for a decent multiplayer mode.

After James Bond 007: Everything or Nothing took a step away from FPS, EA returned to the genre with mixed results. And since you never feel as evil as the game claims, this one’s really only for die-hard Bond fans who want to see the same story through different eyes—eyes that, ironically, aren’t all that different from before.