Thursday, February 15, 2024

"The Future Looks Dark..."

Quick scan from Nintendo Power magazine showing pre-release Perfect Dark.
Nintendo Power #110 (July 1998)
Possibly the first image of PD that I ever laid eyes on...

A single screenshot inside Area 51 Infiltration (first of three missions on that base).

Possibly captured in Co-Operative mode (when another Joanna Dark was the default Buddy as a placeholder).

An Area 51 guard is coming out of the door - Unclear in the screenshot whether he's wearing the unused "beta" helmet that matches the uniform...
Perfect Dark Preview from Nintendo Power


Also in this screenshot, I believe Joanna Dark is wearing a slightly different Combat Uniform than she does in the final version.

Tuesday, February 13, 2024

Perfect Bond... (And The Quest For Invincibility!)

Unlocking the Invincibility Cheat in GoldenEye 007 is no easy task...
The feat is to clear the Facility mission in 2:05 (on 00 Agent difficulty, no less).
Even if you do everything perfectly - It's all for nothing if Dr. Doak isn't upstairs.
Alternating between Silenced PP7 and KF7 Soviet, performed a miraculous race to the lab only to come up empty handed. With absolutely no guards following me, decided to curiously backtrack to find the Soldiers milling about, having completely given up on the chase.


Hadn't actually unlocked the GoldenEye 007 Invincibile Cheat in over a decade, so decided to give it a shot.
Just need a good run to coincide with a Dr. Doak encounter. (He can randomly appear in six different locations)

After an hour or two of cursing swearing (and re-living the frustration) decided a break was needed...


Enter Perfect Dark...

The Invincibility Cheat is unlocked in Area 51 Escape (game's ninth mission).
Completing the level within the target time of 3:50 (on the easy Agent difficulty this time!).

Once I got back into this PD speedrun, some annoyances were rekindled - But not to the extent of the frustrating Facility. (The rant about Jonathan's "heroics" can wait for another post... I'll try not to swear.)


These Biotechnicians still give me the creeps...
Four Biotechnicians at the start of Area 51 Escape.
It's not always possible to tag them all when you're racing through the lab...
Survivors will give chase and meet you on the return trip
(subsequently trying to drug you with their sedatives).
Sometimes they even follow all the way outside.

Dashing back towards the secret hangar (making use of the strafing skills learned in GoldenEye 007).
Attempting to earn PD's coveted Invincibility Cheat, still coming up just seconds short.


Perfect Dark offers a more challenging overall game, but I'm going to say that the Invincibility Cheat is more difficult to earn in GE than it was in PD (as far as difficult accomplishments go).






Krazy Koopa Klan...

The seven Koopa Kids as depicted in Super Mario World.



Iggy Koopa (World 1)


Morton Koopa Jr. (World 2)


Lemmy Koopa (World 3)


Ludwig Von Koopa (World 4)


Roy Koopa (World 5)


Wendy O. Koopa (World 6)


Larry Koopa (World 7)

Friday, January 26, 2024

Welcome to The Jungle...

We have fun AND games...
Scan from a special Nintendo Preview (1999) of Rareware games Donkey Kong 64 and Perfect Dark.


Same pamphlet also features the GoldenEye 007 push button code for "64 Characters".
Third time they'd published the same code - But I just love the heading "Fresh Blood"
Favorite quote:
"Do the folks at Rare get together to play Multiplayer Mode?
If they do, do they choose their own characters or do they pick other characters?
We were just wondering."



Thursday, January 25, 2024

Shark-Infested Waters... (to the "Secret Island" in GoldenEye 007)

Summer 1998: The Nintendo 64 was still "The Fun Machine".
Completed the one-player Missions of GoldenEye 007 and still felt hungry for more.

Finally "Conkered" Diddy Kong Racing, and had just finished a second playthrough of Zelda: Ocarina of Time.

GoldenEye 007 was still shrouded in mystery.
Oddjob and Mayday rumored to be within the main game...
Moore, Dalton, Connery along with the Citadel...

And what was the distant "island" in the Dam mission for?
(Screen capture taken via GoldenEye Setup Editor)






Upon reading an article from Xpert Gamer magazine, it was decided that a Gameshark was absolutely essential to explore GoldenEye 007 to the fullest.




Here's the original code as it appeared in Xpert Gamer issue #51 (September 1998):

"We are very aware of the code for GoldenEye that allows the player to reach the extra island on the Dam level. The code was never meant for release as it is extremely glitchy and seldom works correctly. It was circulated among a few friends and may have been leaked onto the Web..."
-Statement from InterAct
(manufacturer of the Gameshark)







Drone gun turret

Guard tower

Ladder and "beta" glass

Looking out from atop the tower.


So much has been learned about this mysterious island since then.
(A brief summary of the "Beta Dam", hopefully to be re-added soon)

Spy Hard...

Graphics from the "Player's Guide Offer" inside the game box of GoldenEye 007 for Nintendo 64.

The actual guidebook itself was printed with a slightly different cover design than the one featured in the ad.


The Art of Mario...

Just for fun, here are the "Player's Guide Offer" sheets included within the game boxes of Mario Kart 64 and Super Mario 64.