Nightdive Studios’ Bold GoldenEye 007 Remaster Plan Shot Down by Nintendo

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Summary

  • Nightdive Studios failed to gain permission from Nintendo to remaster GoldenEye 007.
  • Studio head Stephen Kick revealed Nintendo’s reply, saying, “Yeah, no third party’s ever going to touch any Nintendo stuff, ever.”

Nightdive Studios has recently announced their intention to remaster one of the most iconic games from the Nintendo 64 era. However, following an optimistic presentation, the project was met with disappointment. The Nintendo 64, Nintendo’s fifth-generation console and successor to the Super Nintendo Entertainment System, was home to a multitude of timeless games, such as the debut game Super Mario 64 and The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time.

As a dedicated admirer, let me share some insights about my favorite studio, Nightdive Studios, nestled in Vancouver, Washington. Founded by the brilliant duo Stephen and Alix Kick, this esteemed company has made a name for itself by acquiring rights to forgotten video games, polishing them up, and then reintroducing these classics on modern gaming platforms. Lately, there’s been buzz around the studio regarding their intricate work on remastering System Shock 3. Unfortunately, at this moment, the fate of this highly anticipated game remains uncertain.

During an interview with VGC, Nightdive Studios’ head Kick disclosed that they had developed a robust strategy to remaster the celebrated “GoldenEye 007”, but after presenting their plan to Nintendo, the publisher responded negatively, stating, “Third-party developers will never be allowed to work on any of our projects.” Unfortunately, Nightdive was unable to secure permission for this project. The game “GoldenEye 007” is one of the most significant first-person shooter (FPS) games, being a cornerstone in the genre alongside classics such as “Doom”, “Half-Life”, and “Wolfenstein 3D”. Notably, MGM/Eon, the owner of the James Bond rights, was supportive of the remaster’s development. Kick explained that Nintendo’s reasoning for the refusal was rather insubstantial, which was a significant disappointment given the team had invested “a lot of energy” into their pitch.

Nightdive Studios Once Pitched a GoldenEye 007 Remaster to Nintendo

The iconic game, “GoldenEye 007”, has now become available on Nintendo Switch’s collection of Nintendo 64 games. During the latest Direct presentation focusing on the successor console, it was announced that Nintendo 64 games will receive additional features when the Switch 2 is released on June 5, 2025. These new features include personalized button mapping, a rewind option, and a retro filter for enhanced gameplay experience. Originally launched in 1997, “GoldenEye 007” was developed by Rare and published by Nintendo, with the storyline inspired by the 1995 “James Bond” movie of the same title. In this game, players progress through a series of levels to defeat adversaries and accomplish objectives. A multiplayer mode also allows up to four participants to engage in deathmatch battles.

Without a doubt, Nightdive Studios’ pipeline is always bustling with projects. They are planning to revamp games originally released on Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 in the coming future. In fact, they’re soliciting feedback from gamers about which titles they’d like to see revisited next. So far, Nightdive has successfully remade games such as Turok 3, Star Wars: Dark Forces, The Thing, Quake 2, and many others. Some of the most popular requests from the community for remasters include Lost Odyssey, Blue Dragon, The Darkness, and Yakuza: Dead Souls.

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2025-04-15 18:24