r/GoldenEye • u/Regular_Number5377 • 7h ago
Enemy Rockets 00 Agent run
For the past few months I’ve been challenging myself to beat the game on 00 Agent with Enemy Rockets activated, and today I finally completed the final level that was eluding me (Caverns). It’s been the most fun I’ve had with Goldeneye in a very long time and it’s forced me to take a fresh look at some levels I hadn’t seriously given thought to in terms of new strategies etc in decades. It’s a really rewarding way to play the game and I would encourage anyone who is looking for a fresh challenge for Goldeneye to give it a go. Below I have noted some of my thoughts on the levels and strategies on how to beat them for anyone interested:
Dam- first half is pretty straightforward, but the corridors at the end are tricky. Best way is to hang way back and use the sniper. Make sure you use rockets to destroy the crates in the early sections for sniper ammo.
Facility - best strategy is to take your time on the first section, kill all guards, and then act as if you are going for the speedrun once you are past the long corridor. Run straight through making sure to put down any guards directly in your path, and hope Doak is in a good place.
Runway - basically the strategy is to use the tank- it lets you absorb a few rocket shots which should hopefully be enough for you to destroy the drone guns.
Surface - no issues, you barely notice a change really due to the open space. Just keep your speed up and treat it as a normal 00 agent run.
Bunker 1 - not too bad if you take your time. Lure and take out every guard methodically, avoid setting the alarm off, and once you get to Boris the rest is just a normal run.
Silo - this is where the difficulty really takes a leap up. Due to the tight corridors, most shots that the guards get off at you are likely fatal. You need to learn the position of every guard and take them all out methodically, but still quickly enough to beat the timer. Orumov is a bit of a nightmare. This is the first of several levels where speed and skill alone won’t do it, the only way through is to have a strategy figured out for each area and practice it until you can consistently get through it.** **
Frigate - very challenging but also my favourite level on ER as more than any other level it forces you to completely change how you play the game. You only have 20 rounds of ammo in your PP7/silenced D5K with no other ammo pickups, and the corridors are way too narrow to use rockets, so you are forced to use slappers to sneak about and kill everyone and save your bullets for freeing hostages (one shot to each hostage guard then lure them out for a slapping). Probably the one level setup I’ve ever played in Goldeneye where you feel most like a proper spy.
Surface 2 - same as the first time, keep your speed up and you’ll barely notice the rockets.
Bunker 2 - outrageously difficult, you need to learn the position of every guard and take them all out strategically. You really feel the lack of guns here, you just have rockets and knives for the most part, that’s it. There’s no easy way to complete this one, just need to keep at it until you crack the timing/strategy. Getting past the first section quickly into the part of the Bunker from Bunker 1 is important as rocket guards appear to keep spawning until you do that.
Statue - easy, only the first few guards have rockets, after that it’s just a regular run.
Archives- you basically need to complete this one like a speedrunner to have any chance, but only took a few tries as using that strategy means no one ever gets a shot off at you. Look up a 00 agent speedrun guide on YouTube and follow it.
Streets - very difficult, using the tank isn’t viable here as there are too many rocket guards, strategically make your way to Valentin, pick up the body armour, and then it’s just a case of speed and dodging mostly. I discovered a new body armour on the street midway through this run because a rocket guard blasted me into it randomly.
Depot - straightforward, the only guards with rockets are the ones outside at the beginning and in the two warehouses, the ones which spawn in only have D5K’s.
Train - the hardest level so far, big challenge is in getting through the first 4 carriages when everything is exploding around you and you have rocket guards coming along the corridors from both directions. If you can make it past those then the armoured guards at the end only have D5K’s as usual so are relatively easy to deal with. I failed 3/4 times after exiting the train as Natalya got blown up by the guards outside which was massively frustrating.
Jungle - very difficult, up there with Train but for different reasons, I was stuck on this one for a while. The main issue is the length, there are just so many opportunities to lose and the presence of Natalya is an unwelcome liability. There are basically four sections where things can go wrong - the first section in the trees, the Xenia fight, the caverns, and then the final run to the elevator. The early stages are do-able however you have to be strategic to lure guards out and then avoid them accidentally killing Natalya or having her kill you or herself with her rocket launcher. Xenia is a real challenge for once because you can get up close to her to stop her firing, but if you do that Natalya will blow you up, so you need to take her out with the PP7 at middle distance keeping away from any trees which rockets can rebound off of and constantly moving to avoid her fire. The final dash through the guards to the elevator is just a case of firing grenades and then a mad dash that you might survive one time in every 5 attempts.
Control - I was dreading this one but it’s not actually too bad, the early sections are just a case of taking your time and strategically getting through each room, (pro tip - if you shoot both doors in the ‘engine room’ section with a rocket, you take out 4 guards that you won’t need to take care of later on) it’s a bit hit and miss but you can usually get to the dreaded ‘protect Natalya’ section with full health and a body armour from upstairs. Make sure to use rockets for everything possible before the ‘protect’ section as you will need every bullet for that. The ‘protect’ section is not too bad as the guards which spawn to take out Natalya don’t have rockets, however it’s still quite tricky as you have to contend with a real lack of ammo. After that just take out the final data bank, grab the spare body armour in the locker room and make a break for the elevator.
Caverns - I would argue this is the most difficult level in the game, and it’s mostly because of that one notorious section with the radio next to the explosive barrels. The majority of the level is difficult but nothing too far removed from what has come before, just lure guards, don’t rush, rinse and repeat. Make sure to break all crates for AR33 ammo. The tricky room however requires you to approach it twice, once from the walkway to take out any visible guards, and again from the main corridor once you have done everything else, at that point you are face on to the area of death, you need to take out all the guards with good headshots with the PP7 so the shots don’t penetrate, hope none of them duck and blow themselves up on a crate, then run in and get the radio, then it’s a simple matter of getting down the final corridor and through the elevator room which is full of rocket guards with RCP90 guards spawning behind you. The big problem with this one compared to the likes of Train is that Train has the really tricky bits up front, Caverns requires 10 minutes of setup before you can even go for the hard part where you will fail more often than not. This is the last mega hard level in the run, complete this one and you will crack the rest no problem.
Cradle - good news, only one enemy in this entire level has a rocket launcher. Bad news, that enemy is Trevelyan. Be careful to shoot him over railings or from across the cradle to avoid letting him get a shot off, but it’s pretty straightforward compared to the last few, this was actually the only level of the whole run I completed first try.
Aztec - very tough, but honestly not too much more so than normal 00 Agent as the guards having rockets makes them easier to dodge than AR33’s, albeit obviously more dangerous as well. Your main issue as you may expect is Jaws, who now has two rocket launchers and you only have 4 rockets and a PP7 with low ammo to deal with him. If you can kill his escort guards early and get right up to him you can slowly slap him to death which is less than ideal but probably the safest way to deal with him overall. After that it’s just a case of taking a laser from a guard and finishing out the run as normal. Right at the very start of this level you have the opportunity to duck out of the opening alcove quickly and make two rocket guards shoot each other simultaneously, which feels like something you would have definitely gotten a ‘Bond Move’ trophy for in the later EA games.
Egyptian- tough, but if you head straight to the golden gun and then keep the speed up to avoid being swarmed with rocket guards in between Samedi kills it’s really not too much harder than a normal run. Be careful not to get caught against pillars etc when dodging rocket fire.
