GoldenEye 007 was released for the Nintendo 64 exactly 20 years ago in August 1997. The game could be considered the first made-for-console first-person shooter to ever garner commercial success. Most of the console shooters at the time were ports of arcade rail-shooters without the freedom of GoldenEye. The shooters that did allow for open-world and dynamic gameplay was reserved for computer gaming, such as Counterstrike and Unreal Tournament. Just like Doom was a monumental game for the early 90s, Goldeneye did the same for the next wave of video games. The game was also one of the best tie-in games after a whole generation of terrible ones featured on 16-bit consoles. Thus, all of these things allowed GoldenEye to be the third best-selling title for the Nintendo 64 and the only one out of the three that didn't feature an Italian plumber and giant turtles.

By today's standard, GoldenEye is probably inferior in every way. The enemy AI was terrible, the NPCs were idiots, and the graphics leave a lot to be desired. Still, you should never judge a classic by today's expectations. Every gamer should give GoldenEye the props it deserves, especially the people who didn't grow up with it. Even more amazing, this game was created and developed by a team comprised of mostly rookies. Still, it became one of the greatest console titles of all time.

Now, let's come back to the present and apply this classic with the modern trend of memes. The best thing you can do about the past is laugh about it. So, here are 20 silly Goldeneye memes to commemorate the twentieth anniversary of this legendary title.

20 Choice Of A Generation

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For the generation that grew up with 16-bit consoles, the graphics and gameplay offered by their successors, such as the Nintendo 64 and Sony PlayStation, opened new possibilities, such as fully-3D presentation and controls that we couldn't even fathom. For the older gamers, who grew up with Atari, Goldeneye seemed to embody the next generation of gaming. It was a game changer much like how it revolutionized gaming for anyone how grew up with Medal of Honor and Call of Duty. FPS console games were limited back in the day. This one game seemingly captured the attention and imagination of a whole generation and made other console shooters possible.

19 The Pause Button

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Any gamer who has ever played GoldenEye notices that whenever you pause the game, Bond looks at his watch, which brings up a menu screen. You can do this even in the midst of a firefight during the campaign mode. Cornered and overstimulated? Just hit the pause button. It's like a moment in John Cena's world where people really can't see him. This is a game, after all. Thus, this silly meme shows Bond leering at his specialized watch while Soviet soldiers are staring at him with bewilderment. Since this is a game, it does give you a choice to take a bathroom break during a level, unlike Jack Bauer, who never seems to ever need to freshen himself, ever. If there was only a pause button in real life.

18 You're All Dead Meat

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There is nothing like getting the ultimate weapon in an FPS game, which is usually a giant cannon like the BFG in Doom and the Redeemer in Unreal Tournament. With a super spy like James Bond, he probably prefers something a little more stylish that he could hide in his tuxedo. Thankfully, the ultimate weapon of this classic comes in the form of Francisco Scaramanga's Golden Gun, formed by putting together a gold plated pen, lighter, cigarette case, and cufflinks. Unlike in the film, you will not have to put all of these materials together, rather you must step through a predetermined route in Egyptian level or just get to it first in one of the multiplayer modes. Those wielding this weapon will allow them to achieve a one-hit kill, but adjusting the health handicap and maxing out on the armor will allow the victim to survive a couple of rounds.

17 Case Of Goldeneye(tis)

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Unlike in its unrelated sequel, GoldenEye Rogue Agent, where the main character actually did have an optical implant called the GoldenEye, the name actually referred to the electromagnetic weaponized satellite of the same name that was hijacked by the bad guys in order to decimate the British economy. However, this keen artist decided that GoldenEye sounded more like a disease, much like the dreaded pinkeye, or conjunctivitis. Knowing how many women Bond has slept with in his career, he probably has much more severe stuff below his belt. There are several interesting jokes in this drawing: “Gold-in-eye” and “It's very RARE.” The first one is a pun, and the other refers to developers of the game. Also, the physician is obviously Dr. Mario.

16 Nice Haircut

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When GoldenEye was released for the Nintendo 64, game designers were in the midst of using polygons to create spectacular graphics and visual effects. Though it looked fantastic at the time, the graphics are considered to be incredibly laughable by today's standards. Most of the polygons used in GoldenEye resulted in all of the characters to have block-shaped heads. Everything about them was blocky, including their arms, legs, torsos, and hair. Therefore, this silly haircut of this unidentified man really hits the nail right on the head. I wonder could you actually ask for this at Supercuts or Fantastic Sams. (Don't dare us — we'll do it).

15 Overpowered

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Today, gamers always talk about certain weapons being too overpowered in first-person shooters, such as the FAMAS and the AUG in Call of Duty: Black Ops. Still, to kill an opponent, you need more than just a clean shot. What if I told you that the Golden Gun, the ultimate weapon in GoldenEye, was probably one of the most overpowered weapons in gaming history. One bullet from this weapon would kill 99 percent of all opponents regardless of where they were shot, with the exception being Baron Samedi, who inexplicably survived three separate bullets in the Egyptian level. The only drawback of this gun is that it could only kill one enemy at a time, whereas other weapons with splash damage, such as the Rocket Launcher and Grenade Launcher, can kill multiples ones.

14 Everything Included

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Downloadable Content or DLC have been a common marketing ploy for the current generation of console gaming. Nearly every title that requires internet access has some sort of downloadable extras, usually requiring supplemental payment in order to acquire. Most of the time, it was a feature that was already programmed into a game, but required payment to unlocked it. One of the major offenders including Star Wars Battlefront, which infuriated gamers with its ample amount of DLC that cost almost the same amount as purchasing the game itself. GoldenEye came out during a time when DLC was not an option. All of the unlockable content within the game could be achieved by finishing certain levels within targeted times and difficulty.

13 Exploding Chairs

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One of the funniest and most enjoyable attributes within the gameplay and physics of Goldeneye is the fact that almost everything not nailed to a wall could and probably will explode. This includes computers, security cameras, chairs, tables, televisions, and even alarms. Shooting any surrounding furniture would force it to explode as if there was some plastique attached to it. No idea why developers programmed this into the game, but it certainly humored a lot of gamers back in the 90s. Most players of GoldenEye would run through a level trying to blow up as many things as they could. I know I did, and boy was it fun.

12 Kamikaze Bond

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In terms of internet memes, some of the favorites involve photos of animals and humans looking like they are completely clueless. This is applicable in one of the most famous games of all time. There is nothing like playing the Facility level, opening the slowly moving security doors, and rushing into dozens of Soviet soldiers with reckless abandon, almost like a gaming equivalent of a kamikaze rush. Still, nothing is more hilarious than magically passing through soldiers' bodies to progress through the levels. Remember when dead bodies would magically disappear into thin air? Oh, how fondly those teenage memories were.

11 Cheater

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Another unwritten rule in GoldenEye is that no one should be allowed to choose Oddjob during multiplayer modes, because he is the shortest character in the game and hardest to hit. Oddjob is available in multiplayer after completing the Antenna Cradle level, the official ending of the game. While most characters could be hit by auto-aim gunfire, Oddjob has a distinct advantage by being so short that those bullets just whiz by above his head. The only way to hit him is to have precise aim by moving the crosshairs downward. Oddly, Oddjob was of average height in the film. Where the developers got the idea for making him the size of Nick Nack is beyond me.

10 Double Trouble

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It is probably difficulty enough for a full-grown adult to be able to wield one rocket launcher. But not everyone is James Bond, who could hold two gigantic rocket launchers without having arms as long as Jaws's. Nothing like throwing caution to the wind. A lot of what made GoldenEye so fun was that it often didn't take things too seriously. This is noticeable in the various cheats you were allowed to play with, such as DK Mode where all of the characters have huge heads and long arms resembling another RARE classic, Donkey Kong Country. One of those wonderful cheats allowed the player to utilize 2X Rocket Launcher. Nothing offered more replay value than enticing gamers to play with the cheats for some ridiculous moments.

9 It's Klobbering Time

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The Klobb was a submachine gun that was named after game designer, Ken Lobb, and quite possibly one of the worst guns in gaming history. While it is not the weakest weapon in the game, it's terrible because it is inaccurate, slow, and ridiculously loud, which is a dealbreaker in a game where stealth is essential to survive certain levels. “It's Clobbering Time” is the catchphrase of Thing from the Fantastic Four. Thus, “It's Klobbering Time” is merely a parody of that famous line. Believe me, if you use the Klobb on this amount of enemies during the game, the only one getting clobbered will be you.

8 Overrated

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Whenever there is something that is considered excellent or classic or GOAT (greatest of all time), there are bound to be plenty of naysayers. This happens in sports, all of the time. Heck, there was even an article on this website written earlier this year that claimed that GoldenEye was “completely overrated” claiming graphical and technical inadequacies. One thing that nobody can take away from GoldenEye is its amount of accomplishments, including being the title to popularize shooters for consoles. If there wasn't Goldeneye to pave the way, who knows how FPS games would be like today? That's like calling the Model T or the Apple-1 overrated because they are inferior by today's standards. It all starts somewhere, kids. Think about that whenever you play Call of Duty on Xbox Live and text your friends on your iPhone.

7 Blocky Billy

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Indeed, the soldiers in GoldenEye were extremely blocky. Some of us are old enough to think that those graphics were the amazing. Well, amazing at the time. By today's standards, the characters leave a lot to be desired. Still, whenever we see a man or woman with a square chin, we cannot help but remember our youth, which was filled with Batman The Animated Series and Goldeneye, both featuring copious amounts of block-headed characters. Unfortunately, this unidentified Russian-looking male was subject to his own internet meme. Looking at him, I think I know where the developers at RARE got their inspiration from.

6 Screen Peeker

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Before the incorporation of online multiplayer modes, most console shooters required a bunch of friends sitting in front of one single television with the screen partitioned into separate screens. The honor code would dictate that there was to be no peeking at the surrounding screens in order to gain an advantage over their opponents. Of course, this rule wasn't always followed, especially if you were the one who was losing. It was understandable to steal a couple of glances every now and then. Serial offenders were banned from further gaming parties in the future. For obvious reasons — come on, dude!

5 Kanye Has Something To Say

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When Kanye West hijacked Taylor Swift's acceptance speech at the 2009 MTV Video Music Awards, it was one of the most insane moments in television history. Kanye, with a huge penchant for the theatrics, decided that this was the best sequel to his very famous “George Bush doesn't care about black people,” which is one of the most viral videos of all-time. Still, there is a war of words between the people who think GoldenEye is overrated and those who think it is one of the most influential shooting games in history. In my opinion, both sides have valid points and are both right to some degree. Luckily, Kanye won't be hijacking arguments about this game anytime soon.

4 Never Unsee

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One of the most hilarious and unintentional moments in GoldenEye history lies on the cover of the game itself, where it shows Pierce Brosnan as James Bonds with his PPK drawn towards you. Graphic designers of the cover could have never anticipated that his trigger finger ended up looking like an extension of his mouth, creating an extremely unflattering and silly reinterpretation of his face that many people, now, cannot unsee. This wasn't even something I noticed until the introduction of Reddit into the public consciousness. The photo itself has been duplicated many times, with keen Photoshop artists altering regular Brosnan photos to the resemble the GoldenEye 64 cover. So, I blame them.

3 The Bond Girl Alternative

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If someone wanted to dress up as a Bond Girl, she would be spoiled for choice. Trying to dress up as a female character who doesn't sleep with the title character? That is where it gets difficult. Not every woman wants to be objectified or be a Bond Girl. Besides, most of the ladies of this series are so often designed for Bond, it can be a little tricky. That being said, I am sure you never thought of anything like what this young lady came up with. Ladies, if you want to impress your friends about your gaming knowledge, be sure to dress up as one of the classics. I guarantee that you will have plenty of people asking for your number afterwards.

2 He Forgot The Invincibility Cheat

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Not many Bond villains survive until the end of the movie. Boris, played by Alan Cumming, made it farther than Sean Bean's Alec Trevelyan and Famke Janssen's Xenia Onatopp, but died soon after exclaiming his annoying catchphrase, “I am invincible!” Certainly, he was quite deathproof for the duration of the film, until he was unceremoniously killed by liquid nitrogen. In the game, you never see Boris's true demise and killing of him before the completing some of the objectives would force Bond to fail the mission. Luckily, you can always shoot Boris in the back after you accomplish your objectives, especially in the level he sets off the security alarm on purpose. Take that, you treacherous jerk.

1 The Slap Chop

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Nearly a decade before the Shamwow guy decided to promote the Slap Chop, a Seen On TV product that dices and chops vegetables in seconds, the Slap Chop was known as the default melee attack in GoldenEye. Though not an officially recognized by RARE nor Nintendo, the name of the attack was derived from the graphics where it would appear that Bond karate chopped an enemy with the sound effect of a loud slap. In a game where stealth was advantageous to the gamer, Slap Chopping an enemy to death with his back turned would not alert any nearby guards, allowing you to easily grab his keycard without involving Bond in a firefight. Still, every time I Slap Chop someone, it brings back memories of Austin Powers doing his very similar Judo Chop.