While the 1995 Pierce Brosnan film portrayed Natalya Simonova as a capable and talented techie turned secret agent ally, in GoldenEye 007 she is anything but that, often not only getting lost down clear corridors, but actively jumping in front of the player’s gunfire and ruining a mission. There are several tactics that help the player to not shoot Natalya in GoldenEye 007, be it on Nintendo 64, Nintendo Switch, or Xbox.
You Do Not Want to Shoot Natalya in GoldenEye 007, Because It’s a Mission Failed
Since protecting Natalya can be difficult, if there is a way in a specific level to leave her in a safe location until all other objectives unrelated to her are complete, you should take advantage of it.
In the first level you meet her, Bunker II, it is best to leave Natalya in the prison cell you find her in as you take out security cameras and other secondary objectives. Once these are complete, you can come back and release her so she has less time in the open to ruin the mission. This can backfire, however, if you go through all the steps of completing those sidequests without her only for her to unsuccessfully spring through gunfire and make you start over again.
You can use a similar tactic on Archives, which has Bond and Natalya attempting to escape a Russian interrogation department. While you will have to find Natalya and take out her captors before they can finalize their execution, once she is freed, she will run up to the attic and hide waiting for you. If you leave her here until the level is almost complete, you can avoid putting her into danger, let alone accidentally shooting her yourself. Just be sure you have aim assist added and take careful shots when freeing her.
Aim assist isn’t quite enough to help you on the Train level, which has you gunning from the caboose to the engine to save Natalya, who has once again unsurprisingly been captured. This is one of the trickiest times not to accidentally shoot Natalya in GoldenEye 007, as you will have to quickly aim and take out the Russian general and then subsequently try and hit Xenia as well, with Natalya right in the middle of them. The best tactic here is to use the ZR button to aim carefully, and take out your PP7 so you have fewer chances for Natalya to accidentally dive into an incoming bullet.
For times when you need Natalya up in the action, the best tactic is to not hold down the shoot button. While aim assist can help in some situations, it is not enough to hold your gunfire if she chooses to go mingle in the center of a group of Russian terrorists or other enemies. If you are protecting her while she is hacking into a computer system, you will also want to be sure to keep enemies far away from her. Likewise, avoid accidentally hitting any technical equipment around her, as not only can the explosion kill her as well, but even if she survives, it could disrupt her ability to complete an objective.
Even though she doesn’t make it easy, following these steps can help you avoid accidentally shooting Natalya and keep her alive. Stick to non-machine guns, watch when you shoot, and be on the lookout for her to sacrificially dive in front of the enemies trying to take her out, and you should be good.
For more tips, check out how to adjust your Switch controls in GoldenEye 007 to be dual-stick and prevent poor aiming.
