It's time for a fresh review on the leaderboards of Goldeneye! Leaderboards are a fun additional ranking system that we use to see who the top 10 players are on each level, and is a good way to show off one's mastery of a particular level. While specifically setting leaderboards as a goal isn't directly useful for your overall rankings, being top 10 at levels is a good sign that you're on your way to top 10 overall.
In this analysis, I'll be providing data and information for the purposes of achieving each leaderboard with minimum times, approximate goals to stay on the leaderboard for at least one year or so with maintain times, and how to bop those currently on the leaderboard (excluding new untieds) with attack times. Alongside these, will also be information on trends, predictions for the future, and more!
DamMinimum: 0:53/1:17/1:58 & 0:53/1:18/1:56
Maintain: 0:53/1:17/1:57
Attack: 0:52/1:17/1:57
Dam as a leaderboard is quite polished overall, but there's some lurking potential to shake-up the bottom end. Right now, Mirror and Boss are at the bottom with 0:53/1:17/1:58, while Goose is the only player on there with SA 1:18 as he has a very impressive 00A 1:56. Calle is a good candidate to redefine the standards with SA 1:16 and 00A 1:59 being enough to put him above the bottom three, but not enough to wipe anyone off (as 1:16 would bop Mirror and Boss but not Goose). There's also a large pool of talent on the 1:18 clump that could score 1:17 and knock Goose off eventually and setting 1:17 as a required time. For now, I think the leaderboard will be quite stable, but I definitely think both SA 1:17 and 00A 1:57 will be necessary. While Karl edges out everyone by 3 points on Agent, it's not enough to allow him to ignore a subpar SA or 00A time. Perhaps if another player ties 0:52, requirements could change.
FacilityMinimum: 0:44/0:53/0:54 & 0:43/0:53/0:55
Maintain: 0:44/0:53/0:53 & 0:43/0:53/0:54
Attack: 0:43/0:52/0:53
One of the highest OCB levels in the game, the leaderboard contains only some of the best of the best in Goldeneye. Because only a handful of players have achieved meaningful times, the lower ranks are a little messy, but still fairly solid. Illu has 0:44/0:53/0:54 and Gus has 0:43/0:53/0:55, providing two sets of minimums (though SA 0:54 will suffice for now with Agent 0:43). Other wild combinations are possible, but are mostly unrealistic. Justin has all of the best non-WR times, yet sits at 8th place, suggesting that WRs will eventually be required. That said, he also only loses points when new WRs are achieved, so he should last for a long time, and is my recommended timeset for maintaining the leaderboard. Despite all of the mess, there aren't too many active players who can currently pose a threat, so the rankings may not change much at all for awhile.
RunwayMinimum: 0:22/0:22/0:38
Maintain: 0:22/0:22/0:37
Attack: N/A/N/A/0:37
Gone are the days where you can do the bare minimum and join a mega-clump to get the leaderboard, where Runway now requires both Agent and SA 0:22, and either the Tank WR or a good Grenade run on 00A. Even with that minimum, 0:22/0:22/0:38 is tied for dead last and surely will not last for too much longer. While it is more accurate to expect 0:22/0:22/0:34ish to be the future, players who achieved a decent time with the obsoleted Grenade strat should be on for awhile with just 0:37 until even more players use R-leans. There's also the possibility of Ace, Marc, or Clemens going for SA 0:22 and nuking the bottom that way too. In any case, Runway leaderboard is essentially a 00A ranking of those with the 0:22 pair, and will eventually get super clumpy again with newer, higher standards.
Surface 1Minimum: 1:02/1:48/1:49
Maintain: 1:02/1:48/1:49
Attack: N/A/1:47/1:48
Surface 1's leaderboard is very neat and tidy having a very distinct minimum requirement, as well as exactly 10 players on it. Simply achieve 1:02/1:48/1:49, and you should be on there for a long time to come, until 00A 1:48 becomes necessary. I don't see that happening anytime soon, and the M strat turned out to be a total dud, so there's not much more to add. While 1:47 on SA is a nice boost against other players, I can't envision anyone having that without 1:48 on 00A.
Bunker 1Minimum: 0:17/0:22/1:06
Maintain: 0:17/0:22/1:06
Attack: N/A/0:21/1:05
Everyone and their grandma has Agent 0:17, so this leaderboard is based around SA and 00A, which are two extremely different from each other, relative to different difficulties on other levels. Even with that, the leaderboard is quite strong with good minimum requirements and no messy mix-and-matching. SA 0:22 is necessary, as even Goose with the 00A WR isn't on the leaderboard, while 00A 1:06 is also necessary as 0:21 on SA wouldn't be enough. While both are required, improving the leaderboard further is mostly just on 00A, as you can see going up the ranks that those higher up are those with better 00A times. 1:05 will surely be needed, but won't be for quite some time yet. Karl potentially getting Agent 0:16 doesn't give him a free pass on 00A either.
SiloMinimum: 1:02/1:12/1:28
Maintain: 1:01/1:12/1:28 & 1:02/1:11/1:28 & 1:02/1:12/1:27
Attack: 1:01/1:11/1:27
Silo being very popular and being skill-intensive naturally requires high skill to get its leaderboard. A very interesting happening has occurred on the Silo rankings with Boss in 10th and being swept by everyone above him, and with Wodahs untied sweeping Boss by 1s each for a big gap to 9th, yet being also swept by everyone above him. Essentially, Boss acts as the gatekeeper to the Silo leaderboard, and Wodahs acts as the gatekeeper to maintaining the Silo leaderboard. It's quite mathematically beautiful in a way. With that said, You must match Boss on each difficulty as the times worse are huge drops in points, but if you want to stay on for a long time, you need at least one Boss bop, and for better, the trio Boss bop. The only way you can manage to last without those is to overkill one of the difficulties to make up for slack on another. All that said, there aren't too many active players who can get on there who aren't already there, so the leaderboard way stay as it is for awhile yet, but will certainly be setting stronger standards down the road.
FrigateMinimum: 0:23/1:01/1:11 & 0:23/1:02/1:10
Maintain: 0:23/1:02/1:10
Attack: 0:23/1:01/1:10
Winning a triple lottery is quite the feat, but we have a solid group of players who have done that on the Frigate leaderboard. Agent 0:23 and SA 1:02 are essentially both requirements at this point, and a solid 00A time of at least 1:11 to round things off is needed. Ideally, you'll want at least 1:10 for a massive bump up in points to stay on for good, but you can currently get away as Luke is. Pettit has the insane WRs on both SA and 00A, but by lacking Agent 0:23, he's continually going down with the ship and will eventually fall off the leaderboard. Because of that, there's more leeway than you would initially think.
Surface 2Minimum: 0:46/0:50/1:30 & 0:47/0:50/1:26 & 0:47/0:49/1:29 & other combinations
Maintain: 0:47/0:48/1:29
Attack: 0:46/0:49/1:29
Agent and SA have relatively newish WRs and 00A is a grindy, OCB level, resulting in a giant mess on the bottom, but ultimately a decent leaderboard for Surface 2. Wodahs' set of times makes for good goals across the 3 difficulties, but those aren't super resistant to bops and may drop. My suggested times for maintaining are 0:47/0:48/1:29 to allow for some wiggle room, but needing to be playing out modern strats. It's very possible that the level will become all new wave specialists as we've already seen the likes of [Banned User #7], Mike Mint, and Harry get great times and bops on the top players. In particular, Wally bringing to light the window strat and keeping up with this age of strategy is on the cusp of becoming the #1 ranked Surface 2 player. It's hard to predict how things will change, but if you can get a good, modern time on all of Agent, SA, and 00A, you'll surely be on the leaderboard and without worry of losing it.
Bunker 2Minimum: 0:24/0:47/0:59
Maintain 0:24/0:47/0:58
Attack: 0:23/0:46/0:58
Bunker 2 is another OCB level with a bit of variety of options to go the extra mile. Right now, Wodahs and Irie are tied in 10th with 0:24/0:47/0:59 and everyone above having strictly better, but like other OCB levels, it's quite difficult to beat or even achieve those times. That said, getting that extra bump with 0:58 would be wise to ensure staying on the leaderboard, or otherwise 0:46. Karl is a bit of a wildcard who has a big point boost on Agent with 0:23 and already has SA 0:47, but is not on the leaderboard due to an outdated 00A time. He has the power to nuke the bottom with a mere 1:01 should he choose to do so. I don't currently see any other players posing a threat at the moment.
StatueMinimum: 2:19/2:19/2:19
Maintain: 2:19/2:19/2:18
Attack: 2:18/2:18/2:18
Similar to Runway, Statue's leaderboard has a very clear requirement to get on there, is clumpy on the bottom, and is on the verge of getting remodeled. The 2:19 sweep is enough for now to get on there, but one more 00A 2:18 will wipe it out. Requiring SA 2:18 isn't that far into the future either as Green is the only player who has just a single 2:18, but naturally, those who get SA 2:18 will be the ones who have 00A 2:18. Ultimately, Statue is about getting the 2:19 sweep, and then pushing for WRs. It will definitely get an improved clumpiness with a pile of players with 2:18s.
ArchivesMinimum: 0:16/0:54/0:54
Maintain: 0:16/0:54/0:54
Attack: 0:15/0:53/0:53
One of the easier and simpler leaderboards in the game, just get the very easy Agent 0:16, and then the somewhat more difficult 0:54 pair and you're on Archives. I can't imagine there being 10+ players achieving one of the new age WRs, so things should stay as they are for a long time. A good question is whether requiring 0:15 or 0:53 will happen first.
StreetsMinimum: 1:12/1:55/1:55
Maintain: 1:12/1:55/1:55
Attack: 1:11/1:54/1:54
Just like Archives, you can get the older set of times with 1:12/1:55/1:55 and expect to be on the Streets leaderboard for awhile. Unlike Archives though, the requirement for better is much closer to happening, and it seems that 1:11 will be necessary in due time. Alternatively, 1:12 and one of the 1:54s will have the same effect, but I don't see that happening. All that said, requiring 1:11 won't come soon, but the opportunity is there for the attack.
DepotMinimum: 0:24/0:40/0:47
Maintain: 0:24/0:40/0:47
Attack: 0:23/0:39/0:46
Depot has a very clumpy bottom with only 4 players above them on the leaderboard, and 8 players bopping the minimum times. Because the minimum required is still 5th place on Depot, and the only alternative option is the unrealistic 0:23/0:39/0:48, Depot gives a clear path to get on its leaderboard. 0:23 could become needed eventually, but given that 4 of the 7 players with 0:23 aren't on the leaderboard at all and show no signs of getting 0:40 and 0:47, it's not happening anytime soon.
TrainMinimum: 1:02/1:27/1:54
Maintain: 1:02/1:27/1:54
Attack: 1:01/1:26/1:53
As not all players have access to PAL and Train also requires some of the best gameplay possible out of its players, the leaderboard is a little messy, but also extremely difficult to achieve. The current minimum is simply Gus's set of times as everyone else has strictly better, but to say Gus would be in danger of losing the leaderboard is likely wrong. The only realistic contenders to bop him off would be Illu and Boss, but even they would need to get a significant improvement to their times. I think there will be some shuffling within the leaderboard itself, as well as improvements to the minimum, but I don't expect any new faces.
JungleMinimum: 0:51/0:55/0:57 & 0:50/0:56/0:57
Maintain: 0:51/0:55/0:56 & 0:50/0:56/0:57
Attack: 0:50/0:55/0:56
Jungle's leaderboard has recently gone through a facelift and is close to getting another improvement, jumping recently from 0:51/0:56/0:57 to the current 0:51/0:55/0:57 and appoaching 0:51/0:55/0:56. The bottom line of the leaderboard is to either get the Jap 300, or get PAL. Clemens and Gregor are barely holding on, and quite a few players already have have bops on them. Swiss also could do the nuking if he matches Oscar's 0:50/0:56/0:57 as an alternative set of times. It'll be interesting to see who does the damage.
ControlMinimum: 3:57/4:07/4:09
Maintain: 3:57/4:07/4:09
Attack: 3:56/4:06/4:08
Control's leaderboard is very clean, but is loaded with OCB monsters. The requirement is the slightly clumpy 3:57/4:07/4:09, but there is potential wiggle room with alternative sets of times, particularly involving 3:56. Those players with anything better are those already ranked above on the leaderboard, so while I can see some more players get on Control's top 10, I don't think what's needed will change and will just get a little clumpier.
CavernsMinimum: 1:02/1:17/1:34 & 1:01/1:17/1:37 & 1:01/1:21/1:33 & other combinations
Maintain: 1:01/1:18/1:36
Attack: 1:01/1:20/1:36
Caverns is a big mess with the somewhat uncommon WR of 1:01, the new strat on SA which is not only underused but also all over the place on the ranks, and finally the chaotic craziness of 00A which needs a lottery run to expect anything good. You have to go all the way to 4th place until you actually have players on the leaderboard sweeping out those below, as 5th through 10th all have various bops against each other. That said, Caverns is not free to achieve, but allows for a wide variety of options. Realistically, you need at least a great time on two of the difficulties, with a pretty good time on the other. The set of times for maintaining are in my opinion, very reasonable goals, with the possibility of overshooting on SA or 00A. 1:01 on Agent will eventually be required for sure, but we're not there yet.
CradleMinimum: 0:34/0:34/0:34
Maintain: 0:34/0:34/0:34
Attack: N/A/N/A/N/A
Arguably the easiest leaderboard to achieve, and by a mile the easiest one to maintain, simply achieve the 0:34 sweep and you'll be on there until the end of time. Some nut will eventually get 0:33 for sure, but without a huge strategy development, we won't be seeing 10 players get 0:33 until 20XX.
AztecMinimum: 1:26/1:36/1:43 & 1:25/1:37/1:44 & 1:28/1:34/1:40 & other combinations
Maintain: 1:26/1:35/1:42
Attack: 1:27/1:36/1:43
As expected from the most unforgiving level in the game, and not slouching on Agent either, Aztec has arguably the messiest leaderboard in Goldeneye, and is tied for lowest point requirement. Currently, there are 4 players tied in 10th, each of whom have completely different sets of times, with Boss 1 point above with another set of times, and Marc who is ranked 5th/4th/6th is overall 6th on Aztec. Because of all this, it's difficult to suggest a set of times for maintaining the leaderboard as simply an outside player bopping players can shift things, depending on which difficulty the bopping is happening on. All that said though, the leaderboard still is full of top players and is not easy to get, and perhaps over some time, it'll get a bit of cleaning. If for any reason you want to specifically be attacking those on the bottom of the leaderboard, there is a lot of opportunity to do so, even if you don't intend on getting the leaderboard yourself.
EgyptMinimum: 0:45/0:45/0:46
Maintain: 0:45/0:45/0:45
Attack: 0:44/0:44/0:45
Egypt is nearing the end of anything worse than the 0:45 sweep, as only Illu is on there with his unfinished 0:45/0:45/0:46. Quite a number of players already have 0:45 on Agent, which is enough to suggest they can finish the sweep themselves, so surely Egypt will get polished in due time, but still looks pretty good for the time being. After that, Egypt likely won't get another change in a long while, as that would require 0:44s, currently only achieved by Karl and Haydos. With the mix of 2.X and door warping, it's also scary for those who hate the strats such as Clemens and Marc, who are two of the players already with the 0:45 sweep. I think Egypt's leaderboard will look similar to Archives'.
Leaderboard TableHere's a nice table that shows all the players who have at least one leaderboard and which ones they have. Order is sorted first by total count of leaderboards, then alphabetical.
ClosingHopefully you enjoy this information and guidance towards all of the leaderboards of Goldeneye! Let's continue seeing the game get more and more optimized, and how competitive players get to achieve top 10 on each level!
