I believe I read that it was rumored that Microsoft pulled their go-ahead for Goldeneye. The responses were mixed, but at least a few thought that by today's standards Goldeneye was completely unplayable and they prefered it to be kept in the vault.

Personally, I think that Goldeneye (and Rare titles in general) are so closely associated with Nintendo that it's hogwash to bring them anywhere else. It would be great to see the Rare brand and the Nintendo Brand back together as that was the magical combination that turned out over half a dozen note worthy games.