Quantum of Solace

""I thought you weren't motivated by revenge!" "No. I'm motivated by playing this game.""

INTRODUCTION:
You don't need to have played every single Bond game to know that there are definitely several games featuring 007. I myself only played Tomorrow Never Dies, The World is not Enough, 007 Racing and Nightfire. And those games played a role in making me dislike James Bond. So when I watched the trailer for this game, I gave the movie a try and loved it. So, I made it a point to get my hands on this game. And after a month or so, I have provided my review.

PRESENTATION:
Well, the cover looks awesome although the back of the box isn't as imaginative as the current-gen ones (but who gets creative with the PS2 anymore?). But, when you boot the game, the first thing you will notice is the menus. They look awesome and are difficult to describe. Seeing is believing! The BGM in the menus isn't familiar with any of the movies but reflects the new Bond's style. Even the opening's changed and while the song is awesome, the opening video can't touch the movie or even Nightfire!
7/10 (Doing the menus injustice, but I really wasn't impressed)

GRAPHICS:
In an age where nobody cares about the greatest console ever, such graphics are VERY difficult to find. They're impressive and almost all the environments are quite detailed. Unfortunately, they make the other ones stand out. For instance, Montenegro in the Casino Royale from the balcony is quite impressive but the gunfight scene looks like Eurocom was feeling lazy. This is a surprise, since Nightfire had great detail. Daniel Craig and most of the other actors look awesome but some (M, Mollaka and Camille) look...strange? There is no noticeable slowdown except for a few occasions (so few that I blame my 4-year old system for the slowdown) thats incredible, given the effects and all.
9/10 (90% of the game is quite detailed but there are exceptions)

STORY:
You have the stories of Casino Royale AND Quantum of Solace. Casino Royale should make for an awesome story and QoS should give awesome action. It's a pairing that is difficult to erode. Is it even possible? Eurocom says "indeed it is possible, let us show you how.". The game starts where Casino Royale ends at Mr.White's Estate (this serves as the tutorial level). Then the game follows the path of Quantum of Solace for just 3 MISSIONS!!!! Right after the Opera House level, the game miraculously jumps to the SINK HOLE! The SINK HOLE, DAMMIT! That's cutting 80% of the story! You never talk to Mathis. You never run from Delta Force. NOTHING! And to make matters worse, the game severely DISTORTS what story is there. Was Eurocom TRYING to piss someone off? I think so! And after the Sink Hole, we visit Casino Royale again. This section is definitely much better but, again, the story is slightly distorted. And since the flashback is about Vesper, why do we have to chase Mollaka? That has nothing to do with Vesper. So it all feels like an excuse to make us relive our favorite scene from Casino Royale. And then we go to the final act of QoS. The game comprises 11 missions (-3 from the current-gen versions). 6 from Casino Royale and (drum roll)...5 from QoS. Don't get me started on how this is inappropriate for a game about QoS, I'll just say this:
"Smooth move, Eurocom"
Not only this, the story is almost ENTIRELY told through hacked conversations between Tanner and M (looks like someone thought the computer from QoS was awesome). This sucks the feel out of the story and it never achieves any interest from the players.
3/10 (Thanks for being there at all. Don't buy this game for it's story)

GAMEPLAY:
I excused the horrible story for it's gameplay. Which is awesome. It takes several cues from Resident Evil 4 (as opposed to Call of Duty 4 on current-gen consoles). A great idea, as RE 4 is considered as one of the greatest games EVER! The games plays out from behind James Bond (Daniel Craig fan girls rejoice!) and is slight inclined to the left (you can change this on the fly). The improvement is that you can pan the camera anywhere and the camera never bothers you. If you're imaginative, you can use this to give a cinematic feel to the levels (or just stare at 007's face; Fan girls, rejoice again!). You can strafe and shoot but ultimately you'll want to use cover. Cover is essential. You won't a mission on easy if you don't use cover. Enemies use cover. You must do the same. Thats what this game is all about! It's a cover shooter, in the vein of Gears of War. Cover is something new to Bond games and it works like Gears of War. Press and hold L1 to hug cover, and either blind-fire or aim-fire. The system rarely feeds you any crap and it makes you feel like a secret agent. You'll thank Eurocom for this. Now, this game exemplifies irony as the PS2's weaknesses give it several advantages over the current-gen versions. The PS2 will only handle the CoD 4 engine when pigs fly. This leads to the RE 4 perspective. The PS2 won't handle too many objects on screen. This makes the game feel as though you're being advised to use cover, not FORCED to use it. There are other ironies but so little time. The AI makes the action feel exciting, particularly on Normal, but it does have some lapses.
9/10 (Not perfect, but close enough)

REPLAY VALUE:
No multiplayer. No extras. 3 difficulty levels. O.M.G. But don't fret! The game is so much fun, you'll keep coming back to the Eco Hotel, the Construction Site, Casino Royale, Siena among other places again and again. 'Nuff said.
5/10 (An overstatement, but QoS is something to play over and over again)

RENT OR BUY?:
Buy. Finishing the game once will make you want to do it again. And you're just gonna end up buying it. Save yourself the time.

SCORE: 8/10 (A close-to-perfect send off for that black piece of circuit loaded plastic that gave you so much joy. Get this, find a PS3 owner, and gloat)

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 01/05/09

Game Release: Quantum of Solace (US, 11/04/08)