James Bond 007: NightFire

"Best Bond game since Goldeneye, but that doesn't mean there aren't better FPS."

If you were a fan of Goldeneye, you'll be happy to know that this almost as good. It's lacking in some areas, but you'll start to get that goldeneye feel after a while. For those who don't know goldeneye.. which I'll assume are very few.. Many consider Goldeneye to be the definitive FPS, with the perfect balance of single player and multiplayer, fused into an excellent game. Other than that majority who think Goldeneye had it all, names like Perfect Dark, and even Medal of Honor: Frontline will come up, sometimes a Timesplitters 2, but you'll hear Goldeneye more than anything. If you want the best Goldeneye experience you can have, go out and get Timesplitters 2. The makers of TS2 had some say in Goldeneye, and there are a lot of similarities between them. Nightfire is good, but it does't have the atmosphere of TS2 and Goldeneye.

GRAPHICS 8/10
This really depends on what you prefer. If you prefer smooth, no-slowdown semi-realistic graphics, go for Timesplitters 2. If you prefer that realistic look, with slower FPS, and a little bt of slowdown at points, you'll love this. There is a little slowdown at points of intense firefight, but they don't ruin the game. After playing some frantic TS2, you might experience a little choppiness, but since it's only a little, your eyes should adjust within minutes of playing. Timesplitters 2 had what some would call a cartoony look to it, though others will disagree.. those who think that believe Nightfire has that realistic feel they've been looking for, that TS couldn't give them.

SOUND 8/10
It's what you'll expect now. Most of the guns have different pitches of the same 'ratatatatatatatat'. If they're semi-automatic, they have a slower version, like 'Rat tat tat tat tat'. What makes the sound nice, is that however fast you pull the trigger is how fast the sound is. It's nothing big, but it's like icing on the cake, just shows you they took a bit of time on the game. The alarm is there... very annoying if you set it off. The music will remind you of Goldeneye.. The way the music heats up wen you are seen, and slows down once the coast is clear.. it helps to bring you into the game.

STORY 7/10
There's a story, a somewhat interesting one anyway.. which makes this a true Bond game. I'm not sure whether there was a story in goldeneye or not.. since it has been a rather LONG time since I played.. but none the less, nowadays, a story seperates the bond games from those generic FPS. There are other exceptions, like Red Faction, and the newer Red Faction 2.. Timesplitters and it's sequel have an imaginative storyline, but it's not something you're going to jump into like a bond story.

CONTROLS 9/10
Though there's no customization option (Timesplitters and TS2 had it..) They give you a LOT of different setups. I can't imagine someone finding one they couldn't adjust to. You can invert the pitch if you like. Another cool thing is that most of the schemes are named after the ood ol' bond movies. I don't recognize some of them.. but I'm sure there are a few. Overall, they're not customizable, but it's pretty close..

GAMEPLAY 8/10
It's above average.. the objective system is one of the best. There are checkpoints, another step foward. This is where the goldeneye feel begins to really fall apart. This feels a lot more like Red Faction 2 to me, the way the enemies don't often react to the bullets until they're dead.. Maybe I'm comparing to Timesplitters 2 a little too much.. but I believe that's the best FPS out for any of the 3 king systems (Eat your heart out Halo..) By this I mean Playstation 2, Gamecube, and X-Box. I am yet to play Metroid Prime, so I'm not sure hwo great a game that is..
The gameplay is of a good FPS, the levels are very nice, and you'll start to lean over in your chair, trying to see around the next character by looking at the TV a different way. You can really get into it.

WEAPONS 10/10
This is where the game beats Timepslitters 2.. as much as I'd hate to admit it. The weapon schemes in multi-player are clever, and most, if not all of the weapons have a fun secondary mode of fire. The guns look cool, the futuristic weapons are awesome.. all around the only thing that could've made this better.. the RCP-90. Timesplitters 2 has one.. or it's VERY similar.. called the SBP-90. Timesplitters 2 weapons are overall crap.. most of them are pathetic, though there are a few good ones. Nightfire definitely reigns supreme.. it has LOADS of weapons. Loads of ways to use them.. LODS of fun.

MULTIPLAYER 7/10
I miss the Q-claw from Agent Under Fire, the previous bond game that hit all systems. It was Spiderman with guns.. or so my friend Steve called it. The name suited it well, amde the levels seem so much bigger since you could change your altitude. Nightfire has the Q-claw.. don't get me wrong, but you can only hit certain things with it. It's just not the same. But Goldeneye didn't have it..so why does it matter? Nightfire has a bunch of great game modes.. such as Capture the flag, king of the hill, assasination.. and a slew I haven't unlocked yet. It's definitely worth the effort to figure out how to make a MP match.. since it is quite a puzzle. The AI bots are good, you can watch them stand in front of you and aim at your head. They will shoot at you from a balcony instead of running down the stairs.. but they won't retaliate if you shoot them in the leg sometimes.
I need to make a section of multiplayer comparing this to Timesplitters 2. Timesplitters 2 can have at least 10 bots in the ring with you, and the bots are as smart, if not smarter than the ones in Nightfire. The game modes outnumber the ones in Nightfire, though you will find a similar feel between a couple of them. None the less, Timesplitters AND timesplitters 2 will reign over Multiplayer FPS for a long.. LONG time. (At least on the king consoles..)

REPLAY VALUE 7/10
This is what makes Timesplitters 2 the best FPS around. There's SOO MUCH REPLAY VALUE IN THAT GAME! With the arcade league.. and the challenges.. and the 3 medals you can get in each one.. hours and hours and hours... Now.. back to Nightfire. You will fight to get those gold medals, the platinums even more. There are a load of unlockables. Game modes, multiplayer skins.. like Oddjob from goldeneye on the N64. (YES!! AND HE CAN EVEN THROW HIS HAT!!) You can be BAron Samedi.. that dancing freak on the last level of Goldeneye.. the nostalgia is there.. and in force. (As with Timesplitters 2.. (but it's more present in TS2)

BUY OR RENT BUY
It's worth the money to buy it.. there's a bunch of replay value.. not as much as TS2, but there's enough to keep you busy, and the multiplayer gets a B+. You'll have a bunch of fun with a couple of friends.. even by yourself it's pretty fun. You might want to rent it.. but it's worth the money.

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 11/24/02, Updated 11/24/02