James Bond 007: Everything or Nothing

"A solid foundation for the franchises new direction..."

Introduction
Ever since Rare came out with Goldeneye for the N64 (still one of the only reasons I am happy I got the Nintendo rather than the Sony) gamemakers have been looking for a way to op the classic first person shooter featuring James Bond. EA bought the James Bond videogame license and they released ''The World is Not Enough'' (for N64 and PS) based on the movie of the same name. This was a decent game, which was a lot of fun to play but it was still no ''Goldeneye''.

The franchise then moved to the ''James Bond 007: Agent Under Fire'' a couple of years ago. This was an admirable addition to the series of James Bond videogames, the graphics were okay, the driving scenes were excellent... but without the proper voice actors the game just didn't come together.

A while later EA released ''James Bond 007: Nightfire'' this game actually had Pierce Brosnan's likeness as Bond. Unfortunately it still had a different voice. The game was an upgrade over ''Agent Under Fire'' but the first person interface still didn't feel quite right.

Now, EA has come to realize that James Bond is best seen in 3rd person, as he is on film. So they made the most cinematic James Bond title to date: ''James Bond 007: Everything Or Nothing''

Gameplay
The gameplay is pretty good overall for Everything or Nothing. It's fun, fast paced and action packed, but I think that might be the problem. Anyone who's watched a James Bond movie knows that James Bond is never just running through different locales blasting people for an hour and ten minutes straight. Yes, there's some sneaking around but there aren't many levels you will make it through without killing someone. Since when did Bond turn into Rambo? What happened to clandestine operations and subterfuge? Remember the first level of TWINE? At least Bond had to refrain from going on a killing spree until he gained access to a special area. Anyway, I'm sure they'll fix this later on, in other titles. Also, I don't feel there were enough gadgets.

The controls are good for this game. There's lots of kneeling for cover, putting your back to the wall so you can swing out and shoot at badguys, and driving at high speed to save the day. The only problem I think is the targeting system could be tweaked. Sometimes you don't always get the right target and when you come off a wall for some shooting you will always aim downrange even if a guy is standing next to you...

Difficulty is variable and should provide adaquate challenge/ease for any gamer.

Story
It's challenging to rate the story without giving out spoilers so I'll try. You begin the game attempting to rescue a scientist from a weapons laboratory in Egypt. She's working on a top secret nanomachine technology that can be used to repair metal objects. An Ex-KGB officer gets his hands on this technology and tries to use it for evil. Despite good voice actors and facial likenesses I think the plot is lacking. It had a lot of potential but it just wasn't put together well with the way the levels were set up. None of the characters were developed nearly enough. If you want a game to have a more cinematic feel... then you have to give it a cinematic plot. More time could have been devoted to this aspect in my opinion.

Graphics
The graphics are impressive for the most part. The scenery looks very good, the characters look good, the vehicles look good. The only problem I see is with the animation. When Bond runs it looks totally unnatural, Pierce Brosnan is often commented on his ability to run and make it look cool (Goldeneye, running after plane), (Tomorrow Never Dies, running from newspaper plant), (The World is Not Enough, running away from guards in underground nuke site) and they just don't do him justice here. It doesn't look right at all, dificult to explain, but once you see... you'll know what I mean.

Sound
The sound is fantasic. They use real weapons in this game and the gunshots are right on. The voice acting is perfect, the musical score is great and they don't overuse the famous James Bond beat (dun-dun, DUN-DUN... dun dun dun) I don't see how this part of the game could be much better.

Replay Value
This game allows you to replay any given mission, a funtion vital to replayability. I wish Grand Theft Auto and others would realize how important this is. This game can be replayed and enjoyed just as often as you can rewatch any given James Bond movie. Variety of levels and possible different outcomes of levels make this one a keeper.

Final Recomendation
I bought, and will keep this game because I am a big James Bond fan, and wanted the collection of James Bond videogames. It can probably be beaten on easy in a couple of days making it a worthy rental but for a true James Bond fan you have to own it.

The James Bond series of videogames is only going to get better from here. I think this title will be much like MVP Baseball 2003. You could see that EA was on the right track with MVP, and that they were starting a great franchise... With Everything or Nothing you can see that they are ALMOST there in making a game worthy of Goldeneye like acclaim. I can hardly wait for the next James Bond installment to hit the shelves.

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 03/01/04