When you ask a gamer what the best James Bond game is, almost everyone will say Goldeneye without a stutter. Let’s face it, Goldeneye was the standard; it had a great story, cool weapons, and an ever cooler multiplayer experience with the four-way split screen action, not to mention it was one of the few successful games based on a movie. That game was a saving grace for the Nintendo 64, one of the main reasons why most people held onto the system long after its eventual demise. Yes, sir. Good ol’ Goldeneye-- the epitome of 007 gaming… Until now.
In comes the latest James Bond episode, 007: Everything or Nothing. Up until now, Bond games have all been reasonably successful first-person shooters. EoN is the first third-person Bond game, breaking away from the same old song-and-dance. The thought of it sounds questionable, I know. So how does it hold up?
The Story
A scientist and her top-secret experiment have turned up missing. Prior to her disappearance, Dr. Katya Nadanova was in the early stages of researching a mechanical organism called the nano-robot, and she intended to use their abilities to help repair nuclear containment facilities. But, we know how these storylines end up…it gets into “the wrong hands” and it’s now up to you, James Bond, to rescue the doctor, obtain the nano-robots, track down the evil that started everything and destroy it. I’m not going to give you too much out of fear I may spoil things, but more characters eventually come into play, adding more to the plot.
Despite the fact that the story is somewhat cliché, it stays fresh with the many twists and turns it takes as you progress.
Gameplay
As I mentioned before, Everything or Nothing is a third-person action game, so making a comparison in gameplay to any other Bond game is out of the question. You’d be closer to comparing it to a 007 flick, because that’s what this game pretty much is — a real-to-life interactive James Bond adventure.
Everyting or Nothing can be categorized as a stealth-action game, as much of the game is dependent on your ability to slither around from place to place. But, just like the Bond movies, sometimes it’s necessary to run through the bad guys with guns a-blazin’. And there is a slew of enemies on each stage, and for that, EoN utilizes an enhanced target lock system, giving the player the ability to aim and fire a weapon with Bond accuracy. This system allows you to lock onto an enemy, and from there, aim within the target, making shooting more precise.
Bond uses only few basic maneuvers to slip through guards. Wall hugging is probably the best tactic, and gives him the ability to look around corners, lock-on and shoot. He can crouch and move from place to place, and if necessary, he can dive for cover. As in all stealth games, the slower and lower you move, the more unnoticeable you are. Unfortunately, your enemies aren’t complete morons, and they will catch on to you from time to time, but we’ll get into that later.
We all know James Bond as the kind of character who knows what to do and when to do it. Now, in Everything or Nothing, so do you. A skill called Bond Sense gives the player the ability to see and analyze his surroundings, helping you to organize an effective plan of action. Certain interactive elements will be marked with a red circle, and you can zoom in on the object for analysis. It could be a rappel point, an item, an enemy, and so on.
To compliment his skills, Bond has a vast array of weapons and gizmos at his disposal. Of course, there are tons of guns to drop enemies with, but the real fun is in the equipment Q puts together. Gadgets such as the Q-spider, an eight-legged roving reconnaissance; coin grenades, which are exactly what they sound like; the nanosuit, which renders 007 temporarily invisible; and a few others. You can put the rappel gun in a gameplay category of its own, as it will be your means of getting to higher places throughout the game. This gadget allows 007 to scale walls, and sometimes you may find yourself in the middle of a buildingside shootout with other rappelling enemies. Your equipment scientist, Q, will upgrade your toys as you progress through the game.
You don’t have an infinite supply of ammunition, and sometimes it’s more suitable to engage in fisticuffs rather than gunplay. The hand-to-hand combat is simple to use and is reasonably solid. Three buttons activate attacks and grabs, and combining buttons can perform counterattacks; you don’t necessarily have to go bare knuckles. Most stages have random objects lying around that you can use as a weapon, and they work just as well as any bullet to the dome. Or you can use the item as an attention-getter and distract your enemies.
The intense driving missions are one of the best aspects of the game. Evidently, EA Games used the same control mechanics of Need For Speed: Hot Pursuit 2 and threw in the flare of the 007 movies, creating a realistic Hollywood effect (if there’s any such thing as that) in Everything or Nothing. The Q-modified vehicles you get the pleasure of controlling include the 2004 Porsche Cayenne, Aston Martin V12 Vanquish, the Triumph Daytona 600 motorcycle, among others Bond will “acquire.”
There are very few quirks in the gameplay. For instance, wall hugging can be cumbersome at times. Let’s say you’re trying to take cover behind a box that is alongside a wall. If you’re not careful, you may end up pressing against the wall instead of crouching behind the box since the same button controls these actions. In this game, 007 can execute a few good actions, but in some places in the game, he doesn’t do enough. You’d think he’d have a few more basic abilities like jumping and boosting himself on top of things; it would have added more dimensions to him as a character let alone the gameplay itself.
Everything or Nothing does support multiplayer action. It’s not a total loss, but it is somewhat dry. Up to four players can play under this option, and there are four multiplayer games to choose from. The only one that may hold its own to some capacity is the cooperative missions, where two no-name agents can tackle a mission together. There are no real irregularities in the gameplay, but the split screen can be somewhat of a damper on the experience. As good as they may sound, you’ll realize that none of the multiplayer modes can hold a candle to the single player experience.
Everything or Nothing has “connectivity” with the Gameboy Advance, widening out the game experience furthermore, however you must also have the GBA version of the game to use this option. If the game only had the same technology as The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker did, this would be a handy little tool, but to have both versions isn’t very cost-efficient (for me, anyway).
Despite the minor gripes, EoN is loaded with playability and will keep you entertained for hours. And unlike many other games, it lets you play the game the way you want to play it.
Graphics, Animation, and Sound
Graphically, EoN isn’t groundbreaking, but it definitely holds its own as one of the more beautifully presented games out there. There are a few rough edges here and there, but they are minute. Besides, the gameplay will hold your attention much more the than the graphics, and that’s the way it should be. The game’s colors and textures are true to life— there are no real blurs or hazes, and everything is put together very well. The interactive environments are more than genuine; every explosion, chunk of metal, and shard of glass is accounted for. The environments you move through are gorgeous— places such as Peru and New Orleans were recreated nicely.
I can say one thing about this game’s rendition of New Orleans--the buildings and scenery have been captured very nicely, inside and out, though it’s a lot more crowded and there’s more nudity and belligerence in the streets. All in all, the graphics and feel are very complete.
EoN features an all-star cast of characters, each digitally rendered and voiced over by their real-life actors. Superstars such as Pierce Brosnan (Bond), Willem Dafoe (Nikolai Diavolo), Heidi Klum (Dr. Nadanova), and Shannon Elizabeth (Serena St. Germaine) grace the game with their likenesses, making the experience even more movie-like. The dialogue is very 007-ish, and you’ll become accustomed to Bond’s witty one-liners as you’ll hear them one after another. Better yet listen to M, played by Judi Dench, give you a tongue-lashing after you fail a mission; she’ll make you feel like a loser.
The game’s music helps keep the mood throughout, and that’s something you’ll see from the moment to put the disk in. R&B diva Mya sings the main theme song and handles the appearance and voiceover of her character, Agent Mya Starling. And, of course, you get your classic Bond music from time to time.
The animation is some of the best you’ll see. With all that goes on in this game, there is no real choppiness or glitching. Pretty much everything down to 007 checking his watch is done smoothly. It doesn’t really jump out at you as you go through the on-foot missions, but the seemingly flawless animation is even more noticeable during the driving and motorcycle missions. Traffic, explosions, and flying debris are everywhere, and there’s no lag.
As for the enemy AI, I’ve mentioned before that they are not complete idiots. These guys will get you if you’re not careful, alert others if they see you, butt-stroke you with their weapon if you’re too close, take cover when they are under fire, and investigate if you’re too loud. It goes farther than that—let’s say you’ve just subdued a guard. Right before he dies, he takes one last shot at you with his pistol. Disarm an enemy, and he’ll pick up a dropped weapon and use it instead. There’s so much more these guys can do, and they will keep you on your toes all game long. As with all other games of this genre, they only get harder to kill as move along.
One of the few gripes about EoN is the cinematics. They have excellent voiceovers, but the sharpness and graphics look terribly hazy in certain areas. But other than that, EoN is a work of art.
Replay Value
For as much as there is to do in this game, the replay value compliments it all. After completing each mission, you are given a score and a rating on your performance, marked as bronze or gold. Obtaining golds are enough to unlock some goodies, but if you manage to clear the missions on “007 Agent” difficulty, you can unlock the Platinum Challenge, which is usually an uber-difficult task within that particular stage. Clear it, and you will unlock more cheats and special abilities.
Another enjoyable facet of Everything or Nothing is the “Bond Moments.” This is just plain genius; a Bond Moment is a situation you take 007 through that relates to an action he’d take in a movie, such as clearing out a roomful of armed guards without making a sound. Each mission has a set number of Bond Moments, and a player can make it a point to achieve all of them in each level.
That itself can be a serious task, or maybe you want to shoot for a better score. With all the little inside things to be done, EoN will keep you coming back, without a doubt.
In Conclusion…
Flat out, Everything or Nothing will blow you away. You don’t even have to be a fan of the hero to enjoy this one, and the best part is, anyone can pick it up and play. This can easily go down as the best 007 gaming experience and dethrone N64’s Goldeneye. Here’s your chance to be James Bond and do all the groovy stuff he does.
