Everything or Nothing

The name's Bond, James Bond. Yes, the old vodka-swilling misogynist is back in a new adventure against actors with unconvincing Russian accents. Throw in a handful of great actions scenes and some terrible puns and we have the making of a Bond classic, don't we?

The driving sections are particularly good. So often an afterthought in these types of game, it was a pleasant surprise to find driving sections that didn't just make me feel like rushing through them to get back to the normal levels. Often the play area is quite open with different routes. EA developed the driving sections separately from the third-person action sections using the Need for Speed engine. It's a move that's paid off. The driving sections are fast, good looking and action packed. Whether on four wheels or two, Bond has some impressive weaponry to call upon. One mission in a mountain village was particular good due to its use of stealth gameplay with vehicles. Bond had to get through a town full of enemy patrols without being spotted. Using the radar map and the rechargeable cloaking device for the car it was possible to sneak past enemy roadblocks to reach the target.

The section where the player takes control of a helicopter isn't so good; the controls feel a little sluggish. The end of this mission also features a jarring moment when the player must destroy some force fields before being able to attack the actual target. In any normal game, there would be no problem with this idea, but it seemed oddly out of place in a Bond game. This is the kind of moment one might expect in a shoot'em up, not a game set in the James Bond universe. But the rest of the game feels resolutely Bondian (for want of a better word), so it's not a major issue in this case.

Everything or Nothing is a great looking game, particularly the Xbox version. The use of the actors' likenesses lends an air of authenticity to the game. The animation is good too, with many different animations based on which weapon Bond is using and the context in which they are being used. The levels are detailed and well constructed. The driving sections are very impressive; they feature detailed locations and gorgeous explosions. Whether using the bike or a car the action is really fast and furious, the scenery whips by smoothly despite the speed. Enemy vehicles explode in a very satisfactory manner throwing their occupants into the air. The whole visual package smacks of polish and care.

A similar effort has gone into the aural aspects of Everything or Nothing albeit with slightly less success. The theme song by Mya is not particularly good nor does it feel like a Bond theme. EA really should have gone the whole hog and got Shirley Bassey to sing a theme. Considering that EA has paid all the stars to voice the characters in the game it's a surprisingly long time before the player gets to hear Pierce say anything. The script is cheesy and the dialogue laden with terrible puns – so it captures the feel of the average Bond movie perfectly. Despite the stellar cast, some of the acting is a bit weak and sounds phoned-in, but at least John Cleese has risen to the occasion and sounds full of enthusiasm. General music and sound effects are good, especially the different guns and the engine sounds for the Aston Martin.

[Harry]

So we come to the end of this particular mission to review James Bond 007: Everything or Nothing, a title of such length it seems especially created to break the layout of websites. What intelligence do we now have? Well on the whole, the game is very strong, the driving sections don't feel like an afterthought and the missions are varied and interesting. The biggest problem with the game is the unimpressive camera/interface. Players who struggle past the awkward view system will be rewarded by an entertaining action adventure. It's not an interactive movie, it's a fun and exciting third-person shooter. It's not the best Bond ever, but it's certainly a very good game.