Goldeneye was a benchmark game for the James Bond license as far as gamers are concerned. Many hailed it as the best console first person shooter of its time. Developed by Rare on the Ninetendo 64 for many Goldeneye is the ultimate 007 game. Well since then the licence has shifted hands and for the last 2 recent games has been under the wing of EA (Electronic Arts). Firstly Agent Under Fire which was an accomplished title yet not matching the greatness of Goldeneye. Then last years Nightfire which was an improvement over Agent Under Fire and a good solid game.Now 2004 and we have the latest installment in the Bond series James Bond: Everything or Nothing (EON). Well things have certainly changed since Goldeneye and even Agent Under Fire, as EON mixes it up a little. You see all of those other games fit into a neat category of First Person Shooter where as EON has dramatically ditched this formula and gone for an all out third person viewpoint (where players can see the actual character). Using for the first time Pierce Brosnans actual voice and of course likeness puts players into the role of James Bond more visually than before. Welcome to Everything or Nothing, a rollercoaster ride of 3D action gaming.

Gameplay:
EON is a wide mix of third person action utilizing gadgets,stealth and major firepower mixed with some driving and rail sections as seen in the last two EA Bond games. The first thing you will notice whilst playing EON is the seamless transition from movie like cut scene to the actual gameplay. Bond faces many dangerous situations in his adventure and the new third person view allows players to view bond in all his glory.Also included now is a pretty decent fight engine which allows players to punch, throw and counter their way through the vast quantities of enemies throughout the levels. Bond also looks better now whilst scaling walls as again the third person viewpoint creates whole new avenues for gameplay with such a dramatic camera angle. Controlling bond is very easy as the game uses a lock on feature to target enemies with a coloured recticle dictating accuracy and a manual aim type feature. Very similar to the Syphon Filter games on PSone. With a wide range of weapons available such as MP5's, Shotguns,silenced pistols and rocket launchers you will have no trouble blasting your way through these sections. Bond also can enter a sneak mode to take out unaware enemies and wall hug with the obligatory peek and shoot moves thrown in as well. Combining these gameplay elements with the level design and what you have here is an excellent cocktail of gaming fun. The driving sections are also equally dramatic and appealing as the player gets to drive tanks helicopters, sports cars and even handy motorcycles. Having felt that the driving sections were the weaker part of the two earlier next gen Bond games I was pleased to see that the new driving missions were somehow more polished and added some GTA influenced moments. Although hardly a far cry from the other two games the driving sections really do add some variety to the whole package and in this case are not just an after thought added to flesh out the game. The overall structure of the game is to follow the rather obvious and tame plot through the story whilst achieving an award at the end of a mission. These awards are the key to unlocking many of the game's secrets. Therefore the player is encouraged to tackle missions multiple times to improve their score and hopefully obtain that gold and platinum award. The missions are varied and fun to play albiet being on the linear side. Although some missions allow for stealth or run and gun tactics. I guess most players will be playing some sections over and over for the sheer enjoyment factor.

Graphics:
Graphically Bond looks pretty decent although I havent seen how the other two versions comnpare to the Xbox version. Being an EA game and multi-format the trend seems to be one of not many differences between the three formats. That aside the game runs smoothly and looks good and thats is what really matters at the end of the day. The character models especially of Bond himself are the most convincing to date and alongside the 3rd person view we get to view Bond in action. The driving sections are graphically much smoother than previous incarnations and could even be mistaken as a seperate game.

Sound:
Sound is pretty good as well with the use of all the Bond cast including Judi Dench, John Cleese and of course Pierce himself doing all voice overs as well as Mya and william Defoe. Gameplay sounds are equally good as you shoot, drive through the many levels. The music is typical Bond and nothing new, in fact the music seems like its been toned down a little, but that could be me. Unfortunately I hated the Bond opening theme and felt that the music wasnt as well realised as Nightfire's.

Longevity:
EON supports a reasonable length single player game which wont take long to beat if you are simply there to complete the missions. However gaining the high awards will take a much longer time to complete. Again the factor of simply playing levels for fun will keep many players entertained for some time. A two player co-op mode is also supported with its own story and levels and is an excellent and challenging two player experience. This mode also unlocks the multiplayer arena for up to four players. This is a Powerstone type game but in my opinion is a little on the weak side and not up to the standard of the co-op, single player. Either way alone or with a friend there is enough here to keep you entertained for quite some time.

Round Up:
EON is an excellent addition to the Bond hall of games. With its new cinematic approach to the series it has captured the essence of what Bond does in the movies very well. Whether you feel apprehensive of the switch from first person to third is up to you but once you have played EON you will definitely see it as a positive in this case. The improved vehicle sections also aid in the overall variety of the game as do Bond's new cinematic fight and rope moves that wouldn't be as effective in first person. Overall a very enjoyable game and worthy of a play.

Pros:

• Variety in missions
  
• Motorcycles
  
• cinematic approach
  
• hand to hand combat
  
• co-op levels
  
  

  Cons:
  

  • slightly linear levels
    
  • poor multiplayer mode