Like 007 itself, James Bond video games have seen a great deal of reinvigoration over the years. Here are four games in Bond that stays true to the spy.
James Bond is one of the most symbolic figures of popular culture. Bond, a handsome spy always ready with a rejoinder as well as a bullet, has enthralled generations of fans by saving the world through his adventures. James Bond is a character designed for computer games. With the recent statement that Hitman maker IO Interactive is reviving the long-dormant 007 video game license, it looks like Bond will try to save the planet in video game form once again.
However, in a massive slew of James Bond games released over the years, Bond has seen iteration after iteration, just like the movies. The reigns were seized by many game developers, and their versions of Bond were offered up—some fantastic, many poor to bad. Here are four games that had outstanding results using the Bond license.
007 James Bond: Nightfire
Electronic Arts won over the Bond license in 1999; in 2002, for the PlayStation 2, Xbox, GameCube, and PC, it launched James Bond 007: Nightfire. Nightfire was the first-person shooting with an original plot in which Bond (Maxwell Caulfield’s portrayal of Pierce Brosnan) brings down an evil industrialist with sights on world domination.
Of course, Bond could use technology and gunplay, but Nightfire stands out by breaking up the vehicle section’s first-person shooting—a first for a Bond game. In a fast-paced car battle that offered a refreshing break from the first-person gunplay, these motor levels showed Bond riding his Aston Martin, kitted out with weapons.
Outside that, its multiplayer was Nightfire’s most vital feature. Users may pick famous characters, such as Auric Goldfinger or Henchman Jaws, from the series and play at levels recreated from the great movies. It would include Atlantis from The Spy Who Loved Goldfinger’s Fort Knox or Me.
If no buddies were present, players could also deploy bots, further adding to the multiplayer set of options.
Also Read, Best James Bond Gifts and Gadgets: Watch is one of them
007 James Bond: Everything Or Nothing
Only two years later, with James Bond 007, EA was once again: Everything or Nothing. EA decided this time for a third-person shooting, another Bond game featuring Pierce Brosnan (and this time also voiced by the actor himself). Between reviewers and fans, Anything or Nothing was it, and it’s still regarded as one of the best Bond games to this day.
In a futile attempt to avoid Diavolo’s introduction of devastating nanobots, All or Nothing sees 007 taking on wicked former KGB agent Nikolai Diavolo (voiced by Willem Dafoe). Bond has to use his standard trusty gadgets and heaps of weapons, but Bond does not really have to do it all alone (for the first time ever). The first James Bond game includes a full two-player co-op mode, where players control other MI6 operatives and have Everything or Nothing.
All or Nothing also saw a return of driving missions close to Nightfire, on top of its groundbreaking co-op mode. This was also based on the motor of fellow EA subsidiary Need for Speed, which meant that they felt fantastic and played a blast.
In about every way, Anything or Nothing was a huge upgrade on the already impressive Nightfire, and an entertaining advertisement packed with a beautiful cast made it an immediate success.
007: From Russia With Love
In 2005, when creator EA Redwood Shore published From Russia With Affection, he saw a marked improvement in Bond Gaming’s direction. Not just the younger appearance of Sean Connery, but also his voice. This Bond game brought it back to the 1960s and featured surprisingly. Again, 22 years after his last Bond experience for a game released on the PlayStation 2, Xbox, and GameCube, Connery stepped back into the position that made him an icon.
From Russia With Love saw an iconic Bond take on the similarly classic sinister entity SPECTRE, which had to be called OCTOPUS because of a legal battle between MGM and United Artists. Infinitely cool and retro. However, in anything but name, OCTOPUS is simply SPECTRE, as Bond would take down the organization using weapons, his iconic Aston Martin DB5 Coupe, and even the iconic Thunderball jetpack from 1965.
From Russia With Love is a fast-paced shooter that, for its incredible artwork and visual design, was lauded at the time. The actual draw here, though, is the Bond aesthetic of the 1960s.
Some modern fans would like the movies to revert to the iconic era’s joviality. Back in 2005, From Russia With Love did so in video game form.
The 007 GoldenEye
For this Nintendo 64 classic, not much can be said other than that one of the most popular shooters ever is GoldenEye 007. GoldenEye, created by Rare in 1997, fascinated an entire generation of Nintendo fans and built on the iconic film before being, in its own right, another legendary slice of James Bond history.
For console players, GoldenEye altered the world, showing that they could be more nuanced and immersive than they were at the moment. The game managed to tie a shooter from around Bond’s world, creating a masterpiece that, while providing almost no dialogue and zero voiceover appearances, looked like a Bond film. Rare developed a shooter that was as open as it was deep in gaming systems, building on the movie while staying right to it. GoldenEye 007 is almost as essential as any movie for a whole generation of viewers, and it remains a great Bond game ever made to this very day.
