James Bond 007 Game by Saffire Reviewed by Iwan iwan@lamble.demon.co.uk Size: 4 megabits Save: 3 slots Released: 1998 Works with: All Game Boys ************************************************************************ Opening Snide Remarks: Goldeneye on the Nintendo 64 is probably my favourite game ever but, unlike many people, I didn't buy James Bond 007 expecting it to be another Goldeneye. Having seen screenshots, I expected it to be another Zelda. Unfortunately, JB007 doesn't even come close to matching either of those games. ************************************************************************ Gameplay Description: James Bond 007 is a top-down action RPG starring James Bond. It plays a lot like Zelda but all of the weapons are completely different so it doesn't really feel that much like Zelda when you are playing. Also unlike Zelda, Bond's world is split into levels as his quest, like his films, takes him all across the globe. To start with, JB007 is fun, simply because of the situations you get to play in. There are no fantasy worlds and swords here: all of the locations are sort-of realistic and the weapons feature guns, grenades and rocket launchers. Imagine if Link could visit a casino, order a drink at a bar, visit Q's lab, chat up girls by the pool, infiltrate enemy headquarters or disarm nuclear weapons while carrying a machine gun, an exploding pen, night vision goggles and a laser watch... Of course, its not quite as good as it sounds: use the pen or watch in most places and you'll just get a 'you can't use that here' message, all of the guns (even the rocket launcher) fire like increasingly powerful versions of Zelda's arrows and most of the time you'll find that the most useful weapon is the rather sword-like machete, which you're only really meant to use for cutting your way through the jungle. But the grenades are quite good and the locations varied and a little bit of imagination can go a long way. Since the enemies are (mostly) human, they show a bit more intelligence than those in Zelda and generally carry guns meaning that combat is usually hit-and-run or long distance, ducking behind cover when they shoot back. Which isn't bad, just different. Also, there's a lot less variety in the enemies and the types of attacks they have, but that's only to be expected. In the bits between the fighting, when you talk to characters, James Bond 007 fares pretty well. It's as if the Muppets did a James Bond film but with completely straight faces throughout - it's funny simply because there's this tiny cute little man is going around doing everything James Bond does. Anyway, the plot's quite good, with a few twists and your typical Bond stuff. Occasionally, though, there's a distinct whiff of fan-fiction: all the crowd-pleasing characters turn up, even though they're not really needed (and, in some cases, dead) and the game steals whole chunks from the films. Also, Bond tends to slip out of character at times. Can you imagine him saying 'Criminal breath', 'luv' or giving long morality talks? There are loads of characters to talk to in the game (more than any other action RPG I've played) although most of them only say a few words. The major problem with the game, though, is that it's far too easy. Medi packs and body armour is everywhere and the fact that the game is split into ten sections means that if you get stuck at any point, the answer has to be in a pretty small area, so you'll find it pretty quickly. While there's more map screens to explore than Zelda, lots of these are empty or part of the huge mazes that beef up most levels. Liked: Great locations, great equipment, good plot, plays like Zelda Hated: Too easy, occasionally slips up on the script ************************************************************************ Graphics Description: The graphics are detailed and nice to look at but I just feel that they're a bit dull. They completely lack character and style. Maybe it's just me. They're a bit on the small side, too, which doesn't really harm the gameplay but if you want to catch everything JB007 has to offer visually, you'll need a Super Game Boy or GBC. Since the 'camera' isn't quite overhead, Bond can slightly overlap the background which can mean that you can find yourself getting him stuck behind scenery to start with, but you'll soon get used to it. Liked: Detailed, not particularly ugly to look at Hated: Lacks style, almost too much to see (although very little can be interacted with) ************************************************************************ Sound/Music Description: JB007's sound is a bit odd. While the tunes are all pretty good and never get repetitive, very few sound really Bond-like. And the ones that do, particularly the main theme on the title screen, sound slightly off- key, as if nobody gave the developers the sheet music for the tunes and the musician had to do it 'by ear'. Not a bad effort, but it's not Goldeneye. Liked: Okay tunes, never repetitive Hated: Not enough Bond, sometimes slightly off-key (maybe it's the Game Boy's speakers) ************************************************************************ Play Control/Game Design: If you've played Zelda you'll pick this up in no time. The only difference is that you use select to bring up your item list and press start to save (as opposed to start for items and select for map). The smaller graphics sometimes makes the collisions harder to judge (with both walls and enemies), but overall its pretty good. The card game sub-games in the casino are very badly done, though. Liked: Overall good control Hated: Card games ************************************************************************ Improve: 1. Less medi packs and body armour 2. More RPGing, less mazes full of soldiers 3. Chunkier graphics would be nice 4. Or: just forget all that and make a first person shooter... RIYL: Zelda, Final Fantasy Adventure, Quest for Camelot, Conker's Pocket Tales ************************************************************************ Final Words: JB007 has great locations, it has great atmosphere, it has great weapons but then it spoils it all with dull level design and extremely low difficulty level. There are some superb moments in the game: visiting Q's lab, returning to a location you've been to before (I won't spoil the plot too much), the hotel, the casino, the market, the bizarre room full of trapped women who don't want to escape, the second ending and all of the bosses. But then there's very little in between except for some really dull mazes, identical enemy after identical enemy and some very un-Bond-like gameplay (such as attacking street gangs with a machete). I really enjoyed playing this game from beginning to end. The only problem is, beginning to end can be done in an afternoon. At the same price as Zelda in color, JB007 really doesn't seem that much of a good buy after all. ************************************************************************ Score Gameplay: **** Graphics: **** Sound/Music: *** Play Control/Game Design: **** Personal Opinion: ** Total: 17 out of 25 Final Score: 68% ************************************************************************ Currently Known Codes: Play the card games (why you would want to, I don't know): Enter the following as the name of a save game file BJACK - Blackjack REDOG - Red Dog BACCR - Baccarat Get the jewelled egg: This can be traded for an underground pass to get around Marrakech quicker. There's a screen to the right of the cave where Iqbal lives in Kurdistan which has a man who will give you the egg. The secret passage to this screen is behind the bush closest to the cave. Better ending: Find the M.A.R.B.L.E.. I won't make the game even easier again by telling you where, though.