Among all the 007 games, this is the only game where a player doesn't play as Bond. Instead, a player plays as a rogue agent working for classic Bond villains, placing the player in the shoes of a villain instead of a hero. A fascinating turn of events for gameplayers, until one realizes that the game is rated T than M, which means there will be restrictions to playing as a villain. Already the game clues gamers in that the final product is not going to be as promising as the marketing hyped-it up to be before even playing it.
The player gets to team up with some of the best baddies in the franchise, such as Auric Goldfinger, Oddjob, Francisco Scaramanga, and Blofield Number One. The possibilities of working with these types of villains are endless, like attacking Fort Knox, luring people to Scaramanga's Island for a duel, or threatening the world with nuclear weapons while fighting against MI6 agents to eventually challenging James Bond himself. The game could be a unique spin-on the Bond games now that a player is officially siding with the foe. But instead of spreading terrorism for world domination, it's all about fighting against other Bond foes like Dr. No and Xenia Onatopp for power and revenge. No civilians are harmed, MI6 doesn't get in the way; it's just fighting against other villains, thus taking away the feel of interacting as a villain for how common place the primary goal is. The game offers mechanics that are not from any Bond games to make the player feel evil, like setting off booby traps and taking people hostage. However, the people that the player is attacking are all henchmen, so it makes this supposed new edge with these villainous mechanics meaningless. Come to think of it; these so-called "villainous mechanics" aren't all that evil in the first place. Bond has made some cold kills and used resources to kill his enemies in gruesome ways, so I don't see how he wouldn't do any of these "evil methods" if they work to his advantage to save the world. After all, Bond is a double O agent who gets things done by not playing by the guidelines while up against trained assassins.
The idea of feeling like a villain is absent. Still, with having such a rogues gallery of some of the iconic foe in the series to assist or fight against, there must be a fantastic story to make this concept warranted. After replaying the game, it seems like EA was so busy designing the levels, getting the rights to the villains, and coming up with new mechanics, that they came up with a story at the last minute. The idea of playing as a character completely new doesn't bother me as much as others felt. I would rather play as a villain like Jaws or Oddjob, but if the character is well-written, looks distinct, and has a memorable personality, I wouldn't mind playing as a fresh and new character. Well, he doesn't have any of that. The set-up for his character, for the most part, sounds good on paper. He's a former MI6 Agent who involuntarily had Bond killed, lost his eye from Dr. No, and joins forces with Auric Goldfinger for revenge. But the game messes it up. We never see or have a mission where this agent gets his eye blown-out by Dr. No; it's just mentioned through exposition and a few visual clues in the title credits. Without a proper way of showing his loss, there's no emotion to feel for his quest for vengeance. There's a mission where we witness Bond die until the cut scene reveals that it was a simulation at MI6, so nothing is lost. And M's claim for his responsibility for not saving Bond is stupid since Bond falls to his death after hanging on a flaming helicopter before the player can even lend him a hand. How was any of this his fault? The character doesn't look so much as upset about it either, mainly because he has no expression. All the character carries are a blank expression throughout the game and doesn't say a single word, making him the Claude of the 007 game franchise. But at least Claude in "Grand Theft Auto 3" looked like a stoned cold killer; the agent gamers play here is a diet James Bond, who tries to look edgy yet would be just another face in the crowd for his bland appearance.
This agent's only distinctive feature is that he has a "Goldeneye." And I'm not talking about the satellite; I mean, he has an actual golden mechanical eye to not only help him see but to use the force as well. That's Die Another Day ridiculousness. By giving the character a Goldeneye and naming him after it, exposes EA's blatant attempt to cash-in on the title to a popular Bond game that has nothing to do with it at all. If EA really wanted to bank off of Goldeneye, couldn't players at least play as Alec Trevelyan? He was one of Bond's allies who shared his skills and later became a villain. It would be fascinating to see a different and familiar take on a villain fans know, and play as him, as opposed to a character who just exists. With no emotional investment, really, what the cutscenes are designed for is setting up the mission rather than building on story and character.
The game does contain some of the best villains in the franchise. Some are appropriately used, like Goldfinger, Scaramanga, and Dr. No, while others aren't given much to do. Pussy Galore naturally takes the player to the destination, but this highly skilled pilot is terrible at picking up the player, which in reality serves as a poor excuse to keep the levels going on longer than they should. The oddest direction the game does with her character is have her obsess over the color pink by having her helicopter bright pink. I don't see the point in it at all. And I can't say I see the point to Xenia Onatopp's presence either for how thrown in she is. It's cool to see her included and have her be one of the few villains to have a boss fight in the game, except the battle itself makes no sense. She stuns Goldeneye and is about to crush him with her thighs, only to suddenly stop her signature kill and use an inefficient way of killing the player. I understand that Bond villains find impractical extremes to try to kill Bond than just shooting him right in their presence; it's part of the formula's fun. But to have Xenia just stop from performing her signature kill is like Oddjob taking off his hat only to put it down and pick up a pipe, or JAWS about to bite only to stop and strangle instead. It doesn't feel like something the character would do. Shooting her helicopter down isn't that special since players at this point would have already shot down more than ten of them. By the time she's on the ground after shooting her enough times, a cut scene shows her spontaneously falling to her death. There's no explanation how she falls off the dam; it just happens.
At least Xenia's boss battle is not as anti-climatic as defeating Goldfinger. A mission tells the player to defeat him until the player gets caught in a death trap with Goldfinger watching, and then a cutscene shows him dying in an explosion. There's not so much as a boss fight with Oddjob before it. A cut scene in the middle of the game shows Oddjob for no reason charging at Goldeneye intending to kill him (even though Goldfinger still needs him), only for Goldeneye to push him off the ledge where he falls and disappears, never to be seen again. Goldfinger doesn't so much as mention Oddjob's absence after this; he just forgets him as if he was one of his disposable henchmen. So pretty much, the game wastes Oddjob as there's never a moment to fight against him, or so much as interacting with him (even after the game's briefing informs Goldeneye he'll be working with him).
Among all the problems the game has, it shares a few issues that 007 Legend has, which I'll argue is worse here. The levels all function the same. For all the complaints people have with 007 Legends, there was more to do than just shooting, and having cutscenes in the middle of the mission to move the story forward helps get the player feel somewhat emotionally invested. There are very few cutscenes in during the missions, making fulfilling the objectives feel meaningless. All levels simply require the player to shoot endlessly. They would be at different locations, a player will be given some upgrades to the "Goldeneye," but the only real variety a player will get is a boss fight, which happens so rarely in this game. None of the levels seem to have an identity of their own for how repetitive they all are, making it dull after a while.
The real pain of playing these levels that sucks out the enjoyment is that most of them needlessly drag-out. Half of these levels last for about an hour, if not more. 007 Legends had that problem too, but at least there was a story told for each level. With little story and just shooting for an extended period with hardly any variety, it's easier to notice the length and get bored from it fast. EA finds ways to drag them out; only their reasons feel more annoying than intriguingly challenging. After shooting a swarm of goons through a long hallway, a few doors later, I would myself doing the same thing again in a similar location, except this time the room would be a different color, or there are more henchmen than there were before. And this sort of problem happens more often than one would think.
Furthermore, since the game has very few boss battles, enemy aircraft and tanks would appear to put all the fast-paced action to a halt, going from tediously repetitive to annoyingly dull. It takes a lot of time and patience to destroy enemy vehicles, especially when there are more than a few. I usually find myself dying over and over when trying to blast them all. Every time I see an aircraft hover or see two different tanks start rolling in unloading henchmen, any enjoyment I would feel instantly drops. I know that by continuously fighting these vehicles will take forever for me to finish a level that I'm already getting sick and tired of playing. On the bright side, the loading screen for after I die doesn't last as forever as the loading screen in 007 Legends.
Choosing this game between 007 Legends for what I think is the least bad Bond game was tough. A part of me was going to go with 007 Legends because I felt less anxious to finish the overlong levels than here when this game nearly gives me as much of a headache as 007 Racing. If it weren't for having better controls and graphics than Tomorrow Never Dies, it would have been the second-worst. So why bother placing it as the least bad of the franchise? Well, half of the new material it offers is executed much better than any of the past three games on this ranking.
The game is the first to provide Bond with a health regenerator instead of going around finding body armour while avoiding gunfire, which I do personally prefer. And I like that EA gives players a sporting chance to survive longer by using a hostage for additional health. Plus, I enjoy the dark idea of using a person as a shield to protect myself. My favorite part of the mechanic is tossing my hostage like a rag-doll. I don't ever get tired throwing them into the ocean, out the window, over the dam, or in a vat of chemicals. What's equally fun is setting off the booby traps. The game uses all kinds of inventive ways to ax off henchmen from a press of a button, such as freezing them in a cooling chamber, pouring hot melted gold, frying them in a steam room, just to name a few. The concept of a "Goldeneye" is stupid, but that doesn't mean it isn't cool to use. I enjoy all the special features it has, like using X-ray vision to spot enemies in blind spots, hacking machine guns to attack other people, and creating a shield to protect myself. Even the use of magnetic fields, as out of place as it is, is the highlight for me when using the "Goldeneye" mechanics. Sending enemies flying away is as much fun as watching them plummet when tossing them. The only set back is how easy it is to lose power for your Goldeneye resulting for a very slow recharge. I understand there needs to be some limitations; I only wish I can use the magnetic forces twice before the power runs low or that my polarity shield was a little stronger, considering that ducking for cover or grabbing a hostage isn't always an option under challenging circumstances.
When talking about the other games, I didn't talk about their collection of firearms for how standard they felt. They were fun to use (not counting 007 Racing); there just wasn't anything special about them. This game has the upper hand with weapons selection giving me all types of amusing guns to use. Some of my favorites include the Mag-Rail (that fires depleted uranium rail through walls and crates without damage and kill opponents with one-shot); the Mk II Detonator (a gun that fires detonators on enemies and can be activated with another pull of the trigger); and the Omen (a laser gun that can make an enemy disintegrate). Similar to the classic Goldeneye 64, the game gives players the ability to use dual-weapons, except rather than being the same kind, they can differ from each other. To me, nothing says badass shooting in the first person than carrying a handheld rocket launcher in one hand and a shotgun in the other hand.
Like the Goldeneye mechanics, there are some downsides. Not all weapons can be used at the same time. Fair enough, except the game only allows gamers to carry either one or two weapons at a time. It's stupid limitations like that that just take away the gaming experience's liberties. I don't care if it's not realistic to carry so many weapons at once, it's a video game, and it has a mechanical Goldeneye that can do the impossible, and weapons that Marvin the Martian would carry! When using the guns, it's cool to see enemies perish, but when the very same gun is pointed at the player, it becomes trying. I don't mind the challenge, but after already fighting against vehicles and certain types of enemies who have shields around them, only to die against ordinary henchmen with a one-shot kill weapon for the 5th time, it's more of a burden than it is an amusing challenge. And even after blasting an enemy instead of just watching them fall or bleed like in the other games, this game strangely has them bleed blue electricity. There's no rhyme or reason; they just do. Out of all the stupid choices in this game, knowing that enemies actually do that after the first level (since that was a simulator) is where the game windsurfs the horrendous CGI waves.
If there's one thing to admire from the game genuinely, it's the levels design. This was made possible because the levels were designed by Ken Adams, who did the production design for Bond films such as Dr. No, Moonraker, The Spy Who Loved Me, and Goldfinger (to name a few). His involvement makes these overlong levels pleasing to the eye. If 007 Legends level design combination of the old Bond era with the new is an example done wrong, this game is that concept done right. The game's world looks like it takes place in the current 2000s with the technology, but it knows what set-pieces to bring from the previous films to appear timeless, perfectly blending both worlds and successfully managing to create its own. As a Bond fan, I am stoked to tour Auric Enterprises (complete with Goldfinger's laser, THAT CAN NEVER BE USED AS A TRAP), searching Crab Key for Dr. No, and having the game's climax take place in Blofield's Number one's Volcano Lair (filled with a few Easter eggs). But the original locations designed for the game are just as full of personality, whether it's at Goldfinger's Las Vegas Casino or on the neon-lit Rooftops of Hong Kong. The best level design hands-down goes to The Octopus. An underwater facility owned by Blofield Number One, shaped like an octopus filled with weapons, octopus motifs, and holograms of a lady interacting with the player in the main rooms. It's like a futuristic version of Atlantis from The Spy Who Loved Me with the luxurious environment of Dr. No's Crab Key resort-like chamber. This game serves as the closest Bond fans can get to a 2000s Bond film if Ken Adams designed it.
The story to the game just exists to tie the levels together, and some of the villains don't get the respect they deserve. But the Bond fanboy inside me can't help but geek-out at seeing all these villains together, the same way as a Disney fan would react to seeing Disney villains' team-up. To have Goldfinger serving as my M in terms of leadership and guidance during the mission is music to my ears (with a solid impersonation). He's a Bond villain I would be excited to work for as a boss for how rich, powerful, eccentric, and colorful he is as the very thing he covets. And having him pull a one-eighty on me is appropriately fitting given the character's spontaneous nature. As Goldfinger gives me the info, I have Scaramanga updating my Goldeneye's ability, making him the Q of the game. And the best part is, Christopher Lee, voices him! 007 Legends may have Michael Lonsdale, but he doesn't top Christopher Lee! Lonsdale is heard in one level; Lee is heard throughout the game, remaining as an ally while still having a towering presence from his design and voice work. Lastly to have Dr. No as the central conflict of the game brings me joy to see the first Bond villain become the main villain again, with more to do, and is the only foe allowed to have a proper boss fight.
I feel out of everything that makes me lean towards this game as the least bad is it's multiplayer. The first time I was ever introduced to this game was by playing it on multiplayer with my friend at his house when I was a kid. I was so blown away by the multiplayer experience that I thought the game would be as amusing. Obviously not nearly, but the multiplayer still holds-up extraordinarily well. Using the game's cool set of weapons, the Goldeneye, and booby traps against other players is ten times more exciting than the story mode. I enjoy that some of the locations in the game can used as a personal battleground, but the best maps are the one's based on Bond films (including A View to a Kill, The Man with the Golden Gun, and Moonraker), each coming with a set of death-traps that fit the film it's modeled after. My absolute favorite map is Scaramanga's funhouse, a setting that is begging to be used as a multiplayer game, and this game takes every advantage of it with its surreal design and having animatronics of cowboys and gangsters that are programmed to kill your opponent. The only issue with the multiplayer is that the characters' selection is mostly henchmen instead of traditional Bond villains. The game is about becoming a villain, and I can't even play as half of the Bond villains in the multiplayer?!
Overall Thoughts
I may have had a little more fun playing 007 Legends by comparison, but as overlong, tedious, dumb, and disappointingly executed the game is, the good it does have is a little sweeter than the good in 007 Legends. It has a grand selection of villains, and remarkable level designs by Ken Adams that are very pleasing to the eye. The real enjoyment of the game mainly comes from the new mechanics, and weapons selection that aren't used in other 007 games, making the game a little special in the franchise. I may not be playing the game often for the story mode, but I certainly will be playing its multiplayer mode more.
Worst Mission: Hoover Dam
It was hard picking a level I disliked the most since all the levels have the same problem. Hong Kong came at a close second since I'm doing nothing but shooting and jumping from rooftop to rooftop, trying to rendezvous with Pussy Galore, who keeps missing me. But Hoover Dam is the mission I find myself getting easily bored and annoyed by the most. Roof hopping is a little more exciting than climbing up and down many times to reach the main objective. Just as I feel I'm near the top of the dam, I discover that I have to climb down to plant bombs and then climb up a few more floors to get to the level's climax. Compared to the other levels this is easily the least visually interesting for having so many brown, gray, and dirty yellow colors in tunnels that look generic. Walking outside on the dam isn't as ugly as the inside, but it would make me wish I was fighting off henchmen inside the tunnels for the level's love for using aircraft and tanks at almost every single turn. I died so many times to finish it for the story and review. And what I get is seeing one of the most excellent henchmen of all-time get the shaft as bad as Bobba Fett in Return of the Jedi, topped off with an oddly put together boss fight with Xenia. Does it sound worth it?
Favorite Mission: Fort Knox
Choosing a favorite level was as tricky as choosing the worst. I had trouble thinking of one that I had fun playing from start to finish. Initially, I was going to pick my favorite mission based on the best level design due to the game's lack of variety and story. If that were still my intention, I would've easily picked The Octopus. But then I remembered the game's first level and how excited and engaged I was playing it. The first and most obvious reason is it's the shortest level in the game, which is merciful by this game's standards. Taking that out of the way, it's by far the most story-driven level, undoubtedly because it takes the climax to the classic Bond film Goldfinger to a grimmer route where everything is in vain. Yet as depressing as the results are, the level design is as pretty to look at as the film the game's based on, making it a better recreation than 007 Legends (but then again, what does one expect when the level is designed by the same person who did the production design for the film). This level also includes Oddjob at his best in this game, by killing a guard with his hat and electrocuting another one; it's just disappointing that we don't see him do it on-screen. But what we do see is, in my opinion, the best original James Bond character model. Don't get me wrong, I do love the Bond in Agent Under Fire, but the Bond in this game has a cool cross between Pierce Brosnan and Timothy Dalton, with a voice that's intensely demanding while still coming across as suave. It angers me that he gets killed so early on in this level in such a pathetic way. It would've been nice to fight side by side with this version of Bond for a little bit before dying. The level does what the first level of a game should do, to get a player excited to play more of the game. If only the rest of the game were as enjoyable as this level.
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