2-Jan-2002 The guns, the girls – you can't go far wrong as the man himself
Since Rare made GoldenEye for the N64 (voted fifth in CVG readers' top 100 games of all time), Bond games have had a lot to live up to. On PSone, they sucked Blofeld's soiled kecks, but now Bond has arrived on PS2 and, as usual, he's just in time to save the day.
But you won't be blasting and quipping your way through one of the movie plots this time. A whole new story will see you infiltrating the Malprave organisation on a mission to stop a sinister plan to kill all the world's leaders and replace them with menacing clones – with the help of one or two secret service hotties, of course. What would a Bond game be without them?
Depending on whether you're a cool stealth cat or a hot-headed gun nut, you can sneak around or go in all guns blazing – it's up to you on most levels. Either way will result in gunfights, explosions and tearful funerals for dozens of evil henchmen.
The storyline's filled out with top cutscenes, just like the sort of stuff that happens in the movies. The first time Bond cocks an eyebrow, you won't be able to stifle a grin. It's all so familiar – the only difference is that this time, you're the one in the line of fire.
WE'VE BEEN EXPECTING YOU Although you'll be seeing most of the action from inside Bond's head, there are a couple of driving levels which allow you to make the most of 007's legendary recklessness on the road. There are also two occasions in the game when you'll be shooting out of a moving vehicle. The first comes when you're travelling through the streets of Hong Kong, and the second when you're in the depths of Malprave's underwater base. These episodes make for a great break in the action, but they're actually pretty short and it's the first-person levels that you'll find yourself coming back to again and again. One of the best innovations is the introduction of special 'Bond moves' throughout each level. Do something clever or daring that only Bond himself would do, and you're rewarded with a blast of the Bond theme tune, just like in the films. It's a real challenge to hunt them all out and when you pull one off, you really feel like a bit of a superspy.
SHAKEN, NOT BLURRED Everything's in pin-sharp detail, and while the looks can't match up to spy rival Metal Gear Solid 2 in terms of sheer style, they're every bit as detailed.
It's not difficult to get to grips with, either. EA has wisely chosen to use a control system that's a bit different from the usual PS2 first-person shooter. You move and turn with the left analogue stick, and look up and down and strafe with the right. It might seem a bit unwieldy to experts, but it means you can pick up and play using just the left stick, thanks to some nice autotargeting.
You'll need it for the multiplayer modes, where there are up to three of your mates out to make you dead. There's not just the usual deathmatch – there's also Protect the Flag, a bomb-disarming game and a great mission where one player tries to protect a non-player character and another has to assassinate him, with the two players swapping roles every so often. Sweet as.
The chink in Bond's armour is that the game's a little too short in single-player mode. However, the varied multiplayer missions more than make up for this little foible. Agent Under Fire really does continue the legacy of GoldenEye into the next generation. Let's hope this is just the beginning of a whole new franchise for Mr Bond, because we can't get enough of this sort of spy-'em-up. Evil geniuses of the world – bring it on!
Joff Brown
// Overview
Verdict
One of the PS2's best action games, and you get to be Bond... We'll take it!
"Dear Diary, today was another boring day in my job as a secret agent. When will I get a chance to do something interesting like stamp collecting or gardening for a change? This time, I had to infiltrate some secret bio-weapons facility and get out without being shot – ho hum! Sometimes I think that M wants to get rid of me. She keeps saying I'm past it and sends me on all these dangerous missions! At least I had R's secret gadgets to play with, but it wasn't exactly an easy ride. Mind you, I did meet a nice girl. Isn't it good when you can socialise during your job? Here's how my day went..."
"Stole some weapons and took out these blokes"
"The stealth's paid off – this guy hasn't seen me coming"
"The Q-Claw got me to the top of the building – nice work"
"Turning out the lights didn't help them much. Bok!"
"Spotted a bird on a sub and went down to rescue her"
"Used my Q-Laser to free her – fingers crossed she likes me"
"Took her for a drive, but some hoodlums started making trouble"
"I had a word and they left all quiet-like, after I'd filled their chopper full of lead!"
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