James Bond 007: Everything or Nothing

Added March 13th, 2004 by Sallizar

Introduction:

When I heard that EA was releasing another Bond game for the Xbox, I cringed. Their last attempt, James Bond 007: Nightfire, was a relatively short and uninspired first person shooter that ended up going in my trade-in pile. As the new game’s release approached, EA started off by announcing that gamers would be seeing a lot more of Bond this time because they decided to move the series to a 3rd person view. They also announced that not only would Pierce Brosnan be voicing Bond, many other actors and actresses would be doing voice work and appearing in the game. On top of all that, EA decided to bring in the Need for Speed development team to design the plethora of driving levels in the game. So, we’ve got a brand new 3rd person view, the NFS team, and great voice work combined with in-game models of the real Bond actors, what else do we need? A Bond girl or two, maybe? EA gives gamers not one, not two, but four Bond girls in Everything or Nothing! Ok, you’ve got my attention, so let’s see how it plays.

Gameplay:

Throwing Bond in front of the camera makes for some serious control changes. The first thing you will notice is the aiming system. Point Bond toward a bad guy, hit the left trigger to lock on then lay on the right trigger to frag the minion of evil. It’s as simple as that. Or is it? Lean against a wall or crouch behind cover then lock on the enemy and Bond will lay down fire from hiding when you pull the trigger. Getting accustomed to using cover instead of running and gunning is the key to the action levels in Everything or Nothing. 007 also can holster the P99 and throw a mean right hook now that he’s in 3rd person mode. The brawling system, while rather basic, is extremely well animated and reacts well with the surrounding environment. You grab a henchman and you may knock his head against a nearby table or simply toss him into the nearest wall.

Besides Bond girls, the 007 series is known for two things. Gadgets and vehicles. Bond simply can’t be Bond without the kooky stuff Q cooks up for him, and Everything or Nothing has a slew of toys for gamers to play with. Grenades disguised as coins, Nanosuits that turn Bond invisible, and a remote control car with a laser attached are just a few of the gadgets you’ll get to use. By far the coolest gadget, the rappel gun, is also the simplest. It’s simply a grappling hook gun that lets you climb up to high ledges or walk down walls. Almost every level has sections where the rappel gun is needed. Standing on a wall above unsuspecting bad guys and opening up with the AK-74 is one of the best moments in the game. Q also provides Bond with quite a few different vehicles in Everything or Nothing. The Need for Speed team went all out and designed some of the best levels of the game. You’ll have the opportunity to try to win a road race in Peru or you might zip through New Orlean’s alleyways in your Aston Martin while avoiding pursuit.

Multiplayer is a mixed bag. The cooperative mode lets two players play through an entire new set of missions. By playing co-op you’ll unlock the arena mode and various characters to use in the arenas. Arena mode lets 2-4 players run around and fire at each other all on the same screen. It reminds me of Kung Fu Chaos, with guns and gets boring rather quickly.

Graphics:

Nothing graphically really stands out about Everything or Nothing. Everything in the game is incredibly detailed (character models, weapons, architecture), but is pretty much what gamers have come to expect from the current generation of action games. Character models are the most interesting feature. EA crafted the likenesses of all of the Bond actors right into the game. This gives Everything or Nothing an incredibly cinematic feel. A few scenes could have used a few more effects. For example, in one scene Bond blows up a fireworks plant and the resulting explosion is pretty low key. Had I been developing that section I would have used tons of particle effects and made a grand colorful explosion, but the lack of eye candy could be a symptom of the game being developed for multiple platforms and not just the Xbox.

Audio:

Everything or Nothing kicks off with songstress Mya (who also appears in the game as the character Mya Starling) belting out the game’s theme song and then keeps the aural delights coming the whole way through. Wonderful voice work by Pierce Brosnan, John Cleese, Willem Dafoe and Shannon Elizabeth, just to name a few, give the game that authentic Bond feel. Weapons and explosion sound effects are very well done, though as usual, I think the Desert Eagle sounds a bit weak. The game also features a well written musical score that adds to the urgency of each level. Toss in Bond’s latest gadget, Dolby Digital 5.1, and Everything or Nothing will fill your room with 007 style atmosphere.

Controls:

It’s true. British secret agents can’t jump. They can’t aim to well at first either. The aiming system takes some getting used to, but the lock on system makes for some great cinematic firefights. On the other hand, the driving controls are simply perfect. Sliding Bond’s motorcycle through traffic on the The Pontchartrain Bridge is a breeze.

Left Thumbstick - Move Bond in desired direction
Right Thumbstick - Camera adjust/look/aim
Left Trigger - Target Lock/Next Target/Activate Sniper Scope
Right Trigger - Fire weapon
D-pad Left/Right - Inventory/Bond Sense
D-pad Up - Next Gadget
D-pad Down - Next Weapon
D-pad Up/Down – Adjust zoom when using Sniper Scope
Y - Left punch
X - Right punch
B - Dive
A - Action
Black - Wall Cover/Turn Around while rappeling
White - Crouch
Start - Pause
Back - Thermovision on/off

Right Trigger - Accelerate
Left Trigger - Brake/Reverse
B - Handbrake
A - Fire weapon
X - Use Gadget
Left Thumbstick - Steer
D-pad Left/Right - Next weapon
Black - Next weapon
Right Thumbstick Down - Look back
D-pad Up - Cycle camera
White - Toggle Map
Start - Pause

Replay:

Complete a mission in single player and you’ll receive a medal (bronze, gold, platinum) based on your score. Snagging the platinum medals earns various cheat codes, but to even have access to the platinum objective you have to have completed the mission on it’s hardest difficulty already. So, if you must get all the platinum medals, you’re guaranteed to play through the whole game at least twice. If you’d rather ignore the medals and play with some friends, Everything or Nothing has a relatively decent multiplayer component. Co-op mode is good, but the inability to use Bond sense will sometimes get the player into situations where they will have to wildly move the character and the camera to locate the enemy firing on them from behind. The 2-4 player arena mode is a nice diversion, but it doesn’t hold a candle to a Halo death match. There’s a lot to do in Everything or Nothing, but it all depends on whether you want to unlock everything or if you’ll settle for unlocking next to nothing.

Summary:

Guns, gadgets and girls abound in Everything or Nothing, but is it the best Bond game ever? It’s hard to say. It’s certainly better than anything since Goldeneye on the N64, but the change in play style (3rd person view and multiple driving levels) makes it hard to compare to the previous first person shooter Bonds. EA decided to try something daring and overall I think it paid off. Mixing stealthy action gameplay with high octane driving levels appears to have paid off quite well. If you’re a fan of the Bond flicks it’s a must have, and for those gamers who are not it’s a great game to add to your Xbox collection.