James Bond Agent Under Fire (Gamecube)

The story itself revolves around Bond's mission to foil the plans of terrorist leader, Malprave. Admittedly they could have chosen a much more menacing or cooler sounding name, but it doesn't matter what your name is when you're developing an army of deadly clones to conquer the world with. Like the films the action covers the globe, from Hungary to China, and the story unfolds via multiple cut-scenes and the mission accompanying briefings. It isn't what the majority of people might call Oscar-winning material, but it's definitely done with plenty of Bond style, with gorgeous ladies, Q's numerous gadgets and many enemies intent on stopping you.

But what sets this apart from the previous Bond shooters like The World Is Not Enough or even Rare's masterpiece Goldeneye is the introduction of missions where James finally gets to drive his most famous cars, and even stages where Bond shoots from moving vehicles. I expected these levels to feel like a last-minute rush, but it's actually done with excellent control and handling. Of course, forgetting Bond's beloved Aston Martin DB7 and BMW Z8 wouldn't make the driving sections as enjoyable. Four of the 12 stages are driving orientated, so the remaining 8 can be nothing else but traditional first person perspective challenges.

Like other Bond games, players are presented with a set of objectives that must be accomplished in order to successfully complete the mission. At the end of the day it all follows the Bond formula. Photograph blueprints, rescue hostages, shoot evil people and other types of 00 agent shenanigans. It's not boring, but you can tell a collection of borrowed Bond game ideas when you see one. The majority of players shouldn't find the missions too tough, as the game constantly prompts you with cut scenes that give subtle, yet in your face hints about what task is required of you next. Casual gamers will no doubt appreciate a little support but others may see this step-by-step instruction as just plain annoying.

The gadgets play an important role too. The Q-Claw is essentially The Legend of Zelda's hookshot as it propels Bond toward whatever object it can attach itself to, whereas the more familiar Q Laser melts metal obstacles, handy for breaking padlocks on doors with something behind them that you desperately need. There are plenty of other gadgets to use in the game but a let down is a disappointing system to select them with. Both the gadgets and weapons are changed by the D-Pad and the problem is caused by the time delay between selecting your chosen item and waiting for it to appear in James's hand. This is a serious disadvantage when Bond is left to dodge an onslaught of bullets while he fusses around to find the required item.

Other than that, the control system itself does work well. The left analogue stick moves Bond while the right strafes and aims weapons and surprisingly enough; I found using two analogue sticks at once is easier done than said. I was pleased to discover there are 12 multiplayer arenas with five different gamplay modes, which makes a change from the great one-player games with mediocre multiplayer options. Deathmatches, protect the flag and newer ideas like Anti-Terrorist Training (challenging players to defuse bombs) are included. But a GameCube multiplayer exclusive is the introduction of computer Bots, which act as respectable substitutes for your lack of at least 3 friends.

Overall, Agent Under Fire is a perfectly good Bond game. The above average graphics capture the essence of Bond's driving, shooting and rescuing fine damsels in distress world, while the mix of 3 different types of gameplay keep the game exciting and fresh. But experienced gamers will fly through the 12 missions with ease and the shooting elements concentrate too much on blasting everything in sight and little on stealth. You may argue that 4 stars seems slightly too much for a game with an easy single player mode, yet 3 sounds too harsh for a game that stays so true to the Bond licence. But even with 4 stars, the fact remains that despite EA's efforts, it doesn't come close to Rare's Goldeneye.

Worth getting, but if you were expecting an N64 beater, now is a good time to stop.

1. THE ENEMIES.
The enemies are the most stupid ive ever seen, they dont notice you until youre close up, and 1 in a million of their shots hits you. Also when they go to an alarm they take ages to press it.
2. THE LEVELS.
Now the levels are quit detailed, but too short, and too few, i got to level 7 in 45 minutes, litrilary, and the only good ones are the car ones, and there are only 3 of those, also you cant explore them, and can only go one way.
3.THE GRAPHICS.
Now i do admit that the graphics are good, and the lip synching is excellent, now that is the pratically only good thing about this game.

To be honest i would just wait for Die Hard:Vendeta, or Time Splitters:2 because, this is a bad make of a game which tried to do waht goldenyeye did, and this is a waste of 2 hours of playing. And i think the only reason it will sell is because of the licence.

If Your a hardcore bond and ea fan, get this,if not, dont even think about this game excisting.