James Bond 007: Nightfire
A 2002 first-person shooter with console and computer versions.
James Bond 007: Nightfire is a 2002 first-person shooter published by Electronic Arts for multiple platforms, including the GameCube, PlayStation 2, Xbox, and Microsoft Windows. It features the likeness of actor Pierce Brosnan, though the character is voiced by Maxwell Caulfield. The home console versions received positive reviews, while other versions drew mixed reactions for differing content.
Quick Facts
- Composer
- Steve Duckworth
- Ed Lima (PC)
- Jeff Tymoschuk
- Programmer
- Simon Mills; Patrick Deupree & Sean Cavanaugh (PC)
- Artist
- Dave Carson; Jeremy Cook (PC)
- Writer
- Danny Bilson; Paul De Meo
- Producer
- Morgan Roarty; Randy Pitchford (PC)
- Publisher
- Electronic Arts
- Series
- James Bond video games
- Engine
- GoldSrc (PC)
Facts from the source article.
Gameplay
Nightfire offers a single-player mode with story-driven missions and a multiplayer mode supporting human players and AI bots. The game uses a first-person perspective and includes weapons based on real-life models but given alternate names. Health is tracked with a meter that depletes upon taking damage, and armor can be collected to absorb some damage, similar to GoldenEye 007. In single-player, players complete objectives by navigating levels, using gadgets, and dealing with enemies. Levels contain 007 tokens that unlock rewards, and players can perform Bond Moments by using gadgets or the environment to dispatch enemies or open paths, which affects their performance rating. Some levels include driving sections styled after the Spy Hunter series, where players follow a linear route while using weapons. Each completed level awards a score based on performance.
Plot
MI6 agent James Bond works with French Intelligence operative Dominique Paradis to stop a terrorist group from detonating a stolen nuclear weapon in Paris on New Year's Eve. After succeeding, Bond returns to learn from M that a missile guidance chip for the United States' Space Defense Platform has been stolen. MI6 suspects industrialist Raphael Drake and his Asian division head Alexander Mayhew. Bond is sent to a party at Drake's castle in Austria to recover the chip. There, he meets CIA agent Zoe Nightshade and is surprised to find Dominique working undercover as Drake's mistress. Bond overhears Drake and Mayhew discussing a project called Nightfire, rescues Zoe, and escapes with the chip. Mayhew later offers information to MI6 but is killed during Bond's extraction attempt in Japan. Bond gathers evidence at Phoenix International's Tokyo offices and a nuclear power plant, but is captured by Drake, who kills Dominique. Bond escapes and is rescued by Australian agent Alura McCall. He then travels to an island in the South Pacific owned by Drake, where a jamming signal hides Drake's operations.
Development and release
Development began as early as September 2000, and the game was announced in May 2001. By February 2002, its working title was James Bond in... Phoenix Rising, with the final title revealed three months later. Pierce Brosnan's head was laser-scanned in July 2002 to create the player character, voiced by Maxwell Caulfield. Michael Ensign voiced Raphael Drake, Jeanne Mori voiced Zoe Nightshade, and Kimberley Davies voiced Alura McCall. Eurocom developed the home console versions, while Gearbox Software handled the Windows version using a heavily modified GoldSrc engine. Driving levels, developed by Savage Entertainment and an Electronic Arts team, were excluded from the Windows version. Nightfire was the first James Bond video game to feature an original song, Nearly Civilized by Esthero. The score was composed by Steve Duckworth, Ed Lima, and Jeff Tymoschuk. The home consoles released in North America on 19 November 2002, the Windows version a week later, the Game Boy Advance version in 2003, and the Mac version in June 2004.
Reception
The Xbox, GameCube, and PlayStation 2 versions received generally favorable reviews on Metacritic, while the Game Boy Advance and PC versions received mixed or average reviews. Nightfire was a runner-up for GameSpot's Best Shooter on GameCube award, which went to TimeSplitters 2. In 2008, PC Games Hardware included four female characters from the game among the 112 most important female characters in games. The Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences nominated Nightfire for Console First-Person Action Game of the Year at the 6th Annual Interactive Achievement Awards. By September 2003, the game had sold five million copies across all platforms. The Xbox version achieved Platinum Hits status, and the PlayStation 2 version received a Platinum sales award from ELSPA for UK sales of at least 300,000 copies.
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