Bond. James Bond.

We all know, remember, love, and maybe even occasionally revisit Rare’s N64 James Bond offering in the form of GoldenEye 007. Indeed, you can’t mention or think about any Bond game without saying “But will it live up to GoldenEye?” Well, I’m not here to answer that question. That said, I can tell you what we know so far about the next game in EA’s next-gen Bond series, which began with Agent Under Fire and continued with last year’s NightFire.

Family Motto

The title, Everything or Nothing, is, in itself, a clever nod to the series’ roots. If you’ve seen a Bond movie, chances are you’ve seen Albert R. “Cubby” Broccoli’s EON Productions credited alongside MGM/UA. This is the production company that was first formed over forty years ago by Cubby Broccoli and Harry Saltzman. EON Productions was formed in the 1960s and its first release was 1962’s Dr. No, the first of now 20 James Bond films, still to this day produced by EON, now run by the late Cubby’s daughter, Barbara. Popular legend says (though Broccoli always denied it) that EON stands for Everything or Nothing, because he knew that if Dr. No failed at the box office, the little production company would not be able to survive and he’d be left bankrupt; hence, Everything was riding on this one film. Dr. No was, of course, a box office smash, as was its 1963 follow-up From Russia With Love, and, five actors and 20 movies; later the rest is cinematic history. Props to EA for this subtlety and trying to appeal to the hardcore fans of the franchise...like me.

Right, now pay attention, 007

Anyway, history lesson aside (though me being the Bond nut that I am, don’t be surprised if I digress into another one eventually), EA’s latest outing in the universe of everybody’s favorite super-spy is not quite what you’d expect. Unlike GoldenEye, The World is Not Enough, AUF, and nightFire, EoN will be the first Bond game since the Playstation game Tomorrow Never Dies to actually be a third-person action game, rather than the generally canon first person shooter genre that the franchise is most identified with. Whether EA can make the transition successfully this time around remains to be seen, and, honestly, I’m a bit skeptical myself. We’ll see, though, right?

I never joke about my work, 007

Everything or Nothing will have the distinct honor of being the first video game to feature the vocal and motion-capturing talents of the film series’ stars, as well as a few other celebrity voices. The most obvious star being used is of course Pierce Brosnan (GoldenEye, Tomorrow Never Dies, The World is Not Enough, Die Another Day, The Lawnmower Man) in the role of James Bond. Also included is Willem Dafoe (Spider-Man, Platoon, The Boondock Saints), taking on the role of Bond’s new nemesis, Nikolai Diavolo. Back as Bond’s boss is Judi Dench as M, as well as former Monty Python member John Cleese as the newest Quartermaster (R.I.P., Desmond Llewelyn). Taking on the part of “Bond Girl” Serena St. Germaine is Shannon Elizabeth (American Pie, That 70s Show), with German model Heidi Klum as Nikolai’s girlfriend Katya Nadanova. In a move most unexpected and wholly applauded, EA has also brought back Richard Kiel as the steel-mouthed, seemingly indestructible Jaws, one of the most famous Bond henchmen and Wile E. Coyote of the Bond franchise, featured first in The Spy Who Loved Me and again in Moonraker. Pop star Mya will be singing the theme song, as well as having a cameo role as Mya Starling in the game.

That’s not all the talent being used in the game, though, with Bond veteran Bob Feirstein (GoldenEye, Tomorrow Never Dies, The World Is Not Enough) writing the story and script, Sean Callery (FOX’s 24) working on the original score, and even the most experienced Hollywood post-production crew ever used in a video game. EA is really going the extra mile to try and make this game feel like an all-new interactive Bond film.

You know much about guns, Mr. Bond?

EA is claiming one of the most diverse gameplay experiences ever put into a game. With multiple ways to complete each mission, players can choose from a variety of tactics to complete goals. Whether your style is stealth, firefights, or hand-to-hand, there’s something for you. You can earn bonus points for being more creative about your methods, which can be used to unlock new features, similar to the system seen in AUF and nightFire. Boasting an “all-new” hand-to-hand combat system, EA is promising a style of gameplay unimagined in any other game.

With a full array of Q-branch gadgets, including a Rappel cable and a contact lens (no idea what that one’s for…maybe Bond has laser eyes! Maybe not) a Spiderbomb (think Minority Report, except instead of eye scanners they have surveillance cameras and explosives), plus, of course, Bond’s signature vehicles, including the famous Aston Martin V12 Vanquish (Vanish?), featured in Die Another Day, Porsche Cayenne Turbo, a heavily-armed helicopter, a Chimera motorcycle, and a Triumph Daytona 600 Rally Car. You can also link up to the GBA version of EoN and gain access to the Q-Transceiver, which will allow Q to give you tips on how to get through a mission. Also included is an apparent cloaking device that Bond can use to hide himself from enemy eyes, though not much is known about it.

Oh, the things I do for England

Being a Bond game, you’ll be heading to all kinds of exotic locales, spanning across four continents. From the streets of New Orleans, to a mountain fortress in Peru, to Egypt and a top-secret research facility, and even Moscow’s Red Square, the single-player missions will take you across the globe in an attempt to stop the evil Diavolo, whatever it is that he’s doing.

In addition to the single-player campaign, this game will also feature several multi-player modes. In addition to the classic Bond death-match scenario (which is apparently not accessible until you unlock it; not to mention the fact that it will be much, much different in third-person), EA have also included 11 original co-op missions. No word yet on whether these missions will follow along the storyline of the single-player mode, but we can say that they are not simply the same levels with another person helping out, a la Perfect Dark and the Rogue Leader co-op mode in Rebel Strike. It is unknown who will be his partner; though chances are it will be Serena.

Shaken, not stirred

With fantastic, nearly photo-realistic visuals, superb voice acting, a stellar cast, and some of the most unbelievably promising features EA is boasting, we have the makings of either an extraordinary espionage classic for the ages, or one of the biggest letdowns in history. Let’s hope for the former. If you want to read up a bit more on the game, you can visit EA’s official site for EoN here. Be sure to check out the trailer for the game, as well.

Carl DeNovio