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GoldenEye: Rogue Agent Preview
GoldenEye: Rogue Agent™ takes a new spin on the Bond franchise. Why Save The World When You Can Rule It? This is the question being asked as you go where no previous James Bond™ game has. It’s evil versus evil in this excited adventure.
As an aspiring 00 agent gone bad, you’re recruited by Auric Goldfinger in a ruthless war against Dr. No for control of the Bond underworld.
On globe-spanning missions of vengeance and demolition, cross paths with such infamous allies and enemies as Oddjob, Scaramanga, Xenia Onatopp, and of course, Pussy Galore.
Villains rule in GoldenEye: Rogue Agent™.
-EA Games
Back in the days of the N64, MGM and Danjaq, owners of the intellectual property rights of the Bond universe, signed a license allowing a game adaptation of the film GoldenEye to be made. This signing paved the way for Rare to develop the N64 classic FPS which was one of the first ever seen on a console gaming system. It helped prove that FPS games could live just as comfortably on a console as they could on a PC. The game was popular and sold well, but MGM and Danjaq were shocked by it. Having never seen the game in action until after hearing the news of its success, MGM and Danjaq were dismayed to see James Bond capping off headshots, and basically killing everyone in sight. That’s not what Bond is all about, they complained, but it was too late. The game was out, and it was a big hit.
EA wanted to continue the GoldenEye series of FPS games, but had to find a way to do so that would be acceptable to MGM and Danjaq. The concept that emerged was a game set in the Bond universe, but a slightly skewed version of that universe. Rather than playing as James Bond, this time around you assume the role of a double-0 wanna-be.
Having lost an eye during a brutal encounter with Dr. No, and driven by revenge, you try out to become a double-0 agent, but don’t make the cut and are summarily dismissed by MI6. Afterwards, you are approached by Auric Goldfinger, who has been watching you with great interest. He solicits your help in his war against Dr. No, and as payment promises to return what Dr. No took from you; namely, your eye. “Goldfinger’s technicians replace it with a gold-hued, synthetic eye, earning you the name ‘GoldenEye’. With the ability to customize and upgrade your villain persona, wreak havoc as you make your unrelenting rise through the ranks.”
Just as Halo 2 is preparing to do, GERA allows you to wield dual weapons. Your starting weapon is a golden gun, and you can also pick up weapons throughout the game from any enemies you dispatch. You will only be able to carry two weapons at once (Plus your golden gun), so forget about carrying around one of every weapon in the game and scrolling through them in an inventory (There is no inventory, only what you have in your hands). Some weapons require you to use both hands, in which case you’ll only be able to carry that one.
Your weapons, however, are not the only way you’ll be able to dispose of your foes. If an enemy makes the mistake of getting a little too close to you, just grab him and use him as a human shield. Once he’s outlived his usefulness, just toss the body aside. If you want to be really evil about it, throw him off the roof or out a window. Another element of the game that has the chance to keep GERA separate from most first person shooters is the death trap. Instead of the usual shoot ‘em with the gun method of killing your enemies, GERA allows you to use a death trap. These are methods of elimination throughout the game, meant to give you that flare, if you will, of a master rogue agent. Anyone can just take the rocket launcher and dispose of the enemy, but if you really want to strut your stuff then find a way to use the death traps. They range from triggering floors to open beneath the enemy causing them to fall to their death or release a number of crates to squash enemies flat. Most levels will include death traps and by using them you can regenerate your GoldenEye powers more quickly. GoldenEye powers, you ask? That’s right; the golden eye given to you by Goldfinger does far more than simply restore your sight. It is an electromagnetic device that’s linked into your whole body and nervous system. Each villain in the Bond universe had something special about them. Jaws had the teeth, Oddjob had his steel, razor-brimmed hat, and you have your GoldenEye.
Your eye is upgradeable, and will become more powerful as the game progresses. The GoldenEye powers we saw during our gameplay included things such as a shield (Generates a shield that uses an electromagnetic field to deflect projectiles such as bullets), a special sight mode, which allows you to see enemies behind cover, even a mode that allows you to control an electromagnetic field to pick up and ‘throw’ an enemy from a distance.
“Villains rule in GoldenEye: Rogue Agent” It’s more than just a tag-line for the game. In GERA, the more ‘evil’ you play, the better. Each time you use a GoldenEye power, its power drains, and you must wait for it to recharge before you can use another power. Want your GoldenEye power to recharge faster? Get nasty. Play evil. The more ruthless you play, the faster your GoldenEye power will recharge. Don’t just drop someone after using them as a shield. Throw them off the roof. Don’t just use your GoldenEye power to throw someone into a wall. Throw him into one or two more enemies, and take them out as well. Remember, you’re with the bad guys this time.
You cycle through your Golden Eye powers with the D-pad and you activate them with the trigger. I had a bit of trouble with them because there are so many things happening on screen. For example, this is a normal thought process I had during the game.
The framerate was consistent, the controls were nearly spot on, and the visuals were decent. It had its noticeable glitches and imperfections but the gameplay was still fun. The controls were fairly simple and nicely laid out. The O and X buttons on the PS2 controller were like your left and right hands. You picked up weapons with both of these buttons. If you had a weapon in your right hand (O button), you could grab another single-handed weapon with your left hand (X button) and have double the punch. Some weapons are single-handed and you won’t be able to dual wield them. If you happened to have just a single P9 pistol, you could toss grenades with the L2 trigger. You might think this is way too much firepower but you’ll need it to take down what might be the most impressive AI you’ll see in a game. The Evil AI, as they’ve been coined, acted as if they were actually thinking. They would roll out from behind cover to engage you or yell out your position so someone else could take you out. They react to pressure in a fashion that seemed a bit more human than you’d expect.
Rather than having scripted actions, as is the case with the AI in many games, GERA’s AI is unscripted, and your enemies will take action based on the pressure and tactics you use. Your AI enemies are very clever, and will even communicate with each other, calling out your position and taking cover as necessary. It’s no surprise that the Lead Designer, Dan Orzulak, came from the team that crafted the AI in Halo. So although this game is built to be pure action, you’ll have to think your way through some of the levels as the AI won’t just sit there in the same spot or behave the same way on any occasion.
This dynamic AI was impressive to watch, and should help ensure that an encounter with your enemies in GERA will never play out exactly the same way twice. During a demonstration, we saw enemies take all sorts of different actions, based on the amount of pressure they were feeling. Some would merely duck behind cover; others would make their way around to the other side of a piece of cover to get the angle on you. At times, the enemy will feel such pressure, that they may even become irrational; charging at you as you fire on them, or even taking one of their own men hostage as a shield! Never before had I seen a game’s AI use the human shield tactic in a non-scripted fashion.
In addition to the story-driven single player game, GERA will have split-screen play for up to four players, as well as link play and on-line play for up to eight players. According to Executive Producer Patrick Gilmore, there were no technical limitations that kept them from allowing for more than eight players in multiplayer, but they’d found that things didn’t work well if the maps became over-crowded. While full 16-player matches are a blast in some FPS games I’ve played, I can understand what he was saying. More than once I’ve been in FPS matches that were just too crowded. It’s no fun when the map is so full, that you can’t last more than a few seconds before dying, because there are just too many players on the map. The multiplayer levels in GERA will come in two basic varieties. There will be the larger multiplayer maps, suitable for 4 or full 8-player games, and a few special, purposely small 2-player maps. These maps would be perfect for one-on-one, split-screen action.
There were no set plans on which, if any, Bond musical favorites would appear on the soundtrack for GERA. Production design is being handled by Academy Award winning Sir Ken Adam, visionary creator for the look of the Bond film universe. This will make for some very authentic recreations of your favorite Bond locales including some originals for the game. Many of you are wondering if your favorite villains will be reprising their roles and doing the voice work for their characters. The answer is no. So those who were captured by Honor Blackman's Pussy Galore won't get the real thing (and thank goodness, she's probably 80 years old by now) but you'll get the voices of actors/actresses who give an amazing duplicate of the characters we've grown to love. There will be, however, some voices you'll recognize. Voicing the role of Francisco Scaramanga (The Man With The Golden Gun) is none other than Chrisopher Lee himself! The newer generation of Bond followers will know him as Saruman in the Lord of the Rings movies. Now how's that for scoop. Dame Judi Dench will return to do voice work for M.
It may not seem like much from what most of you have seen in magazines and press releases thus far but I can assure you that before year’s end, it will mean something quite fascinating. And don’t worry, this game is being developed with each consoles technical aspects in mind. Xbox fans won’t have to worry about being short changed in regard to higher resolutions or Dolby Digital sound support. So get ready console owners...get ready for GoldenEye: Rogue Agent™.
Source: xgpgaming.com
As an aspiring 00 agent gone bad, you’re recruited by Auric Goldfinger in a ruthless war against Dr. No for control of the Bond underworld.
On globe-spanning missions of vengeance and demolition, cross paths with such infamous allies and enemies as Oddjob, Scaramanga, Xenia Onatopp, and of course, Pussy Galore.
Villains rule in GoldenEye: Rogue Agent™.
-EA Games
Back in the days of the N64, MGM and Danjaq, owners of the intellectual property rights of the Bond universe, signed a license allowing a game adaptation of the film GoldenEye to be made. This signing paved the way for Rare to develop the N64 classic FPS which was one of the first ever seen on a console gaming system. It helped prove that FPS games could live just as comfortably on a console as they could on a PC. The game was popular and sold well, but MGM and Danjaq were shocked by it. Having never seen the game in action until after hearing the news of its success, MGM and Danjaq were dismayed to see James Bond capping off headshots, and basically killing everyone in sight. That’s not what Bond is all about, they complained, but it was too late. The game was out, and it was a big hit.
EA wanted to continue the GoldenEye series of FPS games, but had to find a way to do so that would be acceptable to MGM and Danjaq. The concept that emerged was a game set in the Bond universe, but a slightly skewed version of that universe. Rather than playing as James Bond, this time around you assume the role of a double-0 wanna-be.
Having lost an eye during a brutal encounter with Dr. No, and driven by revenge, you try out to become a double-0 agent, but don’t make the cut and are summarily dismissed by MI6. Afterwards, you are approached by Auric Goldfinger, who has been watching you with great interest. He solicits your help in his war against Dr. No, and as payment promises to return what Dr. No took from you; namely, your eye. “Goldfinger’s technicians replace it with a gold-hued, synthetic eye, earning you the name ‘GoldenEye’. With the ability to customize and upgrade your villain persona, wreak havoc as you make your unrelenting rise through the ranks.”
Just as Halo 2 is preparing to do, GERA allows you to wield dual weapons. Your starting weapon is a golden gun, and you can also pick up weapons throughout the game from any enemies you dispatch. You will only be able to carry two weapons at once (Plus your golden gun), so forget about carrying around one of every weapon in the game and scrolling through them in an inventory (There is no inventory, only what you have in your hands). Some weapons require you to use both hands, in which case you’ll only be able to carry that one.
Your weapons, however, are not the only way you’ll be able to dispose of your foes. If an enemy makes the mistake of getting a little too close to you, just grab him and use him as a human shield. Once he’s outlived his usefulness, just toss the body aside. If you want to be really evil about it, throw him off the roof or out a window. Another element of the game that has the chance to keep GERA separate from most first person shooters is the death trap. Instead of the usual shoot ‘em with the gun method of killing your enemies, GERA allows you to use a death trap. These are methods of elimination throughout the game, meant to give you that flare, if you will, of a master rogue agent. Anyone can just take the rocket launcher and dispose of the enemy, but if you really want to strut your stuff then find a way to use the death traps. They range from triggering floors to open beneath the enemy causing them to fall to their death or release a number of crates to squash enemies flat. Most levels will include death traps and by using them you can regenerate your GoldenEye powers more quickly. GoldenEye powers, you ask? That’s right; the golden eye given to you by Goldfinger does far more than simply restore your sight. It is an electromagnetic device that’s linked into your whole body and nervous system. Each villain in the Bond universe had something special about them. Jaws had the teeth, Oddjob had his steel, razor-brimmed hat, and you have your GoldenEye.
Your eye is upgradeable, and will become more powerful as the game progresses. The GoldenEye powers we saw during our gameplay included things such as a shield (Generates a shield that uses an electromagnetic field to deflect projectiles such as bullets), a special sight mode, which allows you to see enemies behind cover, even a mode that allows you to control an electromagnetic field to pick up and ‘throw’ an enemy from a distance.
“Villains rule in GoldenEye: Rogue Agent” It’s more than just a tag-line for the game. In GERA, the more ‘evil’ you play, the better. Each time you use a GoldenEye power, its power drains, and you must wait for it to recharge before you can use another power. Want your GoldenEye power to recharge faster? Get nasty. Play evil. The more ruthless you play, the faster your GoldenEye power will recharge. Don’t just drop someone after using them as a shield. Throw them off the roof. Don’t just use your GoldenEye power to throw someone into a wall. Throw him into one or two more enemies, and take them out as well. Remember, you’re with the bad guys this time.
You cycle through your Golden Eye powers with the D-pad and you activate them with the trigger. I had a bit of trouble with them because there are so many things happening on screen. For example, this is a normal thought process I had during the game.
- Pick up gun, press X
- Pick up another gun, press O
- Press R trigger to fire right handed weapon
- Press L trigger to fire left handed weapon
- Watch guy in the back
- Armor depleting
- Eye powers shield, press D-pad down
- R2 trigger to activate
- L2 trigger to activate
- Drop empty gun, hold X button
- Find two handed weapon
- O, X, D-pad, watch AI
- Dead.
The framerate was consistent, the controls were nearly spot on, and the visuals were decent. It had its noticeable glitches and imperfections but the gameplay was still fun. The controls were fairly simple and nicely laid out. The O and X buttons on the PS2 controller were like your left and right hands. You picked up weapons with both of these buttons. If you had a weapon in your right hand (O button), you could grab another single-handed weapon with your left hand (X button) and have double the punch. Some weapons are single-handed and you won’t be able to dual wield them. If you happened to have just a single P9 pistol, you could toss grenades with the L2 trigger. You might think this is way too much firepower but you’ll need it to take down what might be the most impressive AI you’ll see in a game. The Evil AI, as they’ve been coined, acted as if they were actually thinking. They would roll out from behind cover to engage you or yell out your position so someone else could take you out. They react to pressure in a fashion that seemed a bit more human than you’d expect.
Rather than having scripted actions, as is the case with the AI in many games, GERA’s AI is unscripted, and your enemies will take action based on the pressure and tactics you use. Your AI enemies are very clever, and will even communicate with each other, calling out your position and taking cover as necessary. It’s no surprise that the Lead Designer, Dan Orzulak, came from the team that crafted the AI in Halo. So although this game is built to be pure action, you’ll have to think your way through some of the levels as the AI won’t just sit there in the same spot or behave the same way on any occasion.
This dynamic AI was impressive to watch, and should help ensure that an encounter with your enemies in GERA will never play out exactly the same way twice. During a demonstration, we saw enemies take all sorts of different actions, based on the amount of pressure they were feeling. Some would merely duck behind cover; others would make their way around to the other side of a piece of cover to get the angle on you. At times, the enemy will feel such pressure, that they may even become irrational; charging at you as you fire on them, or even taking one of their own men hostage as a shield! Never before had I seen a game’s AI use the human shield tactic in a non-scripted fashion.
In addition to the story-driven single player game, GERA will have split-screen play for up to four players, as well as link play and on-line play for up to eight players. According to Executive Producer Patrick Gilmore, there were no technical limitations that kept them from allowing for more than eight players in multiplayer, but they’d found that things didn’t work well if the maps became over-crowded. While full 16-player matches are a blast in some FPS games I’ve played, I can understand what he was saying. More than once I’ve been in FPS matches that were just too crowded. It’s no fun when the map is so full, that you can’t last more than a few seconds before dying, because there are just too many players on the map. The multiplayer levels in GERA will come in two basic varieties. There will be the larger multiplayer maps, suitable for 4 or full 8-player games, and a few special, purposely small 2-player maps. These maps would be perfect for one-on-one, split-screen action.
There were no set plans on which, if any, Bond musical favorites would appear on the soundtrack for GERA. Production design is being handled by Academy Award winning Sir Ken Adam, visionary creator for the look of the Bond film universe. This will make for some very authentic recreations of your favorite Bond locales including some originals for the game. Many of you are wondering if your favorite villains will be reprising their roles and doing the voice work for their characters. The answer is no. So those who were captured by Honor Blackman's Pussy Galore won't get the real thing (and thank goodness, she's probably 80 years old by now) but you'll get the voices of actors/actresses who give an amazing duplicate of the characters we've grown to love. There will be, however, some voices you'll recognize. Voicing the role of Francisco Scaramanga (The Man With The Golden Gun) is none other than Chrisopher Lee himself! The newer generation of Bond followers will know him as Saruman in the Lord of the Rings movies. Now how's that for scoop. Dame Judi Dench will return to do voice work for M.
It may not seem like much from what most of you have seen in magazines and press releases thus far but I can assure you that before year’s end, it will mean something quite fascinating. And don’t worry, this game is being developed with each consoles technical aspects in mind. Xbox fans won’t have to worry about being short changed in regard to higher resolutions or Dolby Digital sound support. So get ready console owners...get ready for GoldenEye: Rogue Agent™.
Source: xgpgaming.com