007 Legends is Legendary
007 Legends Wii U Review
- Release Date: December 11th, 2012
- Rating: T
- Publisher: Activision
- Category: First Person Shooter
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Summary: The 50th anniversary of James Bond on the big screen came and went this 2012 and was met with Daniel Craig’s performance in the record breaking Skyfall film and Activision’s 007 Legends on video game consoles. 007 Legends takes the greatest missions in James Bond’s 50 year history across all of the actors and puts you in charge of Daniel Craig in revamped and oftentimes improved story lines and action.
While some may argue that it does the series’ history no respect to take Connery, Bronsan, Dalton, Moore and Lazenby out of the equation and to replace them with Craig, but to see Goldfinger, On Her Majesty’s Secret Service and the other classic missions updated for today’s times while still maintaining the elements that made them classics to begin with, is what makes 007 Legends appealing.
Starting off with the opening scene from Skyfall, where Bond takes a hit and falls off a train into the depths below, Bond sees his life flash before his eyes in a series of flash backs where the player takes over the action.
The game also features multiplayer elements that began back when Goldeneye started the Bond multiplayer experience. Featuring both online and offline play.
Wii U Exclusive Features: If you played the original Goldeneye, you know that you can collect some weapons and spend some time cycling through your arsenal to get the weapon you want to use. Now imagine that the weapon of your choice is just a click of your screen away and that FPS shooter action is now more responsive than ever before. The Wii gamepad controller gives you the option to quickly access weapons and gadgets without having to press x or a repeatedly trying to find what you need to do, all as enemies are hunting you down and survival depends on changing weapons or hacking equipment.
007 Legends Wii U Presentation and Sound: 007 Legends for the Wii U brings the cars, the action, the witty one liners, the exotic scenery and everything you expect out of a James Bond experience to the Wii U. “Do you expect me to talk?” “No Mister Bond, I expect you to die.” As you are taken to the classic missions, the presentation is of the highest quality and what you expect out of a 50 year homage to one of the most iconic characters in cinematic history.
The only issue that the presentation of the game presented was some of the sound clips. Parts of the classic Bond quotes such as the do you expect me to talk and “we have all the time in the world” lines felt emotionless and lacking from that of the original films. This is not to say that the overall feel of the game was compromised. Simply seeing the likeness of the original actors and actresses of the Bond girls and villains as they interact in a modern adaptation of the same diabolical schemes was fully satisfying.
Campaign: As the summary states, you take control of Daniel Craig as James Bond as you go through the history of the franchise in classic missions. Incorporating the emotions, the scenes, the dialogue, the women, the cars, the gadgets and everything else Bond, you will be storming mountain fortresses, skiing down snowy slopes, defusing bombs in Fort Knox and doing what Bond does best.
You are also given multiple ways to play. Shooters used to give you limited health options instead of what most games offer you now, health that regenerates no matter how much you get shot. Giving you both options and different levels of difficulty, you are in control of how you can play. Personally opting to play with the tradition Goldeneye style where you have limited health and must pray for finding body armor and playing on the hardest difficulty, completion of the mission is based on tactics and making wise decisions versus an all out run into a room full of guards with guns blazing.
The only real issue with the single player mode was the hand to hand combat scenes. It was near impossible to mess up the direct punching portions (though it was satisfying to wail on Blofeld), but some of the easiest ways to die in the game was to get screwed over by a button action prompt. They make for a neat way to highlight the game’s impressive graphics and utilize actions that are still limited by standard game play, but they also allow for cheap deaths and can take away from the sense of accomplishment when taking Auric Goldfinger down.
Multiplayer: It was disappointing to see that split screen could not be combined to the online play for 007 Legends. We are given the option to play split screen locally OR online, but not to do both. Minus that flaw, the game’s multi-player is a solid experience that will play like the usual death matches offered in other FPS. The only difference: you get to play as the Bond icons that the world has grown to love.
Closing Thoughts: If you are a James Bond fan, this game is a must have. If you are not a Bond fan, this game is a must have. First person shooters are perfect on the Nintendo Wii U and this game implements the classic Bond elements into the popular FPS formula that has been made mainstream from the Call of Duty franchise.
Scores:
Gameplay: 9/10 -The name’s Bond, James Bond. What’s not to like? Besides command prompts and some local multiplayer issues
Presentation: 10/10 – Revamped classic locations, Daniel Craig in action, beautiful women and villains brought back to life for a new generation
Sound: 8/10 – Everything that has made the franchise great for 50 years, but some of the emotion is lost.
Overall Score
9.5/10
007 Legends is Legendary,
