Welcome to my new segment where i write about stuff i have rented. I've mostly decided to start writing these as a way to get content on the site thus far I've been concerned that content needed to have nice graphics and other stuff to spruce the site up a bit, this led to it feeling like a chore to produce anything. So from now on the its gonna be stripped down and raw. Anyway site news aside here's my thoughts on James Bond : Bloodstone.

So you might have heard of James Bond : Bloodstone as the game that broke Bizarre Creations back(the company was shuttered soon after its release) but more than likely not. It was released to little fan fair at the time and virtually no marketing which in my opinion is a shame. Lets get things straight its not the citizen Kane of video games but it is a complaint or dare i say rather enjoyable game (with a few caveats).

The game follows Daniel Craigs interpretation of the Bond character which is a world away from the quipy suaveness of a Connery or a Bronson. Initially I didn't enjoy Craigs murderous and ruthless approach but I've warmed to it and more importantly in a game context makes more sense the new bond is much more likely to brutalise his foes than maim or incapacitate them.

The game itself falls into the established genre of 3rd person cover based shooter with you taking bond through environments capping enemies of her Majesty like nobodies business these are interspersed with driving levels where you are typically casing another driver through various cites. These driving sections are easily the worst part of the game often requiring memorisation of the obstacles to complete. These can be quite frustrating with little sense of satisfaction once they're finished. You feel like you've got thought them by brute force rather than skillful driving.

The 3rd person action is where you'll spend most of your time and where i derived most of my enjoyment. The running and gunning is pretty standard with blind fire and sticky cover but the one mechanic that i loved was the insta kill takedown moves. Getting close to your enemy allows you to do a take down move where you press one button and are treated to Bond cracking some guys face of the nearest wall or kneeing him in the face.

These animations which are many and varied take a few seconds and can be chained so a lot of the time i ran up to the nearest block taking a few shots as i went initiated a takedown killed him then went through his mates. Its not always the best strategy but i found it extremely enjoyable. The reward for performing a takedown is the opportunity to perform a skillshot. This move auto targets a bad guy and gives you a one hit kill its great for guys on balconies or when facing overwhelming odds.

The reward loop of melee takedown and skillshot kept me entertain for the games length. Which brings me to my final point the length. Its super short i completed the game on Normal in one sitting of about five hours ,Harder difficulties would defiantly make the last longer as they make Bond die at the drop of a hat but that's not much fun. it defiantly doesn't overstay its welcome conversely if this was a full price game i would struggle to justify it even with the token MP mode(which was serviceable). Current prices have it around the £15 pound mark and at that price I'd say it was worth it. As a rental I was more than happy with it considering some of the complete crap I've tried on a lark.