Invisible cars, awesome gadgets, martinis, classy suits, and gorgeous woman are all a part of Ian Flemings highly successful spy fiction that revolves around the infamous 007 James Bond. Over the years the series has been adapted into several genres of popular culture such as comics, movies, and games. There have been many attempts by developers to create a fantastic Bond game, and some have come very close while some have just plain failed in the realm. 007 Legends is one such game that completely fails at creating an impact and is a blotch on the 007 franchise.

PRESENTATION:

The premise of the game is set in between five famous Bond movies, and not all of them are in a chronological order. If the player is not familiar with Bond lore, he will feel at a loss as the game does not really give proper information regarding the movies. The story features Daniel Craig as Bond, as he substitutes the various other charismatic Bonds to take centre stage. This kills the fun as the game isn’t really keeping up with Bond lore and cheating the player out of a truly immersive and familiar story.

GAMEPLAY:

Let’s get one thing straight, the gameplay is awful. The stealth mechanics are just putrid revolving around the player walking quietly and crouching around corners to knock a guard unconscious only to realize you can’t do anything with his body. There are some fun gunfights like the one featured outside Fort Knox but the sheer repetition of the gameplay puts a damper on the scenario. Boss fights are unimpressive and dull as they require Bond to punch their lights out literally. Overall the gameplay is disappointing, given the fact that the game uses some pretty neat mechanics but fail to execute them.

DISPLAY:

007 Legends does not have a visually stunning impact on the players, as it reeks of outdated graphics that could have used years ago. The frame rate occasionally drops so low that the player will feel as if he is witnessing an old television show. The graphical enhancements are a bare minimum, where the protagonist Daniel Craig who fills in for all the other bonds surprisingly looks just ‘OK’, and isn’t up to the mark. Environments are flaccid and don’t seem to stand out leaving the player with a bland feeling. Lighting effects are somewhat passable but that’s about it.

SOUND:

The voice acting is horrible as Timothy Watson stands in as Daniel Craig portraying his character. Some iconic moments are featured within the game where Bond gives his signature dialogues, but these do not fit into the story and seem forced onto the player.

MULTIPLAYER:

Perhaps the saving grace of this game is the multiplayer option that allows the player to go on an all out killing spree decimating his enemies as the famous spy. Certain spy themed objectives make the experience exciting and fulfilling. Split screen can be fun and highly awarding at times.

SUMMARY:

007 Legends does a horrible job at portraying the smooth and suave super spy and falls short at many places. It had apt ideas, but did not implement it properly, which leaves this game as one of the weaker installments. Multiplayer and challenge modes might just attract some fans, but the overall gameplay puts an end to 007 and his action filled lifestyle.