Last Update: 2/14/07
No One Lives Forever
Your Mission: Assume the role of Cate Archer, a beautiful but deadly Operative working for UNITY - a super secret organization fighting to free the world from the clutches of H.A.R.M. From tense subterfuge to in-your-face combat, No One Lives Forever.
No One Lives Forever departs from other first-person shooters in the variety of ways you interact with the environment. Thanks to the advanced capabilities of the Lithtech engine, at different times in the game you'll find yourself riding a motorcycle or even falling through the air without a parachute.
A novel feature of the game is its array of gadgets, including a body-removing powder (for disposing of incriminating corpses), lock picks, and an electronic poodle to distract guard dogs. Additionally, the missions are littered with "intelligence items": textual notes which often provide humorous side-notes to the game.
Of course, No One Lives Forever isn't just a series of mindless exercises in avoiding or shooting guards. The game features a rich story that owes a lot of inspiration to its roots in the spy thriller genre. A movie-like video at the beginning of the game sets the stage for the action: Someone is killing off U.N.I.T.Y.'s agents, and it's up to Archer and fellow spy Bruno Lawrie to get to the bottom of the mystery.
No One Lives Forever departs from other first-person shooters in the variety of ways you interact with the environment. Thanks to the advanced capabilities of the Lithtech engine, at different times in the game you'll find yourself riding a motorcycle or even falling through the air without a parachute.
A novel feature of the game is its array of gadgets, including a body-removing powder (for disposing of incriminating corpses), lock picks, and an electronic poodle to distract guard dogs. Additionally, the missions are littered with "intelligence items": textual notes which often provide humorous side-notes to the game.
Of course, No One Lives Forever isn't just a series of mindless exercises in avoiding or shooting guards. The game features a rich story that owes a lot of inspiration to its roots in the spy thriller genre. A movie-like video at the beginning of the game sets the stage for the action: Someone is killing off U.N.I.T.Y.'s agents, and it's up to Archer and fellow spy Bruno Lawrie to get to the bottom of the mystery.
Publisher: Sierra
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Bottom Line: Play it! No One Lives Forever is a first-person shooter, sneaker, adventure that is set in the 1960's. It has a humorous secret agent theme, which combines elements of James Bond with Austin Powers. With the music, scenery, voice acting, and a welcome dose of humor, this game does a great job of pulling this off. There are long, and then there are very long cinematic scenes filled with wise-cracking humor (there is just something about watching stuffy Brits politely insult each other that is hilarious). Kate Archer is a unique main character that you won't find in any other game, being Scottish was an added boon. I loved the mission interludes, when you get your orders from HQ and receive training on the new spy gadgets that your organization has come up with. The graphics, animation, and sound for this game are all very good. These were the highlights of the game. This is a must play in my book.
The game does also add stealth elements, a blend of what you find in "Deus Ex" and "Thief". Enemies will react to sounds of footsteps and gunshots, and security cameras will set off alarms if they focus in on you. The spy gadgetry is very well thought out, and compliments the humorous angle of the narrative. You can sneak up to guards and listen to them babble about humorous conversations and them blast them with a spray of lead, or silently with poison from your hairpin. How you kill the guards will then influence how other guards react or whether you activate the alarm system: You can either go in guns blazing or super stealth mode (some levels require you to go undetected by the guards, cameras, or spot lights). The length of this game is excellent as well. You get a 30-40 hour game with no real slowdown or dull levels; there is enough variety in location and objectives to keep it very fresh. If you're the type of person who enjoys games that make you think a bit (just a bit), blend in plenty of action, and takes time to develop the plot and characters, this game is for you! A lot of people state there are too many cut-scenes in this game, but I enjoy watching a "movie" between levels to further develop the plot. No One Lives Forever is a top-notch shooter with minimal faults that harkens back to the days of the original Mission: Impossible. Learning Curve: Takes a second
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