Robert Ludlum's The Bourne Conspiracy Updated Impressions

Fictional CIA assassin Jason Bourne is hot right now, thanks to the sizzling performance of this summer's The Bourne Ultimatum. Considering that it's the third and final act in a movie trilogy, it's a bit strange that the first Bourne game is finally beginning to emerge, and it won't even be released until next year. Still, after months of teasing and talking about the game, Sierra and developer High Moon Studios finally showed us playable gameplay--and yes, it looks and feels close to capturing the essence of the Bourne movies.

The game will blend elements from Robert Ludlum's novels with the movies, and will tell the story from when Jason Bourne was a Treadstone agent--basically, an elite CIA assassin. This means that the game is a prequel to the movie trilogy, and the developer has collaborated with Tony Gilroy, the main writer on all three movies, as well as the stunt coordinators to help capture Bourne. At the same time, we're told that the game will not feature Matt Damon as Jason Bourne, and at this point it doesn't even look as though his likeness will be in the game. (The current Bourne in the game looks nothing like Damon.) There may be other collaboration with some of the movies' cast and crew, though if there is it's being kept quiet for now.

Sierra and High Moon Studios showed us a couple of levels. The first is a retelling of the scene in The Bourne Identity where Bourne must escape from the middle of the US embassy in Zurich, only this time around there's a lot more fighting and shooting going on. This is an example of an escape and evade mission where you have to get out of a level in a certain amount of time. We also got to see a mission set on the Marseille waterfront, which is a setup to the Wambosi assassination attempt where Bourne loses his memory.

The big trick is how to capture what makes Jason Bourne so special. Lots of games have shooting and melee combat, after all. However, Bourne's hallmark is his ability to think on his feet and not have to resort to fancy gadgets or weapons to get out of a fight. In the game Bourne can pummel the heck out of an opponent (or get bruised and battered himself), but there are also plenty of special moves that he can do to incapacitate a foe with a single blow. At certain moments in a fight a button will flash onscreen, and if you can mash the corresponding button on the controller fast enough Bourne can do a takedown move, like a blow to the groin or an elbow to the throat. Most enemies will drop to the ground like a sack of potatoes, though tougher ones will absorb the damage of these blows.

Another thing that Bourne is known for is his ability to weaponize his environment. This was seen in the movies when he used a pen or a magazine to pummel someone into submission, for example. This will be captured in the game by Bourne's ability to use much of the environment as a weapon. You can slam guys' heads into objects, slam them against walls, smash them against handrails, and more. We'll still have to see about little things like pens, though.

In addition to hand-to-hand combat, Bourne is a weapons expert. The game is keeping it relatively real, so Bourne won't be running around with a rocket launcher or a flamethrower. He will have pistols, rifles, shotguns, and, generally, the types of weapons that aren't too uncommon. Another feature of the game is Bourne's ability to transition almost instantly between hand-to-hand and armed combat. In one battle he charged into a room, slid into an opponent, then got up, pulled out his pistol, and took out another foe.

The game does borrow a number of conventions from its cinematic cousins. What's sure to be controversial is the implementation of a sort of "shaky cam" in the game, inspired by the kinetic movement of the camera in the movies. While the game's shaky cam won't be as frenzied as the camerawork in the movie, it still is noticeable, particularly when the camera frequently switches angles during a fight. Theoretically this could be problematic if, for instance, you're attacking a guy in one direction and suddenly the camera reverses sides and you have to reorient your thinking; but as we haven't had a chance to play the game yet, we don't know how much of an issue this will be.

It's still a bit early to tell, but The Bourne Conspiracy looks as though it will try to faithfully capture the adventures of the spy who put the thrill back into spy movies. There's still a lot more of the game to explore, but we have plenty of time, since it won't ship until at least mid 2008.