not a bad way to spend an afternoon
Gameplay is divided between hand to hand combat, gunplay, and action sequences. What really makes the game shine is the hand to hand combat. The combat is simplified with a two button mechanic of light and heavy attacks. You can mix the two attacks to create combos. With each attack dealing blows to your enemies you accumulate sections on an adrenaline meter. When you reach a tier you can trigger a takedown move by pressing a button which can initiate crushing blows to lay waste to your enemies. These blows are augmented because of awesome audio.
The meter can accumulate a total of 3 potential takedowns making it possible to take out up to 3 enemies at one time. While the hand to hand combat feels satisfying the gunplay portions leave something to be desired. The game utilizes a cover system during gunplay that doesn't add anything new. The game does not provide a variety of guns. While using guns you can also trigger takedowns with the gun. These create quick kills, but the cut scenes are not nearly as good as the hand to hand.
Through the game you encounter bosses. During the majority of the game you engage these bosses with hand to hand combat only. The bosses are much like Bourne in that they too can trigger takedown moves. Although they can do takedown moves you can counter these moves by pressing the triangle button during a slow motion scene. When fighting bosses you can use surrounding objects to play out some of the memorable scenes in the Bourne movie. These battles prove to be a lot of fun working your opponent into a coma with the objects in the room. Later in the game two boss fights encompass gunplay and hand to hand combat.
Other portions of gameplay are action sequences that can be triggered at set points. If failure to complete these sequences required replay of the entire section it would become very irritating. Fortunately if you fail to complete the sequence the game reloads to the beginning of the action sequence.
Audio in the game is top notch and really ends up improving the feel of this game. From the sounds of crushing blows to songs from the movie that provide a feel of urgency. Graphically Bourne isn't pushing new limits, but they are definitely not bad either. Pacing in Bourne is fast and you'll always have action only seconds away.
While the majority of the game is fun there are some definite let downs. The game really skimps on the story of Bourne. While it's understandable that people have most likely seen the movies. The cut scenes are only a way to quickly move the game to a different area and keep up with the pacing.
Another issue is game length. This game can easily be finished in an afternoon. I felt that if they had added more story via cut scenes and other flashback missions they could have really made the game stand out. On the flipside I'm unsure if the game would have become very repetitive if the game would have been longer without any additional gameplay mechanics implemented. The game does have accomplishments to unlock that allow you to fight bosses, unlock artwork, etc.., but in order to unlock the boss battles you have to collect passports which are littered throughout game levels. Searching for the passports creates a slow down in the game's attempt to stick with a fast pace game.
Other issues include noticeable camera problems, but nothing that hindered gameplay significantly. Lackluster gunplay in the form of low variety of weapons and inability to use sites to target enemies.
Overall Robert Ludlum's Bourne Conspiracy is a fun title, although short. I recommend renting the game first due to the length and low replay value.