Bullet-based action has never been so groovy.
Cate Archer is back, and she’s looking good. The lithe sixties Superspy must once again take up arms – and whatever else comes to hand – against the evil organization known as H.A.R.M. in this spectacular sequel to Y2K’s The Operative. H.A.R.M. is under new management; their mysterious Director is bent on world domination (or annihilation, if plan ‘a’ doesn’t work out) and he intends to make Cate the first casualty of war.
Unexpected allies. Bizarre, dysfunctional villains. Elaborate traps and amusing torture devices. All the elements that made the original NOLF so exhilarating are here in full force, along with some fresh twists and an expanded cast of characters. The banter’s as sharp as ever, and virtually every scene is imbued with wicked humour.
The abundant visual comedy is greatly enhanced by Monolith’s use of the LithTech Jupiter engine, which renders facial expressions in amazingly subtle detail. One audacious cut-scene in which a nervous actor delivers a wooden walk-on performance is outrageously funny. Those fine facial animations are used to great effect during combat, too; when any of Cate’s innumerable enemies meet their demise, they actually look dead, rather than just inert. Water shimmers, shadows flicker, and the diverse environments come alive in vivid and gorgeous detail. The episodes staged in Japan are particularly beautiful to behold.
Whilst the gameplay consists of essentially the same winning blend of first-person sneaking and shooting, several elements of the original NOLF have been overhauled. Gone are the pre-mission training levels, those visits to Santa’s Workshop and often lengthy debriefing sessions. They have been replaced by strategically placed notes, in-game dialogue and optional handy “tips” presented on the loading screen. This is a sleeker, more efficient NOLF, and those with an itchy trigger-finger will appreciate the evolution.
The plot exposition and character development that were such an enjoyable factor of the original NOLF may have lost something in the transition, but the player can now choose to develop specific areas of spying expertise. Every item of intelligence gathered now earns Cate skill points, which can be spent on fine-honing her talents for sneaking, searching and the like, or her mastery of various weapons and gadgets.
Cate’s arms collection is as outlandish as ever, with weapons including a super-slick Utility Launcher (which can dupe security cameras, trap, track or tranquilize foes and even fry the circuits of hostile robots), the Angry Kitty Proximity Mine and the humble banana (…yup, the girl’s packing fruit).
The multiplayer game is a lively adaptation of the single-player experience, with up to four online Operatives working on a collaborative mission against H.A.R.M.’s very competent A.I. lackeys. Live opposition in the form of deathmatch and team rivalry can also be obtained by free download from the Sierra site (http://www.sierra.com/file_list.do?gamePlatformId=164).
All told, NOLF2 is an exciting, challenging and profoundly likeable game. Violent but whimsical and full of jovial mischief, bullet-based action has never been so groovy.