James Bond 007: Blood Stone review

In the first mission of Blood Stone you skydive onto a yacht, shoot a dozen or so enemies in their stupid little heads, and jump into a million-dollar boat for a high-speed chase. Not exactly what you%26rsquo;d call formulaic.

That is, until the second mission, when you fly onto a dock, shoot several dozen henchmen in their stupid little heads, and jump into a million-dollar car for a high-speed chase. Nice.

Each of the missions in the rather short campaign follows suit, sometimes spritzing a fancy %26ldquo;get chased by something big%26rdquo; sequence or an %26ldquo;escape a building full of lethal gas%26rdquo; segment. Most of the time it actually feels like a blockbuster, with a quick-pace and plenty of changes in scenery.

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Blockbuster or not, the plot is boring as hell, which means almost as boring as Quantum of Solace. It has something to do with diamonds and gasses, like Ke$ha after Taco Bell. Controls don%26rsquo;t always match the excitement either %26ndash; an early scene has you tappinga singlekeyto dispose of a helicopter in a high-speed chase %26ndash; not mashingaway feverishly trying to fire a bullet into its whirring blades from the choppy water %26ndash; just tapping it once. Takedowns, which function as the game%26rsquo;s melee combat, are achieved by simplyhitting a keyto display a fancy animation of Bond doing all sorts of cool things while you observe.

Each takedown gains Bond a focus shot, which funnels all of CraigBond%26rsquo;s super agent powers into a direct headshot. Bond baddies have always been a little stupid, but there%26rsquo;s really no denying that Blood Stone%26rsquo;s enemies are strangely idiotic. They hide behind large explosive crates, toss grenades against walls, and interrupt gunfights to saunter over to whichever corner you hide behind (allowing for a takedown and focus shot). Even so, the game%26rsquo;s rather difficult on Agent and 007 modes.

Part of what makes Blood Stone difficult is that Daniel Craig isn%26rsquo;t the typical bullet-sponge protagonist. Sure, he can still take more bullets than 50 Cent and Wolverine combined, but a few good ones and it%26rsquo;s curtains. Which is why the way Bond opens doors is absolutely terrifying %26ndash; just swings %26lsquo;em open and stands there as exposed as an exhibitionist on laundry day.

There were a few instances where grenadiers would spawn in the worst possible locations and make short work of our slightly tousled hair and D%26amp;G loafers, but for the most part the checkpoint system is well shaped. You%26rsquo;ll die lots without the help of typical Bond vitality and gadgetry though. In fact, Bond%26rsquo;s only gadget in the game is his %26ldquo;smartphone%26rdquo; which can do pretty much everything, from setting off car alarms and unlocking doors to retaining perfect service in the middle of a mineshaft.

Unfortunately, there%26rsquo;s just not enough here to keep you coming back. Once you%26rsquo;ve finished the campaign once, you can play through online modes or take a shot at an even more difficult campaign, but more than likely you%26rsquo;ll follow the Bond-film route and call it quits.

Nov 12, 2010