Introcuction
Based off events and including events that happen in the Bourne Identity, the Bourne Conspiracy follows Jason Bourne on a quest to find out why he is being chased by the Government, who his real identity is and who has made him into such a lethal weapon.
Gameplay 8/10
This game features a very nice mix of gun fights and hand-to-hand combat with both fighting systems developed very well.
The gun fighting system puts your view in 3rd person (much like Splinter Cell) and allows you to take cover behind almost any object and also allows you to pull out quickly from cover to fire on the enemy. There are 3 types of firearms which you can choose to use, Pistol, Shotgun and Assault Rifle. You carry your pistol with a choice of carrying either one of the other choices. Ammo is not scarce but at the same time is not plentyfull, depending on the difficulty setting you chose. Your health slowly replenishes when your not being shot but it doesnt take much to kill you.
The hand-to-hand fighting system is rather impressive. You have the choice of a light attack and a heavy attack but you have the option of mixing them up with a combo which is most effective on harder enemies. You have an adrenaline bar with three stages, the more damage you do to your enemies, the more it fills up. Once you have a bar full you can hit the "O" button and use your surroundings to defeat your enemy quickly (eg you grab your enemy, do some cool kung fu and throw his head into a wall or a desk) You will be approached by more than one enemy at a time but only one fights you at a time. When another enemy is going to attack you, you have about 2 seconds to press the button which pops up on the screen to defend yourself.
Inbetween gun fights and hand-to-hand combat you are usually being chased or hunted down. Most of the time you need to react quickly to the events that happen when your being chased, a random button will appear on the screen and you will have about a second or two to press it or you will either die or be caught (eg a sniper is about to shoot you, the "[]" button appears on the screen, if you press it in time you will dodge the shot... if you dont you will be shot)
The last thing I want to talk about in gameplay are the boss fights, these are all hand-to-hand fights and the "boss" characters are usually bigger, stronger and have more health than you do. The thing I liked about the first boss you come across is when you defeat him he either escapes or you throw him in the water and he reappears again later in the game
*SPOILER* this happens several times throughout the game.
Graphics 8/10
This game isnt exactly fresh off the ranks, its quite a few months old. Ill be blunt, the graphics are rather impressive. The detail on the characters and environment are very well done. In most games I notice the characters are very well done and the surroundings arnt quite as nice (or vise versa) but in this game its a very comfortable balance.
Sound 8/10
This game features music very similar to the movies, the music they play when you are being chased.. actually makes you feel like you are being hunted down. The impact and gun sounds are done very well. The cut scenes voice overs are done nicely aswell.
Overall this is one of the few games based upon movies that turned out well. The gameplay might seem very railed and you may feel less freedom than most games but the game is telling us a story, much like an interactive book. I give this game a 8/10 overall.
This game is a cross between Streets of Rage and Splinter cell (odd I know..) but if you fancy yourself a bit of railed hand-to-hand combat, a decent fire fight and a bit of stealth, this game is for you. Thanks for reading