Can you remember what you were doing when IO Interactive announced Project 007? No? Let me give you a clue. The answer is probably “not much” as it was revealed way back at the end of 2020. This was almost exactly when the Xbox Series X|S was released in fact.
Many gamers (including myself) feared the project may have been in trouble due to the absence of new information surfacing for many years. Thankfully, 007 First Light is fighting fit and finally here. But, did you know it’s been a whopping 14 years since the last James Bond game was released?
So, what better time to cast our minds back and revisit the five best James Bond games that have been released. Ever. Who knows, very soon 007 First Light may knock one of these off their lofty perch.
5. James Bond 007: Agent Under Fire (2001)
We begin our countdown at the turn of the millennium, with James Bond 007: Agent Under Fire. The game marks a departure from following the films of Pierce Brosnan, and from the actor himself, despite the shadowy cover art looking a little bit like him.
James Bond 007: Agent Under Fire was originally meant to be a game based on the film The World is Not Enough, but this never came to pass. Instead, what we have here is an original story for Bond who pursues a madman across the globe, to prevent him from unleashing his secret plot to clone world leaders. Classic Bond baddie behaviour.
The game provided a mix of first person shooter action, as well as “on-rails” and vehicle segments which played out over 12 missions. Although there are better Bond games out there, James Bond 007: Agent Under Fire marked an important jump forward for the franchise, paving the way for the games to come. Oh, and it was bloody good fun too.
4. James Bond 007: Everything or Nothing (2004)
Next up is James Bond 007: Everything or Nothing. Sticking with the likeness of Pierce Brosnan, this was another original story in the (by this point) well established move away from the films themselves. Of course, the game franchise would once again head back to that territory, and probably shouldn’t have bothered (don’t talk to me about Quantum of Solace).
This adventure shifts to the third person perspective, as at the time EA Redwood Shores worked to make arguably the most ambitious James Bond game to date. Events in James Bond 007: Everything or Nothing centred around nanotechnology (very futuristic and very much on trend for 2004), specifically it being used by terrorists to repair nuclear reactors.
Everything about this game felt ratcheted up in terms of trying to tell a blockbuster James Bond story. Not only was there a pleasing mix of vehicles to get to grips with, missions felt less linear than before and the single player campaign was a decent length too.
However, the project had Bond favourites such as the man himself Pierce Brosnan, Judi Dench, John Cleese and even Heidi Klum. Not only that, but the team bagged Willem Dafoe as the villain with an interesting link to a film from the past, as well as Jaws bursting back on to the scene. Not only was it great fun to play, but this gave James Bond 007: Everything or Nothing an authenticity which linked the video game adventures of the secret agent more closely to his big screen outings than ever before.
3. GoldenEye 007 (2010)
“What? 2010? That’s not right.” Wait, let me explain. This came in the brief and very mixed Activision Era and rang all sorts of alarm bells when originally announced. Messing with a game considered sacrosanct was always going to be risky, however this turned out not to be a remake, instead a reimagining.
The pitch is essentially this. Imagine GoldenEye, but as if it was written for Daniel Craig’s incarnation of James Bond. An interesting idea, I’m sure we can all agree. It had the air of the familiar but with many of the ingredients from the original film all chucked into a mixing bowl. What resulted was something that felt markedly different. Indeed, the expectation of players thinking they knew what would happen was used against them, before the rug pull came that delivered some genuine twists in the story.
Originally released on the Wii, I remember just how much this game pushed the console. It looked great, and sounded fantastic thanks to Daniel Craig, Judi Dench and Rory Kinnear returning to their roles, as well as an absolute belter from Deadmau5 heard in the nightclub mission. I was pleasantly surprised, because this reimagining of GoldenEye 007 not only worked, but stood proudly on its own two feet. I loved it.
What really topped it off however, was the inclusion of fantastic local and online multiplayer capabilities. This is where GoldenEye 007 felt like a real leap forward for the series; I spent hours and hours and hours playing it online. This also came at the perfect time for the Wii too, as it was seen as the inferior choice for online gamers at the time versus PS3 and Xbox 360.
The game was later ported to the aforementioned platforms with mixed results, but I’ll always remember the humble Wii punching above its weight, and having an edge thanks to the pointer controls. A truly great game that to this day is still criminally underrated.
2. GoldenEye 007 (1997)
“What? 2nd place? Blasphemy!”, I hear you shout. Give me a chance to explain myself. Many, many people will choose GoldenEye 007 (1997) as their pick for best Bond game ever, without pausing for thought. This is perfectly justified, because back in 1997 against the odds, this was a movie tie-in game that wasn’t just good, it was groundbreaking.
Following the plot of the film, GoldenEye 007 took players closer to the fantasy of being James Bond than ever before. The environments were skillfully realised, character animations brought them to life, and the gunplay was extremely satisfying. It took some getting used to mind you with that N64 controller, but it was undeniably brilliant.
Not only this, but the introduction of a local multiplayer mode became the stuff of legend. Up to four players could battle it out across a variety of locations, competing in various modes named after the films. A firm favourite of mine was “The Man With the Golden Gun”, which spawned the famous weapon capable of a guaranteed one shot kill somewhere on the map, which caused players to scramble to acquire it.
However, it’s been nearly 30 years and I’m sorry to have to say it, the game hasn’t aged as well as some may like to think. It does feel dated now. It will always be amongst the greatest Bond games for what it delivered at the time, and its impact on gaming in general, but that’s not immediately obvious if you go to play it blind, shielded from its impressive legacy.
1. James Bond 007: Nightfire (2002)
Here we are then, the big one. I first played James Bond 007: Nightfire as I was approaching my teenage years, and still carry fond memories of this game today. Once again the baddies are after nuclear weapons, and on this occasion Bond is dispatched to investigate a missing missile guidance chip.
James Bond 007: Nightfire starts off fairly grounded (for a James Bond story) but throughout the missions you find yourself driving an underwater car, scaling a skyscraper and even heading into outer space. You heard me correctly. Linking these together are a series of wonderfully cinematic cutscenes, creating an overall experience that pulls inspiration from many of the films themselves.
There’s a range of weapons that Bond can employ, from his trusty Walther P99 right up to some of the explosive variety. Bond is also packing some gadgets as you would expect, including an impressively long ranged grapple. “Bond Moments” awarded players who carried out certain actions befitting of the man himself, with a delicious two note chime as the legendary 007 logo spun into vision on the screen.
I’ve talked a fair bit already about multiplayer experiences in Bond games, but James Bond 007: Nightfire had one of the best local multiplayer modes ever created in a Bond game, possibly in any game. Each arena was perfectly designed, with half decent AI bots to fill the numbers if you needed. There was a pleasing amount of modifiers too, giving it a lot of reply value.
For example, I remember vividly playing on the Phoenix Base map, cramming it full of enemy bots and then switching the weapons set to explosives only. Then me and my mates would attempt to survive the absolute carnage that ensued. There was another stand out moment on the Skyrail map, which connected to the two team bases by cable car. Myself and an enemy player were standing atop of said buildings, and I noticed something approaching from the distance. Before I could react, I was struck and killed by Oddjob’s hat in what was one of the finest kills in any video game I have ever seen.
It may have been far from perfect, but James Bond 007: Nightfire was undeniably authentic to its very core, warts and all. It was camp, comedic and often a little bit cringe, but remains an absolute blast to this very day. In so many ways, it is the quintessential James Bond video game experience.
And there we have it. Do you agree? Disagree? For me, these are the 5 greatest Bond games that have ever been created. The question is, will 007: First Light trump them all? Tell us in the comments below.
