Throwback Thurdsay: Remembering James Bond 007 “Nightfire”

Ashley Crocker ’15 / Emertainment Monthly Staff

This year, the James Bond series celebrates its 50 year anniversary. It started with novels, then moved to television, radio, comic books, film, and finally in 1983 it was adapted as a video game for the Atari system. Since then, almost 20 other James Bond games have been made for a variety of different gaming consoles.  Nightfire was released in the late 2002 and early 2003 for gaming consoles, and it was a game to be remembered for generations to come.

 Nightfire was a first person shooter that also featured some driving systems. It featured a story mode that pits 007 against the villain Raphael Drake. It also included a multiplayer mode that allowed players to team up against all the main antagonists of the game. It featured a multitude of weapons for the player to use (my favorite being the SG5 Commando) as well as specialty weapons such as the Delta Repeater Crossbow and the Phoenix Samurai Laser Rifle. Tactical weapons were also included; grenades, smokes, flashes, and a series of mounted weapons. The game takes place in Paris and Tokyo and features many different maps for the main story and multiplayer.

Although the single player of the game is entertaining and fits right in with the bond storylines; gizmos, gunfire, girls – many player’s memories are brightest when it comes to the multiplayer. Back in the day, siblings and friends spent hours fighting against AI bots in maps such as “Skyrail” or “Fort Knox”. All of them had their challenges but what really made this game stand out was the teamwork. When it was two against four, players really had to plan out their strategy and work together,  and, if anyone remembers, if you died the screen ran red with blood (something my mom was not thrilled about).

As time passed, players did pick up other Bond games but Nightfire was by far a favorite. Any Bond fan will enjoy Nightfire, so if you’re looking for a blast from the past and loving Bond games, get some friends together and play. It might be old, but it’s a great game.