They're even scaling back the games !

Ricardo C.

Looking at this trailer for this new 007 game, Bloodstone, it's interesting to see what's NOT there. Just like the films of late, an absence of gadgets and OTT villians, a rather plausiable plot, and all the action seems to be a bit more grounded in reality. I guess I personally put away fears that the Craig Bond era may beomce OTT in the future films if the trend is spreading to other merchandise.

Thunderbird 2

This is not surprising.

Merchandise has, by its nature, to reflect the trends of its source material. Children's television, successful book tie ins, and of course major film franchises like Bond. As a result, it makes sense for the merchandising to reflect that pattern, when millions have paid for their cinema tickets / Dvd's, - everything needs to be done to maintain their interest in secondary sales.
This is especially true of computer game tie ins - people will expect a Daniel Craig bond game to reflect the Daniel Craig era. If there was a Roger Moore era game, it would prob have much more gadgetry and tech, because of that era of Bond.

Hardyboy

This is really a Gaming topic, so to the proper forum it goes!

Ricardo C.

Thunderbird 2 wrote:

This is not surprising.

Merchandise has, by its nature, to reflect the trends of its source material. Children's television, successful book tie ins, and of course major film franchises like Bond. As a result, it makes sense for the merchandising to reflect that pattern, when millions have paid for their cinema tickets / Dvd's, - everything needs to be done to maintain their interest in secondary sales.
This is especially true of computer game tie ins - people will expect a Daniel Craig bond game to reflect the Daniel Craig era. If there was a Roger Moore era game, it would prob have much more gadgetry and tech, because of that era of Bond.

There actually was suppose to be a Moonraker game, with Roger Moore reprising 007, but it was cancelled. Too bad, would have liked to have at least seen what it would have looked like.

Dmitri Mishkin

For my part I don't mind the missing submarine Aston Martin or the Q-Spiders. It's just gimmicks to break up game play which gets too systematic.

Ricardo C.

Dmitri Mishkin wrote:

For my part I don't mind the missing submarine Aston Martin or the Q-Spiders. It's just gimmicks to break up game play which gets too systematic.

I don't mind them, as long as it stays in the games.


I just thought that this is also great for the series. People won't feel Bond is absent right now just because of production of the next film has haulted.

Thunderbird 2

Ricardo C. wrote:

There actually was suppose to be a Moonraker game, with Roger Moore reprising 007, but it was cancelled. Too bad, would have liked to have at least seen what it would have looked like.

Really? Peaked my curiosity too!

Ricardo C.

Thunderbird 2 wrote:

Ricardo C. wrote:

There actually was suppose to be a Moonraker game, with Roger Moore reprising 007, but it was cancelled. Too bad, would have liked to have at least seen what it would have looked like.

Really? Peaked my curiosity too!

Sir Rog mentioned the game in an interview and I can't seem to find it. ARGH !

TonyDP

I really don't like how the Bond games are trending. Just as the Craig era Bonds play out like your garden variety spy thrillers with little to set them apart, so too did QoS play like a garden variety first person shooter with little to set it apart from the competition.

I look back to games like Everything or Nothing (the high point of Bond videogames for me) with its varied gameplay (everything from action to driving) and imaginative gadgets; that was the last Bond game to really stand out from the crowd. By comparison, QoS is a plain vanilla FPS from start to finish with a few quick time events thrown in. The single player game didn't hold up to repeated playthrus as there was often only one way to achieve the given objectives. I tried to fire up the game again over the weekend and was so bored with the gameplay I actually sold it.

Bloodstone looks like more of the same; another generic action game with Craig's likeness and very little to distinguish it from the competition. It doesn't look like Activision has put any of its "A" list developers behind the game and as such, I fully expect it to be as much of a disappointment - both critically and commercially - as QoS. Ironically, games Call of Duty: Black Ops with its retro hi-tech approach and Ghost Recon: Future Soldier with its futuristic loadouts bear more of a kinship to Bond that the 'official' games.

PPK 7.65mm

Another problem with QOS the video game was the rush to get it to retail. In the US it came out the same week as Gears of War 2, which unlike QOS had better marketing to help its sales. Also having to manage the different developers in charge of the various versions of the game must have been difficult.

As for Bloodstone it seems that Activision learned from their mistakes and wants to this game the best they can. Based on the press conference videos that I watched on YouTube, I have faith that Bloodstone will live up to what the gamers expect.