The World Is Not Enough (PlayStation video game)

The World Is Not Enough is a first-person shooter video game developed by Black Ops Entertainment and based on the 1999 James Bond film of the same name. It was published by Electronic Arts (EA) and released for the PlayStation on November 7, 2000, shortly after the release of its Nintendo 64 counterpart. The World Is Not Enough is the successor to Black Ops Entertainment's 1999 title Tomorrow Never Dies and uses an improved version of its engine. The game received mixed reviews from critics, who criticised its short length and lack of multiplayer mode.

The World Is Not Enough
Developer(s)Black Ops Entertainment
Publisher(s)Electronic Arts[a]
Director(s)Jose Villeta
Producer(s)Jose Villeta
Designer(s)Daryl Kimoto
Programmer(s)Kyle Riccio
William Botti
Writer(s)William Botti
Daryl Kimoto
SeriesJames Bond
Platform(s)PlayStation
Release
  • NA: November 7, 2000
  • EU: November 17, 2000
Genre(s)First-person shooter, stealth
Mode(s)Single-player

Gameplay

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Unlike its predecessor, The World Is Not Enough is played from a first-person perspective. Ammunition information is displayed at the bottom right corner.

The World Is Not Enough is a first-person shooter based on MGM's 1999 James Bond film of the same name, where the player assumes the role of James Bond through 11 different missions.[1] In each mission, the player must complete many objectives while defeating enemies controlled by the game's artificial intelligence. Objectives range from rescuing hostages to destroying vehicles and collecting items.[1] Some objectives require the player to use numerous high-tech gadgets. For example, the Credit Card Lockpick can be used to open locked doors, while the Micro Camera is useful for photographing evidence.[2] There is one mission that does not involve combat, and requires the player to play blackjack in a casino and win consistently.[1]

As a first-person shooter, combat takes place in real-time and from a first-person perspective. The player can use several weapons, including submachine guns, shotguns, a tranquilizer gun, a sniper rifle, and a rocket launcher.[2] Weapons must be reloaded after a certain number of shots. The player has a certain amount of health which decreases when attacked by enemies. Heavy and Light Armor power-ups that absorb extra damage can be collected throughout the game. These power-ups, however, cannot protect the player from extreme falls or radiation.[2] The game features several lengthy cuts from the film as cutscenes.[3]

Development and release

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The World Is Not Enough was developed by Black Ops Entertainment and published by Electronic Arts as a follow-up to the 1999 title Tomorrow Never Dies.[4] The game uses an improved version of the Tomorrow Never Dies engine, whose perspective was changed from third-person to first-person.[5] Producer Joel Wade explained that the first-person perspective would help immerse the player deeper into the game and make the gameplay experience more intense.[6] As a result, new animations, scripted sequences, and sound effects had to be added.[5] Black Ops also took creative license to enrich the gameplay experience with new characters during the missions.[5]

The developers improved the targeting system and rewrote the rendering engine to improve the draw distances without impacting the frame rate.[6] Each enemy character was motion-captured with more than 30 different animations.[6] Keanu Reeves' stunt double from The Matrix was hired to pull off the movements, resulting in the game having more than 300 animations.[7] A multiplayer mode was originally planned, but the idea was ultimately abandoned because developers felt it would take away valuable production time and therefore reduce the quality of the main game.[8] The World Is Not Enough was released for the PlayStation video game console on November 7, 2000, shortly after the release of its Nintendo 64 counterpart.[9] According to the developer, the game was produced over 17 months and sold nearly 1.5 million units worldwide.[10] In the UK, the game received a "Gold" sales award from the Entertainment and Leisure Software Publishers Association,[11] indicating sales of at least 200,000 units.[12]

Reception

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The World Is Not Enough received mixed reviews from critics.[13] Although the game was seen as an improvement over Tomorrow Never Dies,[21][19][24] some reviewers felt that it was inferior to its Nintendo 64 counterpart.[3][23] Douglass C. Perry of IGN described The World Is Not Enough as "a short, rudimentary shooter with nothing more than a few good gadgets and a great license backing it up",[3] while Samuel Bass of Daily Radar stated that the game "succeeds reasonably well" as "a shallow movie-licensed action experience."[24] Shane Satterfield of GameSpot concluded that the game "is not GoldenEye for the PlayStation, but if you're tired of playing through Medal of Honor or Metal Gear Solid, it provides temporary relief for your stealth shooting addiction."[19]

Writing for GameRevolution, Shawn Sparks highlighted positively the graphics for their clean textures and character details despite the PlayStation hardware limitations.[18] He also credited the soundtrack for being "exciting during action and dramatic while stealthing around", but considered the voice acting to be weak.[18] Crispin Boyer of Electronic Gaming Monthly felt that the game overall looked better than Tomorrow Never Dies, but remarked that the player can occasionally get stuck on walls and objects while strafing.[15] IGN criticized the game's "absolutely horrible" character animations and overuse of the James Bond theme song,[3] while Michael Lafferty of GameZone praised its smooth gameplay, vocal characterizations, and interactive environments.[20]

Paul Anderson of Game Informer criticized the game's short length and lack of depth, stating that nearly all of the weapons offer the same advantages and disadvantages.[17] Similarly, Daily Radar condemned the game's poor artificial intelligence and shallow stealth gameplay. According to the reviewer, "most espionage segments boil down to little more than scripted sequences and the occasional bout of old-fashioned button pushing."[24] NextGen's Bass criticized the simplistic enemy behaviors because they make long levels repetitive and dull,[21] and GameSpot noted the game's poor replay value due to the lack of a multiplayer mode, saying that The World Is Not Enough can be completed in less than a day.[19] Nevertheless, the game's varied level design and numerous gadgets were highlighted positively, with GameRevolution stating that "more games should have this much variation and less redundancy."[18] Extreme Ahab of GamePro summed up in his review: "If you're out for more action after Medal of Honor: Underground, The World Is Not Enough, though a step-down, should satisfy your craving for espionage and firefights; but if you're lusting for a truly great game in which suspense and action make for a perfect union, you may be a bit disappointed."[25][c]

Notes

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  1. ^ Released under the EA Games brand name and co-published by MGM Interactive.
  2. ^ Three critics of Electronic Gaming Monthly gave the game each a score of 5.5/10, 6/10, and 7/10.
  3. ^ GamePro gave the game two 4/5 scores for graphics and fun factor, 4.5/5 for sound, and 3.5/5 for control.

References

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  1. ^ a b c Anthony Lynch (October 2000). "PSX Mission Walkthroughs". The World is Not Enough: Prima's Official Strategy Guide. Prima Games. pp. 64–97. ISBN 978-0761529743.
  2. ^ a b c Anthony Lynch (October 2000). "PSX Weapons & Gadgets". The World is Not Enough: Prima's Official Strategy Guide. Prima Games. pp. 61–63. ISBN 978-0761529743.
  3. ^ a b c d e Douglass C. Perry (2000-11-08). "The World is Not Enough PlayStation Review". IGN. Ziff Davis. Archived from the original on 2014-02-22. Retrieved 2016-12-08.
  4. ^ Garrett Kenyon (2000). "The World is Not Enough". Daily Radar. Imagine Media. Archived from the original on 2001-04-29.
  5. ^ a b c IGN staff (2000-02-24). "Never Say Never for PlayStation". IGN. Ziff Davis. Archived from the original on 2014-12-18. Retrieved 2016-12-08.
  6. ^ a b c Ben Stahl (2000-05-18). "The World is Not Enough Preview". GameSpot. Fandom. Archived from the original on 2000-12-16. Retrieved 2024-03-30.
  7. ^ Ben Stahl (2000-06-09). "The World is Not Enough Q&A". GameSpot. Fandom. Archived from the original on 2001-02-11. Retrieved 2024-03-30.
  8. ^ IGN staff (2000-10-26). "The World Is Not Enough (Preview)". IGN. Ziff Davis. Archived from the original on 2014-07-10. Retrieved 2016-12-08.
  9. ^ GameSpot staff (2000-10-11). "Golden TWINE". GameSpot. Fandom. Archived from the original on 2000-12-10. Retrieved 2024-03-30.
  10. ^ "James Bond Team". Black Ops Entertainment. Archived from the original on 2015-01-10. Retrieved 2016-12-09.
  11. ^ "ELSPA Sales Awards: Gold". Entertainment and Leisure Software Publishers Association. Archived from the original on 2009-03-19.
  12. ^ Eric Caoili (2008-11-26). "ELSPA: Wii Fit, Mario Kart Reach Diamond Status In UK". Game Developer. Informa. Archived from the original on 2017-09-18. Retrieved 2024-03-30.
  13. ^ a b "007: The World is not Enough critic reviews (PS)". Metacritic. Fandom. Archived from the original on 2016-04-05. Retrieved 2023-11-01.
  14. ^ Tom Ham (2000-11-06). "The World Is Not Enough - PlayStation Review [Incomplete]". Gamecenter. CNET. Archived from the original on 2000-12-05. Retrieved 2022-06-01.
  15. ^ a b Crispin Boyer; John Davison; Kraig Kujawa (January 2001). "The World Is Not Enough (PS)". Electronic Gaming Monthly. No. 138. Ziff Davis. p. 204. Archived from the original on 2001-01-29. Retrieved 2022-06-01.
  16. ^ Jeff Nash (2001-01-04). "The World Is Not Enough (PSX)". The Electric Playground. Greedy Productions Ltd. Archived from the original on 2003-07-18. Retrieved 2022-06-01.
  17. ^ a b Paul Anderson (December 2000). "The World Is Not Enough". Game Informer. No. 92. FuncoLand. p. 108. Archived from the original on 2008-09-15. Retrieved 2013-11-30.
  18. ^ a b c d Shawn Sparks (November 2000). "The World is Not Enough - PSX Review". GameRevolution. CraveOnline. Archived from the original on 2004-02-16. Retrieved 2022-06-01.
  19. ^ a b c d Shane Satterfield (2000-11-13). "The World is Not Enough (PS)". GameSpot. Fandom. Archived from the original on 2001-01-10. Retrieved 2024-03-30.
  20. ^ a b Michael Lafferty (2001-01-15). "The World Is Not Enough Review on PlayStation". GameZone. Archived from the original on 2006-01-18. Retrieved 2013-11-30.
  21. ^ a b c Samuel Bass (January 2001). "The World Is Not Enough (PS)". NextGen. No. 73. Imagine Media. p. 108. Retrieved 2022-06-01.
  22. ^ John Davison (January 2001). "The World is not Enough". Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine. No. 40. Ziff Davis. p. 138. Retrieved 2024-03-30.
  23. ^ a b Marc Saltzman (2000-12-20). "Bond video game will thrill spy fans". The Cincinnati Enquirer. Gannett Company. Archived from the original on 2008-05-11. Retrieved 2013-12-01.
  24. ^ a b c Samuel Bass (2000). "The World is Not Enough". Daily Radar. Imagine Media. Archived from the original on 2001-02-09.
  25. ^ Extreme Ahab (December 2000). "The World Is Not Enough" (PDF). GamePro. No. 147. IDG. p. 128. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2023-06-30. Retrieved 2024-03-30.
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