007: Nightfire
Year: 2002
Type: Original Soundtrack (OST) / Gamerip
Composer(s): Jeff Tymoschuk
Number of tracks: 9 / 49
(Musical) cinema feeling for agent fans
I sometimes wished back for the naive, childlike joy that pretty much any game could evoke in me, simply because it was a new game. In addition, there was the thrill of the forbidden when the "16+" or even the 18 logo was prominently featured on the packaging. Both factors helped me to cope with the betrayal that 007: Nightfire had committed against my youthful credulity. After all, the game about the then Bond Pierce Brosnan was a license spoof that thankfully did not follow the story of one of the films - which is precisely why it was particularly easy to forget.
To make matters worse, the PC version was a console port. And in 2002, this meant that you didn't necessarily get the same game for the PC that you had played on the console. Incidentally, the first two Harry Potter-games, which displayed screenshots on the packaging that were not included in the PC version, are good examples of this. Outrageous, as Past-Mattis was already aware back then.
Anyway, too many flashbacks. I played Nightfire at a friend's house and was thrilled: great graphics, cool character models and especially a driving level that bordered on open world and evoked old Need for Speed-feelings, which ultimately made me want to buy the game. Mistake. Because the port was missing a whole lot more besides the aforementioned level. I don't have the exact numbers, but it felt like the campaign was only half as long as its console counterpart. And due to the lack of internet, the single player was de facto the only reason for me to play the game. Please don't get me wrong: I had a lot of fun with Nightfire. Despite the hacky controls and lousy AI, I enjoyed taking on 007 to save the world. But I also had fun with free-to-play MMORPGs like Florensia, the visual novel Long Live the Queen and to this day with the meticulous evaluation of music tracks. In this respect, my opinion should not be used as a yardstick here.
Fortunately, the soundtrack does not suffer from the port to the home computer. I particularly like the fact that a lot of the iconic James Bond-theme has been used thanks to the official licensing. Tracks such as Paris by Helicopter or Jungle Assault transport the familiar melodies from the films into the shooter scenario and combine them with action tracks that fit perfectly into the setting. The 4-star tracks are similarly good, but are less captivating, while the 3-star tracks go more in the direction of games like Unreal Tournament and leave the cinematic core. This suits the video game medium, but since the game is rather semi, it's better to remember the big screen approaches. Of course, there are also positive examples of Bond-conversions, such as the frequently praised Golden Eye for the C64. But because I didn't play that, I can only talk about Nightfire, my only 007 experience for the PC.
Therefore, my conclusion is mixed: The game can be left in the dust, especially the horribly abridged version for the PC. The soundtrack, on the other hand, is of maximum interest to Bond-fans, but despite the nimbus of the license adaptation, the game has at least delivered an acceptable acoustic interpretation of the film music. So if you've always wanted to know - and I know there are a lot of you - what a game version of the Bond-theme sounds like, this is your shot.
Nostalgia warning
The rating of the individual tracks is purely subjective and clearly colored by my own experience with the game. You can find out more in the article About Nostalgia.
007: Nightfire [Playstation Version]
| No. | Title | Artist(s) | Ratings |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Paris by Helicopter | Jeff Tymoschuk |  |
| 2 | Rescuing Nightshade | Jeff Tymoschuk |  |
| 3 | Escape from Drake's Castle | Jeff Tymoschuk | |
| 4 | Enemies Vanquished | Jeff Tymoschuk |  |
| 5 | Ignore That Sinking Feeling | Jeff Tymoschuk | |
| 6 | Jungle Assault | Jeff Tymoschuk | |
| 7 | Ultralight | Jeff Tymoschuk | |
| 8 | The Finger of Death | Jeff Tymoschuk | |
| 9 | Mr. Bond I Presume [Demo] | Jeff Tymoschuk | |
007: Nightfire [Gamerip]
| No. | Title | Artist(s) | Ratings |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Nearly Civilized | Jeff Tymoschuk | |
| 02 | Nearly Civilized (Short) | Jeff Tymoschuk | |
| 03 | Rendezvous (Ambience) | Jeff Tymoschuk | |
| 04 | Rendezvous (Stealth) | Jeff Tymoschuk | |
| 05 | Rendezvous (Drama) | Jeff Tymoschuk | |
| 06 | Rendezvous (Combat) | Jeff Tymoschuk | |
| 07 | Rendezvous (Boss) | Jeff Tymoschuk | |
| 08 | Airfield Ambush (Ambience) | Jeff Tymoschuk | |
| 09 | Airfield Ambush (Stealth) | Jeff Tymoschuk | |
| 10 | Airfield Ambush (Drama) | Jeff Tymoschuk | |
| 11 | Airfield Ambush (Combat 1) | Jeff Tymoschuk | |
| 12 | Airfield Ambush (Combat 2) | Jeff Tymoschuk | |
| 13 | Uninvited Guests (Ambience) | Jeff Tymoschuk | |
| 14 | Uninvited Guests (Stealth) | Jeff Tymoschuk | |
| 15 | Uninvited Guests (Drama) | Jeff Tymoschuk | |
| 16 | Uninvited Guests (Combat) | Jeff Tymoschuk | |
| 17 | Uninvited Guests (Boss) | Jeff Tymoschuk | |
| 18 | Phoenix Rising (Ambience) | Jeff Tymoschuk | |
| 19 | Phoenix Rising (Stealth) | Jeff Tymoschuk | |
| 20 | Phoenix Rising (Drama) | Jeff Tymoschuk | |
| 21 | Phoenix Rising (Combat) | Jeff Tymoschuk | |
| 22 | Phoenix Rising (Boss) | Jeff Tymoschuk | |
| 23 | Hidden Agenda (Ambience) | Jeff Tymoschuk | |
| 24 | Hidden Agenda (Stealth) | Jeff Tymoschuk | |
| 25 | Hidden Agenda (Drama) | Jeff Tymoschuk | |
| 26 | Hidden Agenda (Combat 1) | Jeff Tymoschuk | |
| 27 | Hidden Agenda (Combat 2) | Jeff Tymoschuk | |
| 28 | Hidden Agenda (Boss) | Jeff Tymoschuk | |
| 29 | High Treason (Ambience) | Jeff Tymoschuk | |
| 30 | High Treason (Stealth) | Jeff Tymoschuk | |
| 31 | High Treason (Drama) | Jeff Tymoschuk | |
| 32 | High Treason (Combat 1) | Jeff Tymoschuk | |
| 33 | High Treason (Combat 2) | Jeff Tymoschuk | |
| 34 | High Treason (Boss) | Jeff Tymoschuk | |
| 35 | Island Getaway (Ambience) | Jeff Tymoschuk | |
| 36 | Island Getaway (Stealth) | Jeff Tymoschuk | |
| 37 | Island Getaway (Drama) | Jeff Tymoschuk | |
| 38 | Island Getaway (Combat 1) | Jeff Tymoschuk | |
| 39 | Island Getaway (Combat 2) | Jeff Tymoschuk | |
| 40 | Zero Minus (Ambience) | Jeff Tymoschuk | |
| 41 | Zero Minus (Stealth) | Jeff Tymoschuk | |
| 42 | Zero Minus (Drama) | Jeff Tymoschuk | |
| 43 | Zero Minus (Combat 1) | Jeff Tymoschuk | |
| 44 | Zero Minus (Combat 2) | Jeff Tymoschuk | |
| 45 | Re-Entry (Ambience) | Jeff Tymoschuk | |
| 46 | Re-Entry (Stealth) | Jeff Tymoschuk | |
| 47 | Re-Entry (Drama) | Jeff Tymoschuk | |
| 48 | Re-Entry (Combat) | Jeff Tymoschuk | |
| 49 | Re-Entry (Boss) | Jeff Tymoschuk | |
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