Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #9335 in Computer & Video Games
• Brand: Sierra
• Platforms: Windows NT, Windows 98, Windows 2000, Windows Me, Windows XP

Manufacturer's Description
No One Lives Forever 2: A Spy in H.A.R.M.'s Wayis a story-driven first person action adventure featuring Cate Archer, the beautiful but deadly UNITY operative who foiled H.A.R.M.'s last nefarious plot. Cate must investigate a super secret Soviet project that, if successful, could bring about a third World War. Armed with an assortment of conventional and experimental weaponry and gadgets, players will explore exotic locales, circumvent devious traps, and contend with deadly agents determined to take them out of the spy trade once and for all.

Can Cate Archer avert a nuclear holocaust and simultaneously stay out of H.A.R.M.'s way?

Customer Reviews

No One Lives Forever A Spy In H.A.R.M.S Way
When the Operative was first anounced in the late 90's everyone was inspired by the approach the developers were taking in order to achieve the games goal. The game was set in the 1960's and consisted of gadgets, whitt, guns and humour. It was a bit hard to take serious untill the reviews hit magazines and internet websites worldwide. That was the point I decided to purchase the game and see what all the fuss was all about.

One of the first things I noticed was the humour, which in fact is actualy funny. Most games that take the comedy approach fail miserably (No titles mentioned) but that was certainly not the case in this game. The firefights amazing and the level design absolutely superb.

The balance was remarkable between humour and serious gameplay elements.

In 2002 No One Lives Forever 2 A Spy In H.A.R.M.S way was released and once again it recieved (deservably) top dog scores. The gameplay that was so remarkable in the original remained fully intact but with a little extra. There are now multiple ways to suceed in the completion of objectives; which makes the game alot less liner (not like the original was or anything), this allows alot more longitivity and gameplay fun.

The interface has been totaly re-assembled from the original game, which allows for quick weapon and gadget switching. When you need a gadget you no longer have to switch betweem them all the time like in the original, instead face the object and hold the right mouse button down untill the gadget has been whipped out, wait till the progress bar expires then release the button and you switch back to your last weapon.

Other gameplay elements include the ability to search draws, fileing cabinets and cuboards for aditional information, armour and points. The ability system has been given a total overhall where as you now earn points after each objective and they can be spent on new abilities i.e. Stealth & Marksmenship. This is a great element as you can configure Cate to your likeing.

The comedy from the original is back once again but this time even better, I won't mention what the funny elements are as it will spoil it for you, but I can say listen to all convosations and read all documents you find.

The one really good thing with both No One Lives Forever games is that the level designes seriosley differ giving the player a different senario each time from skydiving out of aircraft, scuba diving in search of a sunken ship, space stations, skidoo chases and many many more.

Overall this game is fantastic and should be in any body's FPS collection and for less than 10 quid how can you go wrong.

ABSOLUTELY AMAZING ! ! !

Missing something
The first game, No One Lives Forever, was a truly excellent game for its time (in fact I was playing it again only a week ago) and never really got the sales it deserved. But the developers went back again and produced a second adventure for UNITY agent Cate Archer, titled A Spy in HARM's Way - this game. It should be a brilliant hit, but I can't help but feel a bit nonplussed about it. What went wrong?

First off, the graphics have been well and truly cranked up, and I can honestly say that this is possibly the best-looking FPS on the market, even now! The designers have spent a lot of time of the character models and it has paid off; Cate, her opponents and her surroundings are all lovingly detailed and it's a real pleasure to dash around the levels and see what's going to come up next. The weapons are now handled more like a typical FPS, with Half-life style weapons groupings and access. My only complaint is that the amount of ammo you can carry is seriously reduced, although Cate is supposed to be a spy, not a Tank. Still, I would have appreciated some amount of choice in initial loadout, as was the case in NOLF1, especially with the opportunity to pick up bolt-on accessories such as scopes and silencers. The experience system is a real hit, you can tailor Cate's abilities the way you want to use them. And finally the interface is hugely improved, with keys now in much better places (it used to drive me potty).

Problems? Well, the game feels too short when you finish it. The original was a really long piece, an epic that could take hours to play through even on easy settings. The set-piece missions are just TOO scripted, in that your options for dealing with problems or opponents are too limited. Previously you had choice, as with the brilliant "Thief" games you had the option of duking it out, stealthily infiltrating with a silenced pistol, or just sneaking through a level as you saw fit. This time there's often just one way through, and it detracts from the play value somewhat, as well as sometimes making the game much more difficult than it really wants to be. And while the graphics are way, WAY improved, the game feels dark. The first was a burst of technicolour 60's brightness. This feels grim by comparison. There aren't half as many funny intelligence items like you used to be able to pick up, or half as many inane conversations between guards like you used to be able to listen in to (and sometimes learn useful hints). Some enemies can't be killed (I cannot emphasise just how much that annoys me). Some respawning borders on the ridiculous, and you can't methodically clear some of the levels of enemies. And, I just want to raise this again, you have no choice over your initial loadout.

So, despite some really good improvements, it feels like it has still slid back a bit. It's much grimmer and offers less choice than before, as well as sacrificing game length and a lot of comedy features that I loved so much. A third game, brightened up a bit, given a bit more comedy and given back some choice of gameplay would be more valuable to me than Deus Ex 2. Overall, it's a good game in itself and is worth Four Stars, but it's really a victim of its predecessor's success.

Amazing in parts
I bought this game on the back of some excellent reviews, and the fact that I had £30 burning a hole in my pocket. I wasn't expecting much, as I'd never been a fan of the first game. I found being forced to rely on stealth just didn't suit the game as it did for milestones in stealth such as Thief and Deus Ex. I was therefore pleasantly surprised to find I'd bought one of the best FPS's of this year. It is one of the first games I've played to faultlessly incorporate humour and action, especially impressive as this is generally a fast paced game. Added to this, stealth in this game again plays a part, but this time far more successfully. This is due to the fact that most of the game can be simply blasted through in typical FPS style, leaving the decision to use stealth totally up to the individual. As a side note, I would recommend using stealth, as if you try to get through every level as quickly as possible you will miss out on some of the comedy; for example when you see two guards, it is almost certain that they will be having some sort of amusing conversation. However, as the title to this review suggests, this game is far from perfect. Up until the final levels, the weapon selection is extremely low. Compare this to recent shooters such as Return to Castle Wolfenstein and it seems positively bland. Some mistakes made in the first game also manage to creep back in. In mission four for example, the respawning enemies are some of the most frustrating things I have ever come up against in a game, especially on the higher difficulty settings. Just when you think it is clear to make your move, a three or four enemies suddenly materialize, guns blazing. But however much I nit pick at this game, the simple fact is that nothing is perfect. The positive points far outweigh the negative, and if you enjoy shooters and 60's spy thrillers consider this an essential purchase.