No One Lives Forever (PC Game Review / 1st impressions)

This is a First Person Shooter (FPS), where you play the role of Cate Archer, a secret spy, doing dangerous missions. But "No One Lives Forever" (NOLF) is not an ordinary FPS, nor Cate is an ordinary woman. NOLF is different.

The difference starts at its 3D engine - the not very much licensed Lithtech 2.5. This means that NOLF' 3D world doesn't feel like any regular Quake / Unreal based title. You might remember the Lithtech engine from "Shogo", one of the very first examples of its use.... and if so, you might also recall that, in some levels, the distance up to where to engine did render animations, was far beyond what Quakers could deliver, yet the game itself was simply unfortunate on its timing, facing a too hard competition.

Is NOLF having a better time? After all, this is Christmas, and every software house is launching its killer titles... Well, only sales figures will tell about NOLF's success, but one thing that is very obvious, by the time you first play it, is an unusual attention to quality and detail, from dynamic music to rich graphics, and very humorous gameplay elements.

NOLF has such a strong color scheme, that it remembers the Austin Powers movies: its colors are shocking, high on contrast and never soft! If you read the recent Chris Miller interview @ PrimaGames, you'll learn that NOLF's main character changed gender, since the game's first draft, suggesting that the original relation to Austin Powers was to be stronger, than it is now. On the other hand, NOLF and Austin Powers only relate on a conceptual level (comic, vivid, and spy set on the 1960s), but that is it - they don't share anything else...

One of NOLF's strong points is its character animation, very natural and fluid. Models also seem built on more polygons than usual, and if you want better, other than checking this month Epic's *free* Unreal Tournament upgrade (realtime skeletal animation!), you have no choice... Yes, NOLF's characters move and act that good! Superb! Cate Archer even manages to transmit a certain sexual appeal, as she cats along, on the passive-scenes and mirror objects.

Everything starts at Morocco, where you (Cate) have to protect the UK Ambassador from bad guys. On this first episode you are still under the guidance of a friend (an agent that speaks like Sean Connery), who will help you to shoot down some of the enemies. For a first episode, the Morocco challenge is really hard and most players will only make it, because they are allowed to save the game... However, your friend will die (a la Soldier of Fortune), and Cate will be left alone, trying to find out who "from inside the organization" is spreading the word about the current missions.

NOLF encloses a mystery plot, which might sound serious stuff, but the truth is that there is an intelligent humor on nearly every situation. For example, when you are trying to knock out some adversaries, they'll scream "I don't like bullets"... and many non-relevant personages are caught having the most stupid dialogues, like a couple who's trying NOT to buy a savage monkey...

Stealth isn't a novelty, but its here at NOLF and its better achieved than everywhere else, except for in the Looking Glass's "Thief" series. This means that it is important to walk, instead of running, as it is relevant to crouch and step on carpets, instead of on noisier surfaces. It will also be wise not to go aiming your gun, against everyone you see... and to use silent weapons.

The levels are designed in such a fashion, that they really feel "real", absolutely crammed with detail. Morocco is like... Morocco at Africa... with narrow streets, blue skies, people dressed in white, houses with flat roofs, and so many objects, that NOLF really sets a challenge to Quake / Unreal engine based titles.

I really advise you to go out and buy NOLF, if you haven't done it before... For its sub-genre, I only see one challenger this moment, and that is "I am Going In" (IGI), which I'll be reviewing soon.