Despite several games with the most recent Bonds, EA games decided to go back to the 60's with the very famous movie "Russia with Love". So does the rampage of mediocre Bonds games continue with this PSP adaptation of Russia With Love? Read on to see.
Don't get me wrong, I applaud the effort to put shooting games on the PSP and it can and has been pulled off effectively, 3 words for you - GTA: Liberty City, but EA just did a horrible job on the control scheme. What's so horrible? The camera. Not only does it not swivel based on where you are going, like several hundred games or so have done in the past, but you need to press square and press o to control it which is just plain stupid. Yet to dive you have to press triangle twice? Luckily the shooting and movement is manageable but the camera just is annoying.
Graphics wise the game is luckily very nice-looking. Player models are great for a PSP game, no framerate issues, explosions and other effects look great, surroundings as well look great and lastly, cinematic scenes look absolutely top-notch. What is definitely most surprising, although I understand GTA: LC was a huge game, having great graphics like Russia with Love does it is a nice surprise that I had absolutely no freezing, no framerate issues, no glitchiness or anything like that.
Another large fault in the game is the map system/the way objectives are worked out. Early on in the game it is very simple but I spent about 5 minutes going floor-to-floor, looking around what seemed like forever to find out what to do next, when I accidentally find a very small blue icon that turned out to show where to go next. At another time I find myself looking for a key when I again accidentally find it on a bench, later on another key I get marks that you need it by a very small blue circle. What's much worse is the absolutely ridiculously bad map, where you really have no idea where in the world you are heading and if you get lost...you're screwed. All this wouldn't be so bad if we hadn't had, you know, a hundred or so games that have at least a decent map system, it's nothing difficult to pull of.
Russia With Love does of course have a good story and as said, the cinematic are fantastic. But this is one of those situations where several bad things just make it pretty much unplayable, mainly the Camera and Map system which just blow horribly. Even if you are a die-hard James Bond fan, at best I might say rent it but otherwise don't give this game a shot and save your money.
