No One Lives Forever: A Video Game Review

Meet Cate Archer. She is classy, sassy, and delightfully British. She is also an agent for an international anti-terrorist network called U.N.I.T.Y. Cate is a female cross between James Bond and Austin Powers, except without the out-of-control mojo. But most importantly, she is the star of Sierra's classic PlayStation 2 game and PC port, The Operative: No One Lives Forever.

I first discovered No One Lives Forever and its sequel by happenstance. My brother was playing the PC sequel, No One Lives Forever: A Spy in H.A.R.M.'s Way, and highly recommended it. I started playing the game and loved it. The graphics were good, the music even better, and the script witty and hysterical. Once I completed the game, however, I soon began to find myself itching to step back into Cate Archer's shoes.

To my great delight, I discovered the original No One Lives Forever for the PlayStation2 at E.B. Games for only $4.99 USD. I threw it into my basket before anyone else saw it, sure that I was in for another extremely entertaining adventure. Unfortunately, I could not have been more wrong.

The game starts out with an intriguing cut scene that will grab and hold any player's attention. A mysterious individual is systematically killing off all of U.N.I.T.Y.'s top agents. Cate Archer, who has been pushing a pencil more than she would like, finds herself soon called upon to the chagrin of the agency's director. The player discovers that Cate does not have the most pristine past, a back story which continues to unravel throughout the game.

After a brief and informative training stage, the player is soon sent out into the field to kick some terrorist booty. I had been enjoying the game up to this point -- until I discovered that the game only saves after the end of each stage. The levels are long and pretty difficult, with gunmen popping up in unexpected places to take Cate out. Also, Cate's armor does not last long against gunfire, making the going even more treacherous. The lack of a save function within the stages soon became extremely frustrating. I played most of the levels no less than five times -- and often more -- just to barely squeak through at the end. I finally threw down the controller in disgust and abandoned Cate and U.N.I.T.Y. to their foes.

Still, I hope to get my hands on the PC version as soon as possible. The reason that things might be a little different in the PC port is that this version does have an in-scene Quick Save function. With a brief tap of the F4 key, your progress is forever stored against Cate's ever-imminent death. Why didn't Sierra include the Quick Save function in the PlayStation2 version? We may never know. What I do know, however, is that most gamers will find the PlayStation2 version extremely hard going unless they have the moves of Neo from The Matrix.

Does that make No One Lives Forever a poor game? Not at all. I loved playing this game as much as I enjoyed the sequel, barring the lack of the Quick Save function. The graphics are okay -- not great, but not terrible either, especially for a game of its age. The soundtrack is catchy -- almost too catchy, as I found myself humming it hours after playing -- and I love the little aural details, such as the sound of Cate's boots on the pavement or the click of her gun as she reloads.

The script is hysterical and tightly written as well. I almost didn't want to kill the bad guys just to hear the ridiculous things they say to each other. Here's a taste from early on in the game: "You look like you need a monkey." The game play is smooth and enjoyable, and the plot is highly engaging and will suck most gamers right into Cate's world.

However, all of these wonderful elements of No One Lives Forever are unfortunately overshadowed by its one vast fault -- the absence of the Quick Save function. My advice? Try the PlayStation2 version if you must, but do your darnedest to get your hands on the original PC version instead.