Robert Ludlum’s The Bourne Conspiracy

Do you remember a time when games had simple names, honest monikers that reflected the game in question's tone or content, Doom, Half-Life, Prince of Persia or perhaps Command & Conquer. Where did this naming convention go, and why do present day titles seem to always be called, oh I don't know, Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter 2?

While pondering this little conundrum, you might also like to consider the encroachment of celebrity culture into the once pure and unsullied world of videogaming. Tom Clancy isn't the only culprit, I'm looking at you Sid Meier and you Clive Barker. Not to mention John Madden, et al. It seems games publishers are convinced that adding a vaguely familiar individual's name onto their product's title helps shift copies - and - with this in mind, let's see how Robert Ludlum's The Bourne Conspiracy is shaping up - and how it is likely to fair against its rather obvious rival, Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell series.

Shown behind closed doors to attendees at the Leipzig Games Convention earlier this summer, I caught hear-say that the game was looking rather more impressive than its movie tie-in origins might suggest, and promised myself I'd return for a closer look after the frenzy of meetings, beers and hummers was over.

The game is a partnership between publisher Sierra, internal developer High Moon, and late author Robert Ludlum's own Ludlum Entertainment company. Billed as the definitive Bourne experience, the game is due out on Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 in summer 2008, with an epic thriller spanning events from all three film's and before apparently on the cards.

For fans of the Bourne series, the game promises to include new content exclusive to the games, and created alongside the author's estate, Sierra enthusing that "only by playing Robert Ludlum’s The Bourne Conspiracy will players discover Bourne’s true identity and experience the very moment he became a malfunctioning weapon, first hunting targets around the world as a deadly government assassin then marking himself as his agency’s most wanted." An action-adventure title with an emphasis on well-paced covert action and tense thrills is the goal of The Bourne Conspiracy, it would seem, with players being placed in control of Bourne's gritty quick thinking, lethal combat skills and sharp-shooting. As with so many games of the genre, the title will be played in the third-person, but Sierra promise that this will allow Bourne to move from shooting, to combat, to running on the fly - mimicking the rapidly changing scenarios that were a trademark of the films.

While High Moon are paying attention to the transition between hand-to-hand combat and fire-fights, that's not to say the individual elements are to be found wanting, demo footage pointing to a gritty recreation of the film's man-to-man fisticuffs, with an emphasis on hard-hitting 'real' violence, rather than flair. When struck appropriately, foes won't usually get back up.

Matt Damon will sadly not be providing his likeness for the role of Bourne in the game, Sierra and High Moon pointing out this title is just the first in a planned series, and that the game should be taken in separate regard to the movies. That said, we're hopeful that the new look lead will offer some of Damon's trademark uncompromising and unemotional chic. The Bourne 'feel' should certainly be enhanced by three little meters which build during action on the HUD. This builds adrenaline for use in seemingly hopeless instances when Bourne is surrounded or in danger of capture.

While Bourne's combat skills far exceed most of his foes in the game (who must instead rely on numbers to capture our operative), we're told there will be about six 'bosses' in the title, rivals with abilities almost the equal of Bourne's, who won't be despatched with a quick move or out-run with a burst of adrenaline. To keep fights looking as brutal and real as they did in the films, High Moon have enlisted the help of the fight co-ordinator from the flicks; which should certainly aid proceedings.

We're also told to expect the documentary or news-reel style 'shaking camera' from time to time, to add to the immersion, not to mention a feeling for Bourne's innate senses, which help him overcome objectives along the way.

The game is looks stunning, and, despite the cynicism so easily induced by the licensed source material, The Bourne Conspiracy could just be greater than the sum of its parts - assuming the missions prove as action-packed and diverse as they need to be, and the combat really is as polished as we hope. Only then will High Moon have delivered a game worthy of its name.