SpyHunter
March 26, 2002
After being disappointed by the GameCube port, developer Point of View delivers yet another port of SpyHunter–this time to the Xbox. While I still have some problems with the gameplay and the “dark look” of the graphics, this version is definitely the best out there for any console–including the PS2.
SpyHunter begins with the player taking control of the G-6155 Interceptor, the vehicle you drive during the game. You start off on a training mission. Before you take control of the action behind the wheel, you are shown every mission objective you must complete in order to complete the level with the maximum number of “mission points.” On every level in SpyHunter the brief introductions showing the mission objectives is displayed on the screen. This helps the player see exactly what they must do in order to maintain the important “mission points.”
What exactly are “mission points,” you ask? Each level in SpyHunter requires a certain number of “mission points” in order to play them. Instead of defeating a level and moving on to the next level, you have to accomplish a certain number of tasks in each level in order to gain enough points to move on to the next level. While this seems to be an interesting approach when you first begin the game, after playing a level over ten times–trying to get enough “mission points” to continue on to new levels, you will probably get frustrated and stop playing.
However, if you can look past this major problem, SpyHunter is a rewarding game with lots of variety. The G-6155 Interceptor can be a cool sports car or transform into a motorcycle or a boat. Hopefully the next incarnation will provide players the ability to transform into some sort of flying machine and an underwater submarine.
The graphics, control, music, and sound effects are all great except that there is still some small popup problems (just like in the PS2 version) and the Xbox version, much like the GameCube version, suffers from the graphics appearing “very dark” at times. I assume this is a problem with porting the title over directly from the PS2. However, despite all of this, I must go back and stress the problem I had with the “mission points.” This was a horrible decision made by the development team and transformed SpyHunter from a classic title into just another action title.
Does this mean I didn’t enjoy SpyHunter? No. I really enjoyed the game and I think you should try it out by at least renting it. In fact, I found the Xbox version to be better overall than the PS2 or GCN version because Midway decided to include the original version of SpyHunter in it. To access this, you must first beat the game and get the code. Or, if you prefer to try it out without beating the game, just enter OGSPY as your name and you will automatically start the original version of SpyHunter without ever beating the entire game. And if you can look past the whole problem with the “mission points,” you may just find that SpyHunter will keep you entertained as much as any other Xbox game out there.
CVG Report CardSpyHunter
Rating: B-
Platform: Xbox
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