James Bond: The Duel

[Melf]

James Bond's completed missions on virtually every console ever made. He only made one appearance on the Genesis, which probably has a much to do with Dalton's mixed reception as the character as it does with mediocrity of the game itself. James Bond: The Duel isn't a bad game; it just isn't really a good one. Hey, that sounds a lot like what people say about Dalton's Bond!

[Mr Smith]

Timothy Dalton oozes awesome. He was a decent gritty Bond who was given some very un-Bond scripts. The Bond series was awesome, up until the last two, which have been tragedies. Great review for a distinctly average game.

[Melf]

I actually liked Dalton, as he seemed to be more in the vein of Flemming's original character. The Living Daylights was awesome, and I was surprised to read that he dropped the role, as everyone always said he was canned.

And I agree about the last two Bonds. I loved Brosnan but blame the scripts for the missteps. Hopefully Craig can bring the franchise back on track. I didn't like him at first, but I've slowly been warming up to him, so I'll be eager to see Casino Royale when it arrives in November.

[Mr Smith]

Brosnan was an awesome Bond too but once again the scripts let him down. Bond has been too dependent upon other characters in recent films, the World is Not Enough was one long social gathering with one of the a villain so pathetic I was confident I could have beaten him up. Despite having Toby "awesome" Stephens involved, Die Another has to be the most loathsome of all the Bonds. There was nothing Bond-like in it. Halle Berry annoyed me throughout, Brosnan was a wimp, it focused too much on people's feelings as opposed to explosions and it damaged Moneypenny with that rubbish at the end. When I go and watch a Bond film I want a lesson in "how to be a real man" not the tosh that the last two have dished up. I hope Casino Royale reverses the recent decline, however, I won't hold my breath.

[ThunderForce]

You should put down Domark/Tengen as the publisher since Tengen publish their stuff in the US. Do some research.

Funny because the NTSC-J version of this game goes for around $70 in japan.

[Alianger]

The picture link takes me to the Air Busters review.

[ary incorparated]

Yup it it delivers air busters the link.BTW this game wasnt bad nor difficult it had okay grapohics and sound and my dad finished it with ease its not the greatest tjing but worth a 6 or 7.

[VinnyT]

I first was pissed when I found out that the Bond was Kane from A Kid in King Arthurs court, but from watching the trailers, I'm giving it another chance. It should be an awesome movie in it's own right, even if it didn't have the same elements that have made Bond movies profitable in the past. If you've read the first book, you'll see that the original story isn't your typical Bond story. Bond seems to have bit more on a conscience and I believe he only fucks one woman.

And also, it's nice to see the reviewer has time on his hands after deciding against a 10th Home Improvement season and flopping in Zoom.

[Genesis Knight]

This hardly contributes to the discussion, but does anyone else think that Dalton looks like an absolute idiot on the title screen?

[Flash1087]

And also, it's nice to see the reviewer has time on his hands after deciding against a 10th Home Improvement season and flopping in Zoom.

Oh, har har har, look at the funny man making Tim Allen jokes. Don't worry, I'm used to it.

And yes, I think Dalton looks terrible on the title screen. He looks super-deformed, almost; his head and eyes are way too big. I won't hold it against him, though. Licence to Kill was amazing.

Thanks for the kind words, Mr. Smith. I'll admit I was a touch nervous about submitting a review, everyone else's are great.

[Melf]

The picture link takes me to the Air Busters review.

Fixed.

[Buddy]

I thought the Megadrive version was mediocre too. The Master System version is a better game IMO. Always thought that was a nice platformer with decent controls. Its a bit disappointing that you have to choose between hearing only music or only SFX, but at least the level music contains part of the Goldfinger theme which is a nice touch. I also love games in which you don't have to worry about ammo. In the MD version you have to, in the SMS version you don't. The Game Gear version is essentially the same but Bond runs more slowly for some reason, so if you want to be 007 on a Sega system, go for the SMS.

Even the title screen on the SMS is better then on the MD one.

Maybe it was the MD game that made Dalton quit in 1994

[Benjamin]

I liked The Duel okay, but Bond jumps make things frustrating for me. It's not just the delay and general sluggishness the review mentions, but James Bond isn't Samus Aryan, and it aggravates me watching him leap around like some acrobatic showoff with superhuman leg strength.

Then again, I think Roger Moore is the best Bond, so what do I know. At least The Duel had decent level design and objectives fitting of the main character and didn't make it a standard level to boss platform game or kart racer.

[Flash1087]

Then again, I think Roger Moore is the best Bond, so what do I know.

Fear not, so do I! And I wrote this stupid article!

Moore's my favorite because his lighter touch is what the movies called for. With certain exceptions, the movies are generally a far cry from Fleming's novels at least mood-wise, if not flat-out departures, like The Spy Who Loved Me (which stands as my all-time favorite Bond film). Connery and Dalton are worlds closer to being the Bond from the novels (although it's looking like Craig may eclipse that, and I'm unbelievably excited about Casino Royale), but Moore's suave, light-hearted, and still deadly approach is what the film scripts called for. Even in Connery's movies (which are some of the closer book-to-film adaptations the series has), Bond is much quicker with the smart-aleck remarks and I think Moore handles that brilliantly.

[j_factor]

It's all about George Lazenby. :P