First story, character and gaming tidbits for 'Blood Stone'

16-Jul-2010 • Gaming

Some early tidbits have leaked out of the "Blood Stone" launch event held in London today.

The game will open with a scene reminiscent of "The Living Daylights" (1987), with Daniel Craig as James Bond leaping out of plane's the loading door and parachuting down to the action on a luxury yacht. Judi Dench voices M, who briefs the player as the action unfolds almost instantly.

Athens is seen early on in the game, as 007 is on the hunt for a researcher who has gone missing and is presumed dead. He holds one of the "UK's biggest secrets".

Greco, one of the villains of "Blood Stone", is suspected of organizing a terrorist group who are about to strike.

Joss Stone's character is a socialite called Nicole Hunter, who is central to the game's plot. Stone, who also performs the title song "I'll Take It All", describes her as a 'posh Paris Hilton'. Bond and Hunter team up to track the scientist down.

The opening title sequence is a hybrid of styles from the movies "Casino Royale" and "Quantum of Solace", with Bond doing battle in vector, as well as some silky silhouette motion.

Diamonds and DNA appear to be key elements of the game due to their prominence in the title sequence graphics. Could the plot revolve around a deadly virus and terrorists funded by blood diamonds?

The game itself is built on developer Bizarre Creations' bespoke engine, which was first created for the game "The Club".

As well as a number of conceptual elements 'borrowed' from EA's blockbuster 007 game "Everything or Nothing", Activision have also included a bullet-time mode where targeting specific shots is made easier after the player completes a melee take-down.

Ben Cook, who is Daniel Craig's stunt double in the films, has provided the motion capture choreography for Bond's digital animation. He is credited as the game's Stunt Coordinator.

Intel on the multiplayer capabilities is thin, but the game will support up to 16 players in a variety of modes, but driving will not be included. "Blood Stone" will not be a simple 'death match' multiplayer, with the developers hinting as something a little different.