The Spy Who Loved Me (1990)
Above: Spectrum 48K Box Art
Mission
He's Bond. He's Back. He's 007! James Bond returns in a classic action-packed race against time to save the world from the crazed and power-mad Karl Stromberg. Use your skills to end the threat of global domination as you seek to outwit Stromberg's mercenaries and prevent a nuclear war between East and West. Exhilarating chase sequences on land and under the sea involve Q's specially modified Lotus - souped up and armed to the teeth.
Game Data
Released: 1990
Published By: Domark
Developed By: The Kremlin
Platforms
IBM PC (DOS)
Amiga 500/600 (OCS/ECS)
Atari ST
Commodore C64/128
Spectrum 48K
Amstrad CPC
Credits
Programming: Paul Margrave
Programming: Colin Boswell
Graphics: Anthony West
Music: Matt Furniss
Developer: Lloyd Baker
Official Blurb
James Bond and Soviet agent Anya Amasova form an unlikely alliance in this the most famous of Bond's escapades. Together they must investigate the recent disappearance of two submarines - one Russian and one British.
Microfilm evidence suggests that they have been stolen by the power-mad Karl Stromberg. You are dispatched to Sardinia to investigate Stromberg's plans at his underwater fortress Atlantis.
To assist you in your mission, Q has provided his revolutionary Submarine Car which, when kitted out, is armed to the teeth with a fantastic array of weaponry.
History
"The Spy Who Loved Me" was released in 1990 by a company named Domark - named after it's founders whose names were Dominic and Mark. The company no longer exists after it was bought out along with United States Gold & Core design and became part of the Eidos video game company which still exists today. Developers "The Kremlin" had no on-screen credit.
Above: Magazine advertisement
Above: C64 splash screen
MI6 Review
Domark published a number of James Bond 007 licensed games during the late 1980's ("A View To A Kill" (1985), "The Living Daylights" (1987), "Live And Let Die" (1988), "Licence To Kill" (1989)) and into the early 1990's with "James Bond: The Duel" (1993)). 1990's "The Spy Who Loved Me" was the last movie tie-in Bond game published by Domark, although most of the film's plot is ignored.
Fundamentally a top-down racing game, but with an underwater twist, "The Spy Who Loved Me" takes only the minimum details from the film required to satisfy the licence. 007's Lotus Esprit appears in both guises as the central "character" of the game.
The game consists of levels focused on each vehicle: Lotus Esprit (road), Lotus Esprit (underwater), speedboat, and wet bike (jet-ski). The first part of the game uses the Lotus in Sardinia, the middle section is more of a shoot-em-up style top down scroller using the Lotus underwater against Stromberg's troops, and the final section utilises the speedboat and wet bike. 16-bit versions are treated to additional scenes where XXX must defend Bond by shooting Stromberg's attacking troops whist 007 explodes a nuclear charge, a mini puzzle game where 007 must reprogram the targeting computer by matching a series of symbols, and Bond battling Jaws whilst Stromberg attempts to make a run for it.
Controls let the game down. Keeping the vehicles on the right track is overly difficult, and any number of obstacles will cause the Lotus to swerve drastically or cause serious damage to the car. As if there wasn't enough to avoid already, non-Amstrad versions also feature human an animal obstacles on the road which you must dodge. The difficulty level seems easy at first, but quickly becomes frustrating when a single mistake can fail the entire mission. Level maps (displayed minutely on the left-hand side of the screen) need to be memorised to succeed.
On the one hand, "The Spy Who Loved Me" (8-bit) should be praised for attempting to specialise in a single gaming genre rather than opting for the multi-genre games common for movie tie-ins. On the other hand, the game fails to succeed in it's focus as the driving experience is poor and with little realism or arcade finesse - even for a game of it's time. The 16-bit versions of the game have the bonus of the non-driving scenes to add a little variety to the bland vehicle sections. The saving grace of the game is the music and high quality presentation of certain versions (namely Amiga & Commodore 64) with a good soundtrack from Matt Furniss. Graphically, the game varies wildly amongst the different platforms, but as usual the C64 and Amiga are the superior 8-bit and 16-bit platforms respectively.
Viewed within the era that "The Spy Who Loved Me" was released, Domark's final movie tie-in is a disappointment considering the quality that preceded it with "Licence To Kill" (1989). A solely James Bond driving game would not be attempted again until "007 Racing" (2000) by EA Games, which would also prove a let down. Maybe third time lucky?
Advertising (Magazine)
James Bond returns in a classic action-packed race against time to save the world from the crazed and power-mad Karl Stromberg.
Use your skills to end the threat of global domination as you seek to outwit Stromberg's mercenaries and prevent a nuclear war between East and West.
Exhilarating chase sequences on land and under the sea involve Q's specially modified Lotus - souped up and armed to the teeth.
With one-on-one arcade style shootouts, multilevel action and top secret codes to crack, this is the fastest paced and most exciting Bond thriller to date.
Don't miss out on The Spy Who Loved Me - a programming tour de force!
Trivia
- The PC DOS version of the game suffered poor sales and high returns, so much so that developers The Kremlin recycled "The Spy Who Loved Me" 3.5" floppy's as blank discs.
- The Spectrum 48K version features no music or sound effects.
- Human and animal obstacles are missing from the Amstrad CPC version.
- "Bad Show James" is displayed upon the failure of a mission.
Manual
Q's Equipment List
All weapons are available from the Q-Truck, or as packages which can be collected en route.
Lotus (On Land)
Offensive Weapons: Machine Gun, Missile Launcher and Ground to Air Missiles
Rear Defences: Smoke Gun, Paint Jet and Vehicle Armour
Lotus (Underwater)
Offensive Weapons: Explosive Bolts (4 Way), Torpedo's (8 Way) and Laser Gun
Rear Defences: Vehicle Armour
Speedboat
Offensive Weapon: Missile Launcher
Defensive Weapon: Smoke Gun
Wet Bike
Offensive Weapons: Machine Gun (4 Way), Laser Gun and Micro Missiles
Defensive Weapon: Vehicle Armour
Scene 1: Bond and Anya collect the car from Q at the harbour and drive to their hotel. Take this opportunity to practice your driving skills and learn how to handle the car. There is a time limit - you have to get to the hotel in time to catch a boat which will take you to your meeting with Stromberg.
Use the car's terrific handling to avoid innocent people and traffic as you hurtle along the twisting roads to your destination. Drive over Q-Tokens to buy extra weapons for use in later scenes. Having picked up the speedboat Bond must travel out to Stromberg's Atlantis, avoiding innocent swimmers, wooden piers and Stromberg's agents whose speedboats follow in hot pursuit
Scene 2: Having completed their meeting with Stromberg, Bond and Anya head back to their hotel. However, Stromberg's suspicions are aroused and he orders them killed.
Drive into the Q-Truck to buy weapons and to repair your car using the Q-Tokens you have collected. James decides to have another look at Atlantis - from underwater. You can only get into this scene by obtaining underwater capability from Q. Use the extra weapons provided by Q to destroy large enemies.
Scene 3 (16-bit versions only): Bond's visit to Atlantis confirms his suspicions about Stromberg. An American nuclear submarine is sent to destroy Atlantis; Bond joins Anya on board. However, Stromberg is one step ahead of the game and has the American sub captured and hidden inside a huge hollow supertanker. Bond escapes and releases the crews from the British, Russian and American submarines. Together they launch an attack only to find that Stromberg is in the control room, safe behind armour plated steel. Bond takes a detonator from the sub's nuclear missile and climbs onto a security camera in a death defying mission to blow a hole in the shielding.
Defend Bond from the guards who rush out to attack him. Watch out for the enemy divers in the water - they will pop up anywhere. Remember, you must keep Bond safe until the nuclear charge explodes. Shoot magazines for extra ammunition.
Above: Amiga Screenshots.
Scene 4 (16-bit versions only): Bond and the submarine crews rush into the control room only to find that they are too late! Stromberg has escaped, taking Anya with him as hostage. His last action was to reprogram the British and Russian subs with their deadly nuclear missiles targeted on New York and Moscow. The resulting explosions will plunge the world into nuclear war while he hides beneath the waves in Atlantis. Bond has only one chance - to reprogram the targeting computer with the coordinates of the submarines before they reach their launch sites:
Submarine # 1: 039 048 (Degrees)
Submarine # 2: 038 022 (Degrees)
Match the master sequence of symbols with the symbols generated by your entered number sequence. Be quick You have only one chance to stop Stromberg and his plans for global domination.
Scene 5: The US Commander has orders to destroy Atlantis even though Anya is still hostage. Bond is given one hour to rescue her. Using the specially modified Wet Bike flown in by Q, he must destroy its outer defences and enter Atlantis.
Q has air dropped packages onto the surface for you to collect. Use these to destroy the various craft which are determined to stop you reaching your destination.
Scene 6 (16-bit versions only): Bond runs down the corridors of Atlantis looking for Anya. Here he encounters Stromberg's forces and the enormous, bone-crunching henchman Jaws!
Hold off Stromberg's bodyguard until Stromberg panics and makes a run for it! Watch out! The near invincible Jaws has remained behind to settle old scores.
Controls
Keys:
Q - Up / Accelerate
A - Down / Brake
O - Left
P - Right
Space - Fire / Enter
H - Hold/Pause
Joystick:
Up - Up / Accelerate
Back - Down / Brake
Left - Left
Right - Right
Fire - Fire / Enter
Hold down the fire key to operate the vehicle's defence systems.
Cheats
Start the game, stop the car and type "MISS MONEYPENNY". You should now have infinite lives and cash. Pressing [F10] will allow you to skip levels. (Amiga)
On level 2 try to buy the most expensive items in Q's armoured truck and make a note of the map on the left-hand side of the screen.
Walkthrough
Scene 1 (Part 1) - Lotus Esprit & Boat
This level is a piece of cake. Simply drive along at a controllable speed. If you drive too fast, you will most likely go off the road and will be damaged very quickly. After about three minutes of driving along enjoying the view you will come to a dock with a shack in the middle at the end of the dock. Drive into the dock and you will emerge with a boat. This part of the level might be difficult to beginners if you don't pay attention. Do you see those red spots on the water? That's the direction you should take. If you do not take the direction indicated by the red dots, you will most likely come to a dead end, crash into the dock, and die. Once you get to the darkened part of the level, slow down or you might crash into the end of the level.
Scene 1 (Part 2) - Lotus Esprit
This level can be slightly challenging at times if you don't take the right routes. First of all, let's cover the Q Truck. What's the Q Truck you ask? Do you see those coins on the ground in this level and do you remember the coins from the last level? Good. You can buy things from the Q Truck such as Armor, Lasers, and other Bondian items. One thing you will need to complete this level is the Submarine tool that will convert your Lotus Esprit into a submarine when necessary. To enter the Q Truck simply drive behind it and a ramp will eventually extend out. Drive up the ramp and you will enter the Q Truck. Sometimes, it can be a bit difficult on the Amiga version. When you are in the Q Truck there is a map of the level on the left part of the screen. On the map, you are a flashing white dot. When you are driving along, it is recommended to take the path to the left whenever possible because usually it is easier to avoid enemies and because it leads to the end of the level. You will probably have to enter the Q Truck many times because the enemies usually like to play Bumper Cars with you. When an attacking helicopter passes over you, you will be extremely close to finishing the level. Keep to the left and eventually you will see a path that says JETTY. Drive along the road and eventually you will land in the water. If you do not take the jetty path then the level starts from the beginning again. You will need the submarine capability otherwise you will crash. Before you submerge into the water, it is best to stock up on weapons in the Q Truck.
Scene 2 - Underwater with Lotus
This level is a bit difficult at first but you'll beat it eventually. There are two enemies that are worth noting in this level. The first enemy is something like a yellow submarine that fires green balls at you. A good tip is slowing down and shooting it in the back to destroy it. After you shoot it enough, it will explode. In this level, there is no Q Truck but there are black dots in the water. These black dots will replenish things. So, say if you see a black dot with a red A on it, then it will replenish your armor. You'll eventually get to the end of the level where you have to fight a level boss. This guy isn't that bad if you know what you're doing. First, get rid of the moving turrets, and then shoot the stationary turrets as fast as possible. Good luck.
Scene 3 - No Vehicle (Shoot 'Em Up Level)
This is actually the only level in the classic James Bond games where you actually don't control James Bond! Instead, you control XXX who is attempting to protect Bond. So that's your task in this level. This level might be hard for a beginner but keep at it because eventually you'll beat it. There are lots of enemies that randomly pop up around this level. There are the enemies in red that run on the catwalk. When the enemies in red touch the object that James Bond is on, you will lose the level. Enemies also spawn in three different other places. Do you see the submarine at the bottom of the screen? One enemy will occasionally pop out of there and try to shoot Bond. The other two enemies spawn to the left and right of the submarine in the water. Often, something will fly out of an enemy after you have shot him. This is ammo and is very important in the mission. When you are out of ammo, you will most likely lose the level. Good luck.
Scene 4 - No Vehicle (Codes Level)
This level is actually very simple. But, you have to do things fast if you want to complete this level. For this level, you will need three codes. One code is for the "Entry Override". When you crack the Entry Override code, you can then send coordinates to Stromberg's two submarines that will then destroy each other with the two coordinates you give them. The first code for the entry override is a 5-digit code. Have fun guessing it! Actually the code is 00081! Now, you will be allowed to control the submarine's two coordinates. Stromberg One's coordinates to destroy the other submarine is 039 048. Now, the computer will ask you for the coordinates for the second submarine named Stromberg Two. The code for the last submarine is 038 022. That was easy wasn't it?
Scene 5 - Boat
This level is similar to the Water mission on Scene 1, except it has harder enemies and no docks. There are basically two enemies you will have to watch out for in this level. The first enemy is Stromberg's soldiers dressed in red on a water boat. Don't worry, they are extremely easy to defeat and usually take one or sometimes two shots to kill. The other enemy is a hassle. This enemy is a destroyer that will fire torpedoes, water mines, and it will fire its defensive gun at you. These guys seem to be pretty tough, but you won't run into a lot of them. When a destroyer appears on the screen I would recommend waiting until the stern (the back of the ship) is on your screen. Then, move your boat so it faces the back of the ship, and fire as fast as you can. Remember the slightly dark part of the Water section of Scene 1? The same thing is here at the end of this level. When you get there, slow down so you don't crash and you will proceed to the last level.
Scene 6 - No Vehicle (Atlantis Level)
Remember Scene 3 when you played as XXX protecting James Bond? This level is similar but it is a lot easier to beat. Enemies in red will occasionally pop out of the eight or so corridors in the hallway that you are in. Don't worry, it doesn't take a few extra shots to kill them, they're just like the baddies in Level 4 but they are just a bit stronger. In this last level, you will encounter Jaws and Stromberg. When Jaws appears on the screen, he cannot be harmed anywhere unless you shoot him in his metal teeth. Once you have shot Jaws he will not appear for the rest of the level. Continue to kill soldiers in red and eventually Stromberg will appear on the screen holding Anya Amasova (Agent XXX) hostage. It usually doesn't take a whole lot of ammo to kill Stromberg although sometimes he can take a lot of punishment. When shooting him, be careful not to shoot Anya because she can be killed very easily. If you accidentally shoot Anya, Stromberg will move extremely fast and it will be difficult to defeat him. This game actually has two endings. One is if Anya survives, and the other is if Anya dies. Once you have defeated Stromberg and have Anya standing there (Probably in front of an enemy - don't bother with the enemy standing behind her) kill a few more red soldiers and eventually you will beat "The Spy Who Loved Me"! Congratulations!
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