Robert Ludlum’s Bourne

Robert Ludlum’s Bourne series is an action-packed set of novels that has successfully transitioned to the big screen. The storyline revolved around Jason Bourne, a multi-million dollar weapon that had lost his memory during an assassination and was trying to piece together the fragments of his past to create a cohesive image of who he was and what he was doing.

All he knew is that he possessed an incredible arsenal of skills and that there were a lot of people out to kill him.

Sierra recently showed off a next-gen video game based on the Ludlum character at a media event in San Francisco. The game was shown on the 360 and was demonstrated by developers. High Moon Studios is the developer behind the game what they have crafted is a game that appears easy to jump into and play, but does have some complexity and challenge in the way the combat system plays out.

Robert Ludlum’s The Bourne Conspiracy is almost a precursor to the first movie, which starred Matt Damon, though it does manage to integrate segments familiar to movie fans as part of the game play. The game’s timeline is the first book, but original story points come into play in a series of flashbacks. Players will get to see two sides of Bourne – the Treadstone agent and the amnesiac agent on the run.

Those familiar with the movies can tell you that the story of Bourne is not one of stealth. This is a game in which the title character is visible and relies on superior combat moves to get the job done. Not much covert action here and the game picks up on that with a system that uses two attack buttons (for light and heavy attacks) plus a block. But much like the game, that is only the beginning of the combat scheme. The combat uses adrenalin-based takedowns, which translate into cinematic moments that rival the action on the silver screen. Not only will the takedowns do some major damage to your opponent (or opponents – if you have enough adrenalin built up, you can take down multiple targets) and recover health as well. There are three tiers to the adrenalin meter, each corresponding to the number of enemies you can take down.

In addition, Jason has the “Bourne Instinct,” which can show the direction that players need to be moving in as well as possible enemy locations.

The game experience, as one could expect, is very directed and linear. The levels will include melee battles, gun fights and even high-speed driving. Some of the elements are timed.

The sound sports 11 custom tracks for the game and visually the game is solid. Don’t expect to see Damon’s likeness in this title, though, as he was not willing to work on the game and the dev team went with a new look for the agent. The combat animations, though, are stellar and the game ensures there are several moments that mirror scenes from the first movie, complete with environmental props that can be used to do delightful damage.

A demo of the game is due to be released in May with the game’s release date set for June.