The game takes place the year after its predecessor. Cate has proven herself and become UNITY's top agent, but H.A.R.M. hasn't been defeated yet. Cate is sent to Japan on a mission, where she runs into considerable danger that can't be mentioned without spoiling a major plot point.
Eventually Cate returns to UNITY headquarters to learn that a H.A.R.M./Soviet plot to invade the island of Khios, presumably for its resources. Cate is sent to Siberia to investigate and her mission eventually takes her to India, Antartica, a secret underwater base, and Khios itself.
Graphically, the game is brilliant. It has the same look that the previous game had but has a new level of detail made possible by the new game engine. The water effects are gorgeous and the character models are detailed and expressive, with faces moving induvidually to convey various emotions. It all ran smoothly most of the time at 1152x864 resolution with all effects on except anti-aliasing.
The gameplay is much the same as the first game except for a few nice improvements. Levels are now interconnected and one can travel back to the previous level most of the time (provided it's in the same general location) to reach objectives or just to pick up a forgotten intelligence item. Skill points are given for collecting intelligence and completing objectives, which can be used to customize your ablities by using them on improvements in certain skills. My personal favorite improvement was the ability to search dead bodies and drag them into a hidden location so as not to alarm more enemies.
The element of humor from the first is still there. The most amusing parts aren't really the obvious ones, but the ones that one has to look to find. Guards that aren't alerted sometimes carry on conversations about random things and sometimes give clues as to what may help Cate complete her mission later on. Intelligence items can be hilarious sometimes and even more so if you take the time to find several that talk about the same thing. However, there were a few parts that seemed to push it just a little too much (the "Man-Handler" for example), but they didn't detract from the game at all.
And of course there were a few Bond references. Various posters and books lying around feature nicely hidden variations on original Bond poster art. There's rockets being fired from a leg cast by someone in a wheel chair (GoldenEye). Cate has to find directions by letting a bathroom steam up and reveal a message in a mirror (For Your Eyes Only). There's more, but those are probably better left to be found in the game.
Overall, I'm greatly impressed with the game and should be replaying it again soon. I've not tried the online co-operative multiplayer yet (Monolith has promised conventional multiplayer options to be released online soon) but it looks like it could be interesting. I'd recommend this game to any Bond fan...or even any non-Bond fan really. I can only hope Nightfire is this good.
BTW, here's a particular poster I found familiar for some reason
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