The superior adaptation of Quantum of Solace.

If you’re familiar with the main version of Quantum of Solace which came out on the 7th generation platforms (PS3, 360, PC), you’ll know the title as a poor man’s Call of Duty made in the very engine that powered the aforementioned popular first-person shooter series.

Well, that is not the case with the PlayStation 2 version. Developed by Eurocom rather than Treyarch who worked on the main version, the PS2 title is a third-person stealth action game which, in my opinion, fits the James Bond series better. The game features a good mix of stealth, shooting and set-piece segments.

Stealth gameplay, while nothing outstanding, is competent enough with decent level design backing it up. The levels themselves are rather linear but it never feels like a detriment. Aside from some mandatory stealth-only sections, the game actually allows you to choose your own approach. That said, while you can certainly simply shoot your way through the stages, it is clear that the game was primarily designed with stealth in mind due to how stingy the game can get with ammo (more on this later).

This is not your standard third-person shooter. Gunplay and aiming mechanics are a bit untraditional and feel somewhat reminiscent of classic Splinter Cell titles, though not nearly as punishing or polished. You have two shooting modes: free aim and "precise mode". The free aim is for the more hectic and faster-paced moments, while the precision mode allows you to take more precise and deliberate shots with the aiming reticle slowly narrowing down while you’re not moving it. It may feel clunky at first, but once you get used to it, it becomes a rather enjoyable aspect of the game.

Featuring only 11 levels rather than 15 compared to its next-gen counterpart, the PS2 version is rather short, clocking in at around 4 hours. The game cuts out some of the levels featured in the PS3 version while adding a couple new stages of its own. You can probably finish this in around 3 hours if you avoid unnecessary deaths or it might take you five due to some sections being quite challenging. The levels themselves are also fairly short clocking in on average between 15-30 minutes. That said, it’s not a bad thing as it doesn’t overstay its welcome and the game has good pacing on top of that.

Unfortunately, this game came out during the dreaded quick-time event (QTE) era and some of the game’s frustrating moments stem from just that. Thankfully, they are used sparingly but one of the boss fights can only be completed by passing a rather strict set of QTEs, failing which you must re-do a part of the boss fight, which would be annoying enough in any game and is only made worse by the limited ammo.

The ammo system is clearly very deliberately designed - not quite topping the player off like normal TPS games do, but rather drip-feeding ammo in a way that ensures that you can always make progress while simultaneously making it clear that every shot - every bullet counts. This goes back to my original point about the PS2 version being more of a stealth-action game rather than your typical third-person shooter that many wiki articles seem to insinuate. It makes the game more tense and thoughtful than your average tie-in game. While the first half of the game is more stealth based, by the time you reach the end you’ll be expected to have gotten used to the game’s shooting mechanics and your reflexes and skills will be put to a test during the game's climax.

For the most part the ammo system works really well - enemies will always drop bullets ensuring you get rewarded for kills enabling you to progress further. Some sections will also feature renewable weapon pick-ups to ensure that you can progress past some of the set-pieces and boss fights will feature infinitely respawning ads that serve as cannon fodder ammo drops. The last boss is actually somewhat problematic in that regard with the infinite ads simultaneously being both a blessing and a curse given how much they spam grenades. On the bright side, boss fights are actually far more interesting than in the PS3 version and I’d have to say that is the case with all levels in general.

Luckily, the game features a rather generous checkpoint system and you can save your progress at every checkpoint making it the perfect game to play if you're limited on your gaming time due to work or other obligations.

Overall, I had fun with both incarnations of Quantum of Solace tie-in but the PS2 version is definitely the more interesting game to play, having more substantial thought put behind its game design.

If you’re interested in my thoughts on Treyarch’s version, you can find my Backlogged review here: https://www.backloggd.com/u/DarkDante14/review/582868/