# James Bond 007: Nightfire
**James Bond 007: Nightfire** (styled 007: NightFire) is a first-person shooter video game based on the [James Bond](https://www.edgepedia.org/james-bond) license, developed by Eurocom and published by [Electronic Arts](https://www.edgepedia.org/electronic-arts), released on November 18, 2002 for [PlayStation 2](https://www.edgepedia.org/playstation-2), Xbox, and GameCube, with separate Game Boy Advance and PC versions.[1](https://www.metacritic.com/game/james-bond-007-nightfire/) • [2](https://www.mobygames.com/game/37796/007-nightfire/) It is an original Bond story rather than an adaptation of a film, following 007 through skyscraper infiltration, underwater missions, and a chase through the streets of Tokyo in an Aston Martin V12 Vanquish.[1](https://www.metacritic.com/game/james-bond-007-nightfire/)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Release | November 18, 2002 (console versions)[1](https://www.metacritic.com/game/james-bond-007-nightfire/) |
| Developer / publisher | Eurocom; Electronic Arts[1](https://www.metacritic.com/game/james-bond-007-nightfire/) |
| Genre | First-person shooter, rated T for Teen[1](https://www.metacritic.com/game/james-bond-007-nightfire/) |
| Platforms | PlayStation 2, Xbox, GameCube, Game Boy Advance, PC[1](https://www.metacritic.com/game/james-bond-007-nightfire/) |
| Metascores | GameCube 80, Xbox 78, PlayStation 2 77, Game Boy Advance 66, PC 59[1](https://www.metacritic.com/game/james-bond-007-nightfire/) |
| Signature content | Aston Martin V12 Vanquish driving missions (console versions), Q-Branch gadgets, local multiplayer[1](https://www.metacritic.com/game/james-bond-007-nightfire/) • [3](https://www.pcgamer.com/games/fps/007-nightfire-review-2003/) |
| Story scope | Nine missions spanning a dress party, an underwater lair, and outer space[3](https://www.pcgamer.com/games/fps/007-nightfire-review-2003/) |
## Story and setting
The game sends Bond after Rafael Drake, an industrialist who heads the Phoenix International Corporation and has acquired nuclear missiles. The nine missions take Bond to a fancy dress party at Drake's Austrian mountaintop castle, into his secret underwater lair, and eventually into outer space for the climax.[3](https://www.pcgamer.com/games/fps/007-nightfire-review-2003/) A retrospective overview describes the same globe-trotting arc, from alpine castles and decommissioned nuclear power plants to a return to outer space for the final showdown.[4](https://thegamingoutsider.com/2026/05/25/i-played-almost-every-james-bond-game-a-retrospective/scoates/) Objectives are relayed by M and by allies including the secret agent Zoe Nightshade, a character carried over from the previous Bond game *Agent Under Fire*.[3](https://www.pcgamer.com/games/fps/007-nightfire-review-2003/)
## Gameplay
Nightfire is a first-person shooter in which Bond carries up to four firearms at a time, including the Wolfram P2K pistol with optional silencer, machine guns, sniper rifles, and missile launchers, along with frag and flashbang grenades, triplines, and body armor.[3](https://www.pcgamer.com/games/fps/007-nightfire-review-2003/) Q-Branch gadgets include pen darts, a laser watch usable for breaking into padlocked chests and lockers, and X-ray specs.[3](https://www.pcgamer.com/games/fps/007-nightfire-review-2003/)
The console versions include driving missions in the Aston Martin V12 Vanquish, used under license from Aston Martin Lagonda Limited, through locations such as the streets of Tokyo.[1](https://www.metacritic.com/game/james-bond-007-nightfire/) • [5](https://manuals.plus/m/775eec32e92daf5fc6a08cf369ea4aaf8951a80a21f93fe10ea1a0bace010653.pdf) The PC version jettisoned the driving mode, though it remains in the console iterations.[3](https://www.pcgamer.com/games/fps/007-nightfire-review-2003/)
Multiplayer was a lasting strength. A 2010 retrospective praised the game as a worthy successor to *GoldenEye* for same-sofa play, noting that its bot support made it well suited to offline play with friends at a time when most shooters had dropped bots.[6](https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/ps2/561311-007-nightfire/reviews/138976)
## Reception
Critical reception was favorable on consoles and mixed on PC. Metacritic recorded a GameCube Metascore of 80 from 17 critic reviews, an Xbox score of 78 from 30 reviews, a PlayStation 2 score of 77 from 20 reviews, a [Game Boy Advance](https://www.edgepedia.org/game-boy-advance) score of 66 from 6 reviews, and a PC score of 59 from 14 reviews; the Xbox user score was 7.7 based on 52 ratings.[1](https://www.metacritic.com/game/james-bond-007-nightfire/) On Xbox, 21 of 30 critic reviews were positive and 9 mixed, with none negative.[7](https://www.metacritic.com/game/james-bond-007-nightfire/critic-reviews/)
Reviewers singled out the Bond atmosphere and gameplay. [Electronic Gaming Monthly](https://www.edgepedia.org/electronic-gaming-monthly) wrote that the amazing gameplay, not the visuals, was the main draw, and GameZone called it probably the best Bond game since, but not better than, *Goldeneye 007*.[7](https://www.metacritic.com/game/james-bond-007-nightfire/critic-reviews/) IGN's main complaint was the vehicle missions, which it saw as an interruption from Eurocom's solid first-person shooter work.[7](https://www.metacritic.com/game/james-bond-007-nightfire/critic-reviews/) Official Xbox Magazine found the campaign incredibly short.[7](https://www.metacritic.com/game/james-bond-007-nightfire/critic-reviews/)
The PC version fared worse. [PC Gamer](https://www.edgepedia.org/pc-gamer)'s 2003 review criticized sloppy bugs, weak enemy AI, and a story it called incoherent, while holding up the spy-themed *No One Lives Forever* games as far better spy shooters of the period.[3](https://www.pcgamer.com/games/fps/007-nightfire-review-2003/) PC critics were split, with GameZone's PC review scoring 89 and the overall PC Metascore landing at 59.[8](https://www.metacritic.com/game/james-bond-007-nightfire/critic-reviews/?platform=pc)
## Legacy
An active community keeps the PC version playable online, and is developing a Source engine remake called Nightfire: Source.[9](https://nightfirepc.com/)
## References
1. [007: NightFire Reviews, Metacritic](https://www.metacritic.com/game/james-bond-007-nightfire/)
2. [007: Nightfire (2002), MobyGames](https://www.mobygames.com/game/37796/007-nightfire/)
3. [007: Nightfire review (2003), PC Gamer](https://www.pcgamer.com/games/fps/007-nightfire-review-2003/)
4. [I Played (Almost) Every James Bond Game, The Gaming Outsider](https://thegamingoutsider.com/2026/05/25/i-played-almost-every-james-bond-game-a-retrospective/scoates/)
5. [007: Nightfire PC Instruction Manual, Electronic Arts](https://manuals.plus/m/775eec32e92daf5fc6a08cf369ea4aaf8951a80a21f93fe10ea1a0bace010653.pdf)
6. [007: NightFire Retrospective Review, GameFAQs](https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/ps2/561311-007-nightfire/reviews/138976)
7. [007: NightFire Xbox Critic Reviews, Metacritic](https://www.metacritic.com/game/james-bond-007-nightfire/critic-reviews/)
8. [007: NightFire PC Critic Reviews, Metacritic](https://www.metacritic.com/game/james-bond-007-nightfire/critic-reviews/?platform=pc)
9. [Nightfire PC community site](https://nightfirepc.com/)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Sports, games, and recreation › Video games and digital play › Games and gameplay › Individual game titles › Licensed and media tie-in game titles › Film, television, and anime adaptations*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 21, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 21, 2026 · Last review: Oct 21, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license