James Pond: Underwater Agent

Last updated
James Pond: Underwater Agent
Pond.PNG
Mega Drive cover art
Developer(s) Millennium Interactive
Publisher(s) Millennium Interactive
Electronic Arts (GEN)
Designer(s) Chris Sorrell
Programmer(s) Chris Sorrell
Artist(s) Chris Sorrell
Composer(s) Richard Joseph
Platform(s) Amiga, Atari ST, Archimedes, Genesis
Release 1990
Genre(s) Platform
Mode(s) Single-player

James Pond: Underwater Agent is a 1990 platform video game that was developed by British video game developer Millennium Interactive and published by Millennium Interactive and Electronic Arts for the Amiga, Atari ST, Acorn Archimedes, and Sega Genesis. It was the first in the James Pond series of games.

Contents

Gameplay

Amiga screenshot James Pond in-game screenshot (Amiga).png
Amiga screenshot

James Pond has to solve puzzles to defeat the enemy and the gameplay revolves around finding objects to perform specific tasks, such as keys to rescue captured lobsters, or sponges to bung up the holes in leaking oil tankers. James must also fire bubbles at his enemies to trap them, before popping them to finish them off.

Plot

A nefarious supervillain named "Doctor Maybe" (a play on Dr. No ) has overtaken the ruthless megacorporation Acme Oil Company, and is not only filling the oceans with radiation and toxic waste but even threatening all the world from his underwater lair. The protagonist of the story and player character of the game is an intelligent, mutated anthropomorphic mudskipper who is given the name "James Pond" (after the legendary spy James Bond) and hired by the British Secret Service to protect the seas and take out the bad guys in underwater areas. He is also suave enough to seduce numerous attractive mermaids, some of whom act as double agents as is common with James Bond's love interests. The game spoofs James Bond movies with levels mimicking their titles, with level names like "License to Bubble" (after Licence to Kill ), "A View to a Spill" (after A View to a Kill ), "Leak and Let Die" (after Live and Let Die ) and "From Three Mile Island with Love" (after From Russia with Love ).

Reception

James Pond received mixed but mostly positive reviews. VideoGames & Computer Entertainment [6] gave the game seven out of ten, calling it "an entertaining and challenging undersea caper that should please just about anyone". Electronic Gaming Monthly [7] gave it a four, four, three, and six, out of ten, calling it "not exciting or fun", but "a nice kids [sic] game". Mega Action gave James Pond a score of 82% writing: "James Pond does for fish as Sonic does for hedgehogs. It features some really cute baddies, making this game a real joy to play." [8] Console XS gave a review score of 70%, they felt it was not a good conversion from the computer version and wrote that "Everything is far too bland and boring to excite Pond fans." [9] Megatech gave the genesis version an overall score of 77% writing: "A cute and entertaining twelve-level aquatic platform game which provides plenty of fun." [10]

Mean Machines magazine, however, suggested that the Genesis port of the game was "Better than Sonic" on the front page of their then latest issue.[ citation needed ]

Legacy

James Pond was followed by two sequels: James Pond 2: Codename Robocod and James Pond 3: Operation Starfish . There was also a spin-off sports-themed game The Aquatic Games and a cameo in Rolo to the Rescue . James Pond returned in James Pond in the Deathly Shallows for the iPhone and the iPad on June 30, 2011. [11]

In September 2013, Gameware Europe, who acquired the James Pond license in 2003, launched a Kickstarter for a new game in the series, James Pond: Pond is Back!, featuring the game's original designer, Chris Sorrell. [12] The Kickstarter was canceled on October 7 as the funding target looked unlikely to be achieved. [13]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sega CD</span> Video game console add-on

The Sega CD, known as Mega-CD in most regions outside North America and Brazil, is a CD-ROM accessory for the Sega Genesis produced by Sega as part of the fourth generation of video game consoles. It was released on December 12, 1991, in Japan, October 15, 1992, in North America, and April 2, 1993, in Europe. The Sega CD plays CD games and adds hardware functionality such as a faster CPU and graphic enhancements such as sprite scaling and rotation. It can also play audio CDs and CD+G discs.

<i>Ghouls n Ghosts</i> 1988 video game

Ghouls 'n Ghosts, known as Dai Makaimura in Japan, is a side-scrolling platform game developed by Capcom, released as an arcade video game in 1988 and ported to home platforms. It is the sequel to Ghosts 'n Goblins and the second game in the Ghosts 'n Goblins series.

<i>Columns</i> (video game) 1990 video game

Columns is a match-three puzzle video game released by Sega in 1990. Designed by Jay Geertsen, it was released by Sega for arcades and then ported to several Sega consoles. The game was subsequently ported to home computer platforms, including the Atari ST.

<i>Altered Beast</i> 1988 video game

Altered Beast is a 1988 beat 'em up arcade video game developed and published by Sega. The game is set in Ancient Greece and follows a player character chosen by Zeus to rescue his daughter Athena from the demonic ruler of the underworld, Neff. Through the use of power-ups, the player character can assume the form of different magical beasts. It was ported to several home video game consoles and home computers. It was the pack-in game for the Mega Drive when that system launched in 1988.

<i>Golden Axe</i> (video game) 1989 arcade game

Golden Axe is a side-scrolling hack-and-slash video game released by Sega for arcades in 1989, running on the Sega System 16B arcade hardware. Makoto Uchida was the lead designer of the game, and was also responsible for the creation of the previous year's Altered Beast. The game casts players as one of three warriors who must free the fantastical land of Yuria from the tyrannical rule of Death Adder, who wields the titular Golden Axe.

<i>Flicky</i> 1984 video game

Flicky is a platform game developed by Sega and released as an arcade video game in May 1984. It was licensed to Bally Midway for distribution in the United States. In Flicky, the player controls the eponymous blue bird and must gather all the small birds called Chirps in each round and bring them safely to the exit. There are cat and lizard enemies which can disperse the Chirps and kill the player, but Flicky can use items on the playing field to protect herself and the Chirps from danger.

<i>ToeJam & Earl</i> 1991 video game

ToeJam & Earl is an action game developed by Johnson Voorsanger Productions and published by Sega for the Sega Mega Drive (Genesis) console. Released in 1991, it centers on ToeJam and Earl—alien rappers who have crash-landed on Earth. As they attempt to escape the planet, players assume the role of either character and collect pieces of their wrecked spacecraft. It references and parodies 1980s and early 90s urban culture and is set to a funk soundtrack. ToeJam & Earl's design was heavily influenced by the role-playing video game Rogue (1980) and derived various features from the game, such as the random generation of levels and items. As such, ToeJam & Earl is often considered to be an example of a roguelike game.

<i>Streets of Rage 2</i> 1992 video game

Streets of Rage 2, known as Bare Knuckle II In Japan, is a 1992 side-scrolling beat 'em up video game published by Sega for the Genesis/Mega Drive. A sequel to Streets of Rage (1991), the characters Axel Stone and Blaze Fielding return while the game also introduces two new characters: Max Thunder, and Eddie "Skate" Hunter, the younger brother of Adam Hunter from the first game.

<i>Castle of Illusion Starring Mickey Mouse</i> 1990 video game

Castle of Illusion Starring Mickey Mouse is a 1990 platform game developed and published by Sega and released for the Mega Drive/Genesis. An 8-bit version of the game was later released for the Master System and Game Gear. The game follows Mickey Mouse on a quest to save Minnie Mouse from the evil witch Mizrabel. It is the first game in Sega's Illusion video game series starring Mickey.

<i>Fantasia</i> (video game) 1991 video game

Fantasia is a side-scrolling video game developed by Infogrames and produced by Sega for its own Mega Drive/Genesis system. The game was loosely based on the film of the same name.

<i>James Pond 2</i> 1991 video game

James Pond 2: Codename: RoboCod, also known as Super James Pond on SNES in North America, and Game Boy, and Super James Pond 2 in Europe, is a 1991 platform video game. It was developed by the same British teams as the original. The title music by Richard Joseph is a marimba-heavy rendition of the RoboCop film theme. It is the second installment in the James Pond series.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sega Genesis</span> Home video game console

The Genesis, also known as the Mega Drive outside North America, is a 16-bit fourth generation home video game console developed and sold by Sega. It was Sega's third console and the successor to the Master System. Sega released it in 1988 in Japan as the Mega Drive, and in 1989 in North America as the Genesis. In 1990, it was distributed as the Mega Drive by Virgin Mastertronic in Europe, Ozisoft in Australasia, and Tectoy in Brazil. In South Korea, it was distributed by Samsung Electronics as the Super Gam*Boy and later the Super Aladdin Boy.

<i>ESWAT: City Under Siege</i> 1990 video game

ESWAT: City Under Siege, released in Japan as Cyber Police ESWAT, is a 1990 side scrolling action platform video game developed and published by Sega for the Sega Genesis and Sega Master System video game consoles.

<i>John Madden Football</i> (1990 video game) 1990 video game

John Madden Football, released as John Madden American Football in Europe, is an American football video game released by Electronic Arts. Loosely based on the 1988 video game of the same title, it was the first entry in what eventually became the yearly Madden NFL series on home consoles, initially released for the Sega Genesis in 1990. It is sometimes called Madden '90 or Madden '91 to distinguish it from subsequent entries in the series.

<i>Tommy Lasorda Baseball</i> 1989 video game

Tommy Lasorda Baseball is a 1989 baseball video game developed and published by Sega as one of the six launch titles for the Sega Genesis in the North America and for the Sega Mega-Tech arcade system. It is a follow-up to the arcade game Super League (1987). It prominently features former MLB player Tommy Lasorda, who was manager of the Los Angeles Dodgers at the time. In the game, players compete with either AI-controlled opponents or against other players across single exhibitions, open matches or a 30-game season.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Paragon Publishing</span> Magazine publisher in the United Kingdom

Paragon Publishing Ltd was a magazine publisher in the UK, which published computer games and other entertainment titles from 1991 to 2003.

<i>Crack Down</i> 1989 run and gun video game

Crack Down (クラックダウン) is a run and gun arcade game released by Sega in 1989 and ported to the Sega Mega Drive/Genesis in 1990 in Japan and 1991 in North America by Sage's Creation. It was also ported and released to a number of home computer platforms by U.S. Gold.

<i>Batman</i> (1990 video game) 1990 video game

Batman is a video game developed by Sunsoft and released for the Sega Mega Drive in 1990. It was inspired by the 1989 Tim Burton-directed Batman film. The game is more faithful to the film's plot than the NES game of the same name and includes levels in which the player controls Batman's vehicles.

References

  1. ↑ "Electronic Gaming Monthly 22" – via Internet Archive.
  2. ↑ "Mega Library". Mega Action (1): 65. June 1993. Retrieved March 21, 2022.
  3. ↑ "Video Games & Computer Entertainment Issue 28 May 1991" – via Internet Archive.
  4. ↑ "A-Z Software". Console XS (1): 131. June 1992. Retrieved March 26, 2022.
  5. ↑ "Game Index". Megatech (1): 78. December 1991. Retrieved May 9, 2022.
  6. ↑ "Video Games & Computer Entertainment Issue 28 May 1991" – via Internet Archive.
  7. ↑ "Electronic Gaming Monthly 22" – via Internet Archive.
  8. ↑ "Mega Library". Mega Action (1): 65. June 1993. Retrieved March 21, 2022.
  9. ↑ "A-Z Software". Console XS (1): 131. June 1992. Retrieved March 26, 2022.
  10. ↑ "Game Index". Megatech (1): 78. December 1991. Retrieved May 9, 2022.
  11. ↑ "He's back: James Pond in the Deathly Shallows set for a June 30th iPhone splashdown", Pocket Gamer.
  12. ↑ "James Pond - Pond is Back! (Canceled)". Kickstarter.
  13. ↑ "Update 7: Coming to an early end · James Pond - Pond is Back! (Canceled)". Kickstarter.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.