A few days ago inside U.N.I.T.Y.'s headquarters... - I'm glad this business with Project Omega is over! I've had it with this temporary director position, said Bruno Lawrie sipping from the Dom Perignon filled cup that he got using agency's connections. - We should take a few days away. I'm tired too, replyed Cate with on a very low tone that would have given the impression she was pretending. Bruno knew she wouldn't refuse to take part in the game if ther agency would ever need her again to take care of its sensitive problems so he decided to give har a two weeks permit. - Look Cate, why don't you relax? For a few days or maybe two weeks? - And the Director? Have you forgotten? He's still free. Don't you care? Cate's eyes lightened up instantly glammering with fury because she just blew up her chance to catch the Director and because she suddenly felt left aside. - I do care, but you are our most precious agent and i want you in perfect shape. Got it? said clearly Bruno displaying a small and subtle smile.

Leaving Bruno's office after two glasses of champaigne Cate Archer tryed to convince herself a vacation would do her good even if lately nothing happenned as planned. The idea that H.A.R.M.'s Director is still alive almost provoked her pain. "I can't accept it. It would be great to relax for a few days but if I don't act now it may be to late after it." thought Cate. The Omega project was somehow succesfull and even if Cate managed to stop the Khios invasion she was pretty sure the Director was by now full of enthusiasm and positive thinking, if you can relate this to a diabolical person. The super soldiers were a reality that U.N.I.T.Y. couldn't ignore and even if the H.A.R.M.'s secret underwater base exploded, nothing could stop him to buid another one. the best location for starting the search were the ex-headquarters of H.A.R.M. from Tokyo so she stole the shark shaped minisub and headed it that way.

A few hours before inside H.A.R.M.'s ex-headquarters from Tokyo... When she got there the whole base was empty. All the ninjas, H.A.R.M. employees or even the corpses from her previous visit were totally gone. Fortunately the way to the Director's chamber was still fresh so she didn't spend a lot of time going through all those corridors and caves. Once inside she started searching everywhere for clues or traces of the Director that could lead her to his new hideout. After a while she gave up dissapointed and sit down on the sofa. Her brightly coloured cloths contrasted with the black and shiny leather so she stretched her feet admiring her pants. Suddenly a white spot got her attention and she jumped away like burned by flame. At a closer look she noticed some pieces of paper stuffed between the cushions like someone wanted to hide them quickly. She picked them up and read:

The following Top Secret material is intended for H.A.R.M. Director only! To: H.A.R.M. Director From: Megan O'Malledy. Morale Officer Date: has no importance Subject: No One Lives Forever 2 This report details the elements of the last Monolith productions (a U.N.I.T.Y. branch) game and its psychological impact upon H.A.R.M.'s emplyees. Please read carefully and take the necessary measures to forbid the install and play of the game due to potential hidden viruses and to create our own reply to this atrocious offence made to one of the most evil enterprise on the market. Our top position and image must be mainained for the sake of our profits. The control of our emplyees morale is crucial in such troubled times. Thank you, Megan O'Malledy

No One Lives Forever 2 - Preliminary Conclusions (Human Testing Necessary) The action centers on our latest project, coded Omega, which allows us to transform simple human beings in super soldiers capable to destry everything in their way. Cate Archer, H.A.R.M.'s enemy No.1, interferes again plotting against us, helped by one of their men infiltrated in the small village that sorrounds this base. Getting crucial information, she finds out about our presence in the area and finally closes to the Omega project managing to stop our previously planned Khios island invasion. Cate Archer will travel through different locations from remote area of the globe like Antarctica or Siberia to to our super secret ex-underwater base. She doesn't miss also our Tokyo headwuarters, the India brack, the abandonned house of Tom Goodman, our stupid agent from Ohio or even Khios island. Even if it doesn't seem many of them I must admit I was impressed by they complexity and very refined details that stunned me from the very first level. Wether you are inside a house from the japanese village, inside the russian base or the Indian branch house you risk forgetting about your job and find yourself admiring the textures while some soldiers sound the alarm and start to gladly shoot you. This happenned many times so I was forced to restart from my last save which meant everytime huge loading times. If you still want to endure this the I recommend playing in 1280*960 on a video card that will allow you to choose the High Quality option when you start the game. Some options still need to be adjusted to reach the max but it's not absolutely necessary. The game is indeed too short but nothing stop me if I want to play it again and get a few surprises. The single-player mode usually suffers due to its lack of replayability but NOLF2 alleviates this sensation by implementing a new AI type. Instead of scripted actions Monolith decided to implement a more flexible concept, goals. Each AI inside a level knows who he is and what he can do. A list of goals corresponding to its role is attached to him. Using just SamrtObjects (objects close to him that he recognizes and who correspond to its goals) he does a limited number of actions related to his of course, in a non-scripted way. This kind of approach gives birth to an extremely diversified gameplay that imposes a different tactic even if you play the same level twice. This time replayability really gets positive values. Unfortunately nothing is perfect, except our most beloved Director, of course so the number of goals is a little bit small, Monolith Productions promissing that the next title of the series will make use of many more. The number of SmartObjects will be also enlarged. Despite this, there are plenty of AIs roaming around the level. You will have to deal with ninjas, soldiers, H.A.R.M. emplyees or even mimes belonging to the well-known french assassin, Pierre, who came especially to please you, Director, and kill Cate Archer. Unfortunately he will have the same faith as most of the useless big mimes because our agent will hve plenty of time to develop her skills until she meets him. Monolith decided that a skill system would do good so the implemented 8 of them for you to develop. How you do it determines the tactics you must imply. These skills are Stealth, Stamina, Marksmanship, Carrying, Armor, Weapons, Gadgets and Search. Even if you think you know what some of the reffer to, I can tell you that you don't.

Stealth influences the sound of your steps, the ability to hide or to escape from your followers. It's logical because when you are wounded you walk in a heavier and careless way and you cannot have the same agility as a healthy person. This is way this one along with Stamina and Armor should be developped first. Stamina is very useful especially when your body must face adverse effects from diferent damage types but it also regulates the general Stamina level. Armor determines the efectiveness of each armor you find so that you are not forced to run and search through the whole level after such an item. A major lack is that such objects that help you replenish your life and armor cannot be stored inside your inventory for a later use. The inventory exists just to show you a description of an object you have inside or sometimes its final destination. Marksmanship, Carrying and Weapons go hand in hand because they reffer to the precision you have when shooting or the way your walk is influenced by the weight of your weaponand respectively the skill to handle and reload guns. Gadgets and Search help you handle objects or quickly search the bodies for any valuables. The objects you find may or may not have any importance. In the second case just their presence will be indicated without being treansferred to your inventory. The ones that really count ar usually very useful and when I say this I don't mean that you will have to use them but that you will have more fun by using them. When I write this I can't stop thinking about the Bear Trap, the banana, the Angry Kitty or the glue projectiles that stop your enemies for a while while you pass through them unharmed.

The weapons are pretty diversified too, starting with the Mascara Stun Gun, the katana or the shuriken (the ninja star), the pistol, the AK-47 and finnishing with a sniper and a missile launcher. Fortunately the beginning of the game doesn't offer you so many fireworks and when i say this i mean that the gameplay is not so violent as the last chapters. I wondered if it is just am impression and I just get used to it but after a more careful analisys I realized that the producers let you some space to develop stamina, stealth and armor first. A new object that is situated at the very same distance between a weapon and a gadget is the Utility Launcher. With it you can shoot tranquilizers that will make you enemied fall a sleep for a while , tracking devices, camera disabling devices or glue projectiles and ASSS (anti super soldier serum) capsules. A very special kind of humor resides in a particular category of objects like letters, official written orders, notes or recipes (like the one discribing the russian cabbage soup) which are scatterred thoughout the level, on the ground or against walls, doors, windows or furniture. All this make this game look like a parody after James Bond movies. Besides humor and graphics, another gameplay "disturbing" element is the music. It's rythm depends on location which helps you immerse heavier inside the NOLF2's universe. Unfortunately there are two reasons for which i almost turned it off. Firstly the melody chanjes whenever something important must happen warning you of the danger. If its intentions are noble the result is not. I like to play in a tense atmosphere so the effect is greately reduced by this "feature". On the other hand loud music practically disables the ambiental sounds which are very useful in determining a lot of enemy actions and moves. Conversations are not included because you can enable subtitles.I would recommend reading all of them because most of them are humorous and make you smile a lot. I specially enjoyed listening to Santa, the mechanized bird, and I was a little dissapointed by the small role it had during the game. If this is a wishlist then I must admit I would have liked some elephant riding in India or a shark shaped minisubs race. This is because the only thing you can drive is a snow mobile at the beginning of the game.

The multiplayer didn't impress me because it offers just a coop mode where a team of U.N.I.T.Y. agents (all men :( ) must help Cate Archer to face the situation. Monolith didn't realease a map editor yet but i sincerely hope they will do it in the future along with a true deathmatch or team deathmatch mode. In the end I must point out the fact that this game is very dangerous for any H.A.R.M. employee and very helpful for the rest of the people. The ones not trusting our most evil agency will realize the true powers of our much respected Director and those who intend to join us will surely send their applications immediately enlarging the influence of the most diabolical enterprise of the planet. Destroy after reading!

- Santa, patch me through Bruno immediately. Hello??? Bruno?? You won't believe hwat I just found out. - Where are you? I worried because of you! Have of our agents are looking for you to transmit my message. - What message? I haven't heard anything. I'm at the ex-H.A.R.M. headquarters from Tokyo. I'm leaving right away! - You are not leaving anywhere, Cate Archer, spoke a voice from behind a wall. Stop her, don't let her get away, screamed the Director to some fat clown looking soldiers that grabbed her immediately. - Hellooo??? Hellooooooo???? Cate? The Director is in Tokyo. Do you hear me? I repeat, the Director is in Tokyo. - The transmission will end in 3 seconds Mr. Bruno Lawrie, said the Director while aiming his gun towards Santa. - Don't do it, don't kill Santa! shouted Cate Archer while the Director showed his hunting skills. - You are out of options, my dear. Take her away!

From very far away someone looked at the whole scene with a great deal of interest. it was the same person than read the report of Megan O'Malledy a few weeks ago and hid it between the sofa's cushions while the steps of the Director indicated he was rapidly approaching his chambers. It was all done to help Cate or just to pull the Director out from his hiding place to satisfy the thirst for revenge? Will Cate be saved first? Will the Director die or not? Please come back in two or three years time for the answer.