Robert Ludlum's The Bourne Conspiracy

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It's dangerous to get too close. Fictional character Jason Bourne learns as much in "The Bourne Identity," when on a mission to kill African dictator Nykwana Wombosi the ruthless killer flinches. Bourne finds his target surrounded by his children, whom the assassin knows he'll have to snuff as collateral damage to make Wombosi's killing seem like an inside job. Bourne can't bear to pull the trigger and that's when all his troubles begin.

I'm beginning to feel similar pangs about High Moon Studios, the makers of the forthcoming Robert Ludlum's The Bourne Conspiracy game. Over the course of a couple months I've met a handful of the people behind the game. I've shared meals with them and tipped drinks. It turns out that High Moon's Director of Business Relations Meelad Sadat and I share an old friend -- a former games journalist who crossed over to the game development business. Chief Development Officer Chris Ulm is, like me, a serious board game geek. Senior Game Designer Rory McGuire -- the dapper sort who sports jaunty brimmed hats when he goes out for a night on the town -- reminds me of my first magazine editor. I genuinely like the High Moon crew and it makes me doubt my ability to pull the trigger if circumstances were to call for such desperate measures.

Luckily, I won't be finding myself in that position any time soon, because the three levels of The Bourne Conspiracy that were previewed for me will be available as a playable demo sometime this month. You don't need to take my word that they're slick, cinematic and visually stunning. You'll be able to play them soon enough.

The first sequence takes place in an American embassy -- it's a chase sequence punctuated by fist-fights. Bourne is unarmed and not the kind of guy, anyway, that would kill American MPs just for getting in the way. Much of the sequence is spent hauling ass -- a sort of roadie run -- as bullets tear up the building around him. Intuitive quick time events help Bourne slide under a falling security gate. The agent pauses for a brief moment of stealth, then dives into a brawl with a commanding officer, brutally bashing his skull against a white board. This is one of Bourne's many context-sensitive takedowns. There are dozens, if not hundreds of these brutal attacks hidden throughout the game, more than can be experienced in a single play through.

The demo gives players a taste of an extended car chase, familiarizes them with gunplay, and throws them into a boss battle. In the cargo hold of a massive airplane Bourne goes toe-to-toe with a villain. Again, the super-agent uses the environment to bash his opponent to hell, but this rival can turn the tables and use similar killer moves on him. Like I said before, you won't have to take my word that this is one slick action game. Screenshots, so far, haven't done the game justice.

If you're as doubtful as most sane folks are that a licensed game can be good, maybe I can help assuage some of your doubts. The Bourne Conspiracy isn't timed to coincide with the release date of a movie or a DVD. The game hasn't been rushed out. This is a huge risk for both publisher and developer. Usually a game like The Bourne Conspiracy piggybacks on the larger ad campaign of a related movie and sells gangbusters, regardless of positive or negative reviews. To make up for this disadvantage, High Moon recruited Paul Oakenfold to create the game's soundtrack. Alone, this news wouldn't be worth stopping the presses, but the game's main theme song "Falling" -- a collaboration between Oakenfold and Gnarls Barkley singer Cee-Lo Green -- has a shot at making up some of that lost ground.