Mission: Impossible (1998 video game)

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Mission: Impossible
Composer(s)
Rich Goldman
Mike Pummell
Lalo Schifrin
Platform(s)Nintendo 64, PlayStation
Release
July 16, 1998
  • Nintendo 64
    • NA: July 16, 1998
    • EU: September 25, 1998
    PlayStation
    • EU: October 29, 1999
    • NA: November 22, 1999
Genre(s)Action-adventure
Mode(s)Single-player

Mission: Impossible is an

levels
where the player must complete several mission objectives with the use of numerous high-tech gadgets.

Originally envisioned as an ambitious PC game by an Ocean team based in San Jose, California, Mission: Impossible was under development for three years and suffered a troublesome development cycle, partially due to an overestimation of what the Nintendo 64 could do. In 1997, after Infogrames bought Ocean, the company opted to put a new team based in Lyon in charge of its completion. Although the game features the same premise as the film, it is not meant to be a direct translation and has its own story.

Mission: Impossible was considered a commercial success and sold more than one million copies as of February 1999. The game received mixed reviews from critics and was frequently compared to Rare's 1997 game GoldenEye 007. Although its varied levels and objectives received some praise, the game was generally criticized for its inconsistent gameplay and slow controls. A port of the game, with lighting effects, voice acting, and other minor improvements, was released for the PlayStation console in 1999.

Gameplay

health
is displayed at the bottom of the screen.

Mission: Impossible is a

levels.[1] In each level, the player must complete a number of objectives that include collecting items, interacting with computers, setting explosives on targets, and neutralizing specific enemies. The game generally requires the player to exercise caution and restraint in carrying out these objectives. Outright use of violence is generally discouraged and it is easy to fail a level by accidentally shooting the wrong non-player character.[2]

Many levels can be completed in a

crosshair is visible on the screen, allowing the player to shoot in any direction.[5]

Three of the game's 20 levels are played in a special way. In one level, Hunt is attached to a cable and the player must help him go down while avoiding obstacles; in another level, the player assumes the role of a team member who must cover Hunt with a

health which decreases when attacked by enemies. If Hunt's health is fully depleted, the player must restart the corresponding level from the beginning.[5] The game can be played in two difficulty modes: Possible (easy) and Impossible (hard). In the game's hard difficulty, Hunt is more vulnerable to enemy damage, enemies are more resilient, there are more objectives to complete in certain levels, and certain objectives are completed differently.[6] The game supports the Nintendo 64 Rumble Pak.[7]

Plot

non-official cover (NOC) list, which holds the real and false names of all IMF agents. Although it is useless without the other half, the embassy possesses a powerful super-computer that may be capable of breaking the code to open the document. When IMF agent Robert Barnes goes missing after an attempted rescue mission, Phelps sends in Hunt to find and assemble the NOC list, rescue Candice Parker, and discover the fate of Barnes. After making his way through an underground warehouse and the KGB
headquarters, Hunt finds Barnes dead in an office and saves Parker. Together, they recover the NOC list and escape using the cover of a fake fire.

Because the CIA suspects someone helped Hunt in Prague, he is taken to interrogation at the CIA headquarters in Langley, where he is accused of being a mole for a killer known as Max. With the help of Parker, Hunt escapes his captors and reaches the rooftop of the building. From there, he gains access to the IMF mainframe and steals the second half of the NOC list before escaping by helicopter. Hunt meets with the secretive Max in London Waterloo station, but she steals the NOC list and leaves her henchmen to execute him before boarding a train. With Parker's support and two former CIA agents, Hunt infiltrates the train and successfully neutralizes Max, taking back the NOC list. As he makes his way to the cargo area, he discovers that Phelps is the real mole. Hunt chases him onto the roof of the train and kills him, destroying his helicopter as he tries to escape. Afterwards, he returns to the CIA headquarters, where he is cleared of all suspicion. Now, as the IMF team leader, Hunt is informed that the terrorist group from the game's first mission has gone active again. With the help of Clutter and Dowey, Hunt stops their plans by destroying their base entirely. He then meets Parker and kisses her on top of a submarine before escaping.

Development

floppy drive
peripheral.

Mission: Impossible was announced in May 1996 as one of the first

artificial intelligence, called SOOL, was also created, allowing computer-controlled characters to be governed by a complex set of prioritized instructions.[17][16]

In San Jose, the development of Mission: Impossible was marred by an overestimation of what the Nintendo 64 could do, resulting in the game not materializing as intended.

Infogrames put a new team in charge of the project.[21] The new team was based in Lyon and was led by Benoit Arribart, who previously worked on the Saturn version of Alone in the Dark 2.[3] When Infogrames took over production, the game was not in a playable state and only ran at 4 frames per second. As a result, the French team had to revise most of the American team's work and remodel the graphics in lower polygon count to improve the frame rate.[3]

floppy drive peripheral, which would allow players to access more levels.[23] However, the plan was ultimately discarded because the developers did not have enough "time to really think about it".[3]

Although the game features the same premise as the film, it is not meant to be a direct translation and has its own story.

Viacom, the company that owns the rights of the film, forced the studio to limit the amount of violence and gunplay in the game,[21] while actor Tom Cruise, who played Ethan Hunt in the film, did not want his face to be used in the game.[26] The game's music and sound effects were created in MIDI format. A team in the United States helped the developers make the game sound as rich as possible.[3] During the last months of development, the French team had to work between 16 and 20 hours a day, six days a week to fine-tune the game.[21] The game's size is 12 MB.[3] Overall, Mission: Impossible was developed over the course of three years.[27] It was released in North America on July 16, 1998,[28] and in Europe on September 25, 1998.[29]

Mission: Impossible was

FMV cutscenes, lighting effects, new music and sound effects, and voice acting for each character.[32] Its release was accompanied by a US$2.5 million marketing campaign.[33] A sequel for the Nintendo 64 was announced, but cancelled prior to release.[34]

Reception

Mission: Impossible was considered a commercial success according to Infogrames chairman Bruno Bonnell; 1.13 million copies had been sold as of February 1999.[52] In the US market, 550,000 copies had been sold as of October 1998.[53] Mission: Impossible received generally mixed reviews from critics and was unfavorably compared to GoldenEye 007.[40][50][37] Although some levels were praised for their variety and interesting objectives, the game was generally criticized for its inconsistent gameplay and slow controls.[2][1][45][43][39] Next Generation explained that Mission: Impossible is not as polished as GoldenEye 007 because the game suffered from a difficult development cycle.[50] Reviews of the PlayStation version noted minor improvements towards the graphics from the Nintendo 64 version, but was critical of the voice acting and its "poorly written" lines.[46][49][48] Only Game Informer praised its inclusion for giving the game a more cinematic feel.[44] In France, reviews were more positive, highlighting the game's blend of action with subtle gameplay.[54][55][56][57][58]

Graphically, Mission: Impossible was criticized for its low frame rate, substantial distance fog, basic environments, and fuzzy graphical quality, especially when compared to GoldenEye 007.[2][1][39] Critical reaction to the music and sound effects was usually mixed,[39][59] with Peer Schneider of IGN remarking that the game sounds "a bit more muffled" and less believable than GoldenEye 007.[2] However, the inclusion of "Theme from Mission: Impossible" and the game's fully-voiced cutscenes that describe certain missions were highlighted positively.[1][38]

Several critics praised the gameplay for its gadgets variety and

AllGame explained that it encourages players to play differently, stating that the enemies in the game will actually notice if players do something they are not supposed to do.[38] The level where the player must cover Hunt with a sniper rifle was seen as an enjoyable addition to the game.[43][45]

Criticism was targeted at the game's

N64 Magazine, said that the game has poor analog stick detection. He explained that Hunt "almost never walks because a touch in any direction just sends him scuttling into a full-paced sprint".[7] Hyper's Cam Shea disliked the absence of moves such as crawling, strafing, a sidestep move outside of target mode, standing pressed against a wall, and sneaking.[41][47] Other reviewers noted long delays when shooting enemies and that quick reactions are hampered by the game's low frame rate.[2][45]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f Ryan Mac Donald (1998-07-15). "Mission: Impossible Review". GameSpot. Archived from the original on 2015-03-12. Retrieved 2017-12-17.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i Peer Schneider (1998-07-20). "Mission: Impossible". IGN. Archived from the original on 2017-01-21. Retrieved 2017-12-21.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k "Men on a Mission". IGN. 1998-03-17. Archived from the original on 2017-12-07. Retrieved 2017-12-07.
  4. ^
    Infogrames, ed. (1998). "IMF Technology". Mission: Impossible Instruction Booklet. Ocean
    . pp. 26–29.
  5. ^
    Infogrames, ed. (1998). "Game Controls". Mission: Impossible Instruction Booklet. Ocean
    . pp. 10–17.
  6. Infogrames, ed. (1998). "Game Difficulty". Mission: Impossible Instruction Booklet. Ocean
    . p. 21.
  7. ^
    Future Publishing
    . pp. 40–45.
  8. ^ "Nintendo 64 Late in Japan!". GamePro. No. 92. International Data Group. May 1996. p. 20.
  9. Future Publishing
    . April 1997. p. 27.
  10. Future Publishing
    . May 1996. pp. 58–65.
  11. EMAP
    . August 1997. pp. 24–26.
  12. Mean Machines Sega. No. 30. EMAP
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  13. ^ "Reportage: Ocean Manchester: Ça Bosse Dur! - Mission Impossible". Consoles + (in French). No. 45. M.E.R.7. July 1995. p. 56.
  14. ^ Prézeau, Olivier (July–August 1995). "Reportage Ocean: Mission Impossible Sur Super Nintendo Et Attendant L'Ultra 64". Joypad (in French). No. 44. Yellow Media. pp. 26–27.
  15. ^ "News Reportage - Un Ocean de noveauté: Mission Impossible - Le plus espionne". Top Consoles (in French). No. 4. Pressimage. July–August 1995. p. 26.
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  17. ^ Kraig Kujawa; Sushi-X (October 1997). "The War on AI". Electronic Gaming Monthly. No. 99. Ziff Davis. p. 86.
  18. ^ "Mission Stalled Until August". IGN. 1997-05-07. Archived from the original on 2017-12-09. Retrieved 2017-12-09.
  19. ^ "E3: Mission:Impossible Disappoints and Disappears". IGN. 1997-06-19. Archived from the original on 2017-12-09. Retrieved 2017-12-09.
  20. ^ "More Delays for Big-Name N64 and PSX Games". GamePro. No. 101. International Data Group. February 1997. p. 26. Mark Rogers, producer of Mission: Impossible, is glad to have more time to work on the game. 'Mission has a number of unique qualities within it. We could've dropped those aspects to meet the deadline, but we decided to persevere and make it the game we wanted it to be.'
  21. ^
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  22. ^ "Mission: Impossible Possibly in June". IGN. 1998-02-19. Archived from the original on 2017-12-09. Retrieved 2017-12-10.
  23. ^ "Mission Receives 64DD Treatment". IGN. 1996-12-12. Archived from the original on 2017-12-05. Retrieved 2017-12-05.
  24. ^ "Mission: Impossible". Electronic Gaming Monthly. No. 107. Ziff Davis. June 1998. p. 40.
  25. Future Publishing
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  26. EMAP
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  27. ^ "Completing the Mission". IGN. 1998-07-15. Archived from the original on 2017-12-06. Retrieved 2017-12-06.
  28. ^ Joe Fielder (1998-06-26). "Mission: Impossible Screen Gallery". GameSpot. Archived from the original on 1999-05-04.
  29. EMAP
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  30. ^ "PlayStation plus 4 New Releases". Daily Mirror. October 29, 1999. p. 14. Retrieved November 30, 2023.
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  34. ^ https://www.ign.com/games/mission-impossible-2/articles
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  45. ^ a b c d e f Tim Hsu (1998-09-01). "Mission: Impossible Review". GameRevolution. Archived from the original on 2015-09-08. Retrieved 2015-09-08.
  46. ^ a b Ryan Mac Donald (1999-12-01). "Mission: Impossible Review". GameSpot. Archived from the original on 2018-01-08. Retrieved 2018-01-08.
  47. ^ a b Cam Shea (October 1998). "Mission Impossible". Hyper. No. 60. nextmedia. pp. 36–37. Retrieved 2022-05-09.
  48. ^ a b Cam Shea (December 1999). "Mission Impossible". Hyper. No. 74. nextmedia. p. 71. Retrieved 2022-05-09.
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  51. ^
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  53. Les Échos (in French). Archived from the original
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  54. ^ "Mission: Impossible". Consoles + (in French). No. 81. M.E.R.7. October 1998. pp. 88–90.
  55. ^ "Mission: Impossible". Nintendo, le Magazine Officiel (in French). No. 7. M.E.R.7. September 1998. pp. 16–21.
  56. ^ "Mission: Impossible". Player One (in French). No. 90. Média Système Édition. September 1998. pp. 86–88.
  57. Future Publishing
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  58. ^ "Mission Impossible". GamePlay 64 (in French). No. 8. FJM Publications. September 1998. pp. 92–101.
  59. ^ a b c Scary Larry (August 1998). "Mission: Impossible". GamePro. No. 119. International Data Group. pp. 96–97. Archived from the original on 2005-03-18. Retrieved 2005-03-18.

External links

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