Some companies strive for years for that one huge blockbuster. Motley Fool Stock Advisor favorite Electronic Arts (NASDAQ:ERTS) cranks them out seemingly without effort. Here we go again.
After missing the holiday season due to some necessary refining, EA's newest James Bond game is out. This time it's Everything or Nothing. I say it's mostly everything.
With Everything or Nothing, more than with any other game, EA has created a complete, interactive movie experience. Going beyond voice acting, the game features Pierce Brosnan as James Bond, Judi Dench as M, as well as Heidi Klum and Shannon Elizabeth. Richard Kiel even returns as Jaws! Then there's a title track from Mya -- not to mention Bond's one-liners.
Everything or Nothing also introduces new Bond gadgets, my favorite being the remote control spider bomb. And as usual, there are new Bond vehicles using EA's Need For Speed game engine, and a new two-player co-op that is online-capable on the Sony (NYSE:SNE) PlayStation 2, but not the Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) Xbox.
Without much doubt, this is EA's best crack at 007 yet, despite being a clear departure from the first-person mode that made Rare's Golden Eye (pre-EA) a hit on the Nintendo 64. Fans recall that Golden Eye set a standard that EA didn't match in several attempts, leaving gamers disappointed with otherwise decent efforts. This time around, Bond is presented in third-person, similar to Sony's Syphon Filter.
OK, so EA has another blockbuster. Is this even a big deal?
That depends on what you mean by "big." For a company like Activision (NASDAQ:ATVI) -- also a Motley Fool Stock Advisor pick -- the latest 007 would certainly be a much bigger deal. True Crime (not to mention Call of Duty) gave Activision another legitimate blockbuster franchise to go alongside Tony Hawk, but it could certainly use one more.
At least as much can be said for Take-Two (NASDAQ:TTWO), whose Manhunt was a great enough game that it's worthy of discussion despite its lack of mass appeal. Just last week, we discussed how the upcoming street racer Juiced might propel Acclaim (NASDAQ:AKLM) into the big leagues. Both would get a real kick out of Everything or Nothing.
As for the master, Electronic Arts had 27 hits last year, and every little bit counts. After all, even if this one title doesn't really move the needles, EA's brand is clearly enhanced by Everything or Nothing's movie-like completeness. EA -- and its investors -- can be proud to have added yet another notch to its holster.
Have you played Everything or Nothing? Give us your take on the Electronic Arts and Video & PC Games discussion boards.
Fool contributor Jeff Hwang owns shares of Electronic Arts and the Xbox version of Everything or Nothing.
