James Pond: Underwater Agent

by Vectordean, Millennium Interactive · published by Electronic Arts, Tec Toy · James Pond series

1990 · Amiga, Genesis/MegaDrive, Atari-ST, Acorn Archimedes

James Pond, also known as James Pond: Underwater Agent, is a platform video game that was developed by British video game developers Vectordean Ltd and Millennium Interactive, and published by Millennium Interactive and Electronic Arts for numerous home computers and consoles in 1990. The character was popular and even featured in some comic books of the time, and the game was successful enough to spawn two sequels and one spin-off game. A nefarious supervillain named "Doctor Maybe" (a pun on the name of Dr Julius No, the villain in Dr. No) has overtaken the ruthless megacorporation Acme Oil Co, 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).