Contract J.A.C.K. is supposed to be a prequel to No One Lives Forever 2 and tie the previous games together. Well, it does that... just not very well.

You play as John Jack: Just Another Contract Killer, who is hired by H.A.R.M.'s Dmitirii Volkov to investigate and attempt to eradicate the upstart crime organization Danger Danger, led by none other than Ill Pazzo. Unfortunately, you never see him - or Cate Archer, for that matter. In fact, she only appears on a Wanted Poster near the end of the game. So if you're lookin' for a Cate fix, this isn't gonna give it to you. The closest we get to Ill Pazzo is hearing him threaten his nephew over the various public address systems scattered throughout the settings.

This stand-alone expansion pack (meaning you don't need either of the NOLF games to play) is missing a heart, soul, and more importantly - purpose. I'm all for run-n-gun games, but that's literally the only thing you do in this game. From beginning to end you do nothing but kill droves upon droves of baddies. What's more, the action redefines the term "linear," as there is nothing in the way of variation here. In other words, this game is boring.

The irony here is that Jack is supposed to be "the" best contract killer in all the land, not a mass-murdering, rampaging Rambo. But that's all he does; this is not Hitman where you sneak around with piano wire or a knife. Since there is absolutely no stealth involved, Monolith has tweaked the artillery from the previous NOFL games so that it's more destructive. You have your typical Desert Eagle, shotgun, machine guns and sniper rifle, but you also come across the likes of the Bacalov Corrector - NOLF's hand cannon, a prototype Cyclone laser rifle, a crossbow that fires explosive charges, and a portable cannon that emits charges of super-heated plasma. You also have access to powerful C4 charges, as well as incendiary, frag and flash bang grenades. They've even thrown in a few vehicles to ride: a Vespa scooter with machineguns and a snowmobile with a heat-seeking missile launcher. Too bad it's not as fun as it sounds. Controlling these beasts is like handling your car with a flat tire. I didn't like how vehicles handled in NOFL 2, and it's no better here.

Since run-n-gun is the name of the game here, Monolith refined the combat system. Enemy AI is supposed to be much more challenging; sadly, they're only marginally so. Yes, they do scramble for cover during skirmishes and coordinate their attacks; they're freakishly accurate with grenades; and yes, they peek (or roll) out from behind cover, pop off a few rounds and duck back. But in the end, if you don't come at them guns blazing, they'll eventually get sick of being smart and stealthy and will charge at you, sometimes in single file formation, making it simple to mow them down without any problems.

This is an extremely short "expansion" pack with only seven multi-part chapters (making it about 10 levels) so don't expect to spend a lot of time playing. It took me all of five hours to get through, and the only reason it took me that long was because it kept giving me motion sickness (seriously), so I actually had to slow my progress! Plus, I wasn't too interested in looking for secret goodies, so it will take you longer if you have the gumption to look for them yourself. The game takes you to such "exotic" locales as Czechoslovakia, Italy, and even the moon. I didn't like the moon level. Aside from being bland and repetitive, it's the most linear and railed chapter in the entire game.

The Jupiter Graphics engine, which looked good in NOLF 2, is really starting to show its age. Contract J.A.C.K. looks identical with no apparent upgrades. The music is pulled straight from the previous game as well. The best part of this game is listening to the fabulously funny background dialogue. As usual, it will have you slapping your knee with hysterical laughter. Oh, be sure to stick around for the end credits and listen to the dialogue between Volkov and Harji (the mad scientist you save from the moon). It's one of the funnier dialogue sequences of the game and it sets up NOLF 2: A Spy in H.A.R.M.'s Way.

A complete suite of developer tools is included with the game. There are fifteen multiplayer maps including Deathmatch and Team Deathmatch, a heavily modified version of the Demolition mode originally included as a sample with the mod tools; and Doomsday mode, which is a race between teams to see who can construct a Doomsday Device first. I tried playing online several times and there was never more then four or five folks logged in at any one time. Sorry, that's not the makings of a fun multiplayer scenario.

Instead of adding another chapter to the hilarious NOLF universe, Contract J.A.C.K. is just a mindless run-n-gun experience devoid of any enjoyment or value; it simply rides on the coat-tails of the brand name. It's nothing more than a bone tossed out to keep us happy until Monolith decides to put some effort into a real NOLF game. Let's just hope they don't decide to rest on their laurels and produce a retread like Contract J.A.C.K.