DO NOT MESS WITH A FORMULA THAT WORKS. Someone needs to take a Sharpie and write it in big, bold letters across a billboard or some place where game developers will see it. This has been a lesson that has reared its ugly head a countless number of times, with the biggest example being Atari's failed Driver 3. This is a multi-million dollar project that had everything going for it, with the exception of anything appealing or controllable. You'd think that would be enough of a lesson for Midway to get across when they began tinkering with their Spy Hunter franchise. But apparently, they skipped class that day.

I do like the story, and the inclusion of Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson (from the WWE days and Gridiron Gang) as the game's hero, Alex Decker. Alex has been assigned driving duty of the infamous Interceptor vehicle, a car so sleeked out with weapons and speed that K.I.T.T. from Knight Rider probably mumbles in jealousy under his breath. However, during a routine mission, Alex finds himself ambushed by several agents from NOSTRA, a rogue terrorist group with their own agenda. The Interceptor gets snagged, but Alex lives to fight another day. He tracks it down a year later, determined to get it back. But even after reacquiring it, he finds NOSTRA has a much bigger plan in mind...

Too bad the story's the most original thing about the game. A lot of basic action elements have been swiped from other games to try and give Nowhere To Run a given amount of structure, but it never really feels like it comes together on its own terms. The game combines driving missions with on-foot missions, where Alex can either take out enemy agents with gunfire or use wrestler-like melee attacks to take out the garbage, even applying some brutal force with "finishing moves". (Midway loves themselves some finishing moves.) But too much of it feels like something you've played before. It doesn't help that the computer AI doesn't offer anything that different either.

The on-foot sequences do have some interesting touches with the melee combat, but it feels a bit too loose for its own good, and not quite that original. Shooting is pretty much average. You point with a control system that doesn't work as smoothly as it should, resulting in mis-aim. And even the driving doesn't live up to the first two Spy Hunter games, aside from the ability to "slow down" time in certain spots. But that's hard to do when the Interceptor seems to handle like a Studebaker with two flat tires on the front. Fast and loose is no way to get missions completed. Even with the array of typical weapons that the car has under the hood, it's still unmaneuverable. You might as well just throw rocks from a bike.

The game's levels have some interesting design to them, but the graphic engine is mostly unpolished. The animation's a bit bland, even if Midway tried to integrate some of the Rock's personality into his character's movement. The levels themselves are drably colored, and sometimes glitchy. It's not often you see henchmen coming at you through solid walls, but they seem to do it here. Hmmm, it must be that new-fangled "clear wood" they came up with at NASA. And driving's a real pain. Even though you can adjust it, the camera kind of works against you at points, wandering off at times in the middle of a pursuit. Terminal Reality should've paid more attention to the first two games- those games had this pinned down flat.

Worse yet, the Rock's appearance doesn't really seem that smoothed over. In fact, there's only two real instances you can tell you're playing as Johnson. One, his audio comments in the game, which are actually pretty good (although mostly drowned out by gunfire and explosions.) And two, the Rock Bottom. Glad to see him still do it, although I'm surprised WWE didn't throw around some kind of threat. I guess he owns the rights to it. Or maybe it's called the Decker now? I don't know.

The game has several levels to complete, and each of them seem to be pretty long if you can tolerate the controls. But past that, the game comes up terribly empty on extras. There's no extras to find, no two player co-op, and no online download section. I couldn't even find the classic arcade game (or its sequel) anywhere. No "Peter Gunn" song variation either, just a mostly bland soundtrack. Any memory of what Spy Hunter was feels wiped away. How saddening.

Spy Hunter: Nowhere To Run has hit rock bottom (mind the pun) It has some interesting ideas but they suffer from under-development. As a result, the name of the classic arcade series, as well as that of The Rock, are dragged in the mud. More of the game's budget should've been spent on development and less on the inclusion of a star that isn't even given the chance to shine here. Also, more attention should've been paid to the license itself, as the Spy Hunter feeling has been scuttled away in favor of routine action game ingredients. I hope that the next time Midway tries to change a formula, it's change for the better. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have a 2001 PS2 version to revisit. You know, the better Spy Hunter game.