Cypher 007 | DJcube

Port Release: 2023
Port Developer: Tipping Point
Publisher: Tipping Point
Platform: Apple Arcade

My main experience with mobile only games involves a lot of Gatcha mechanics – lots of grinding, lootboxes and then Iike. Even the other Apple Arcade exclusive games I’ve played before this – games that are part of a subscription with no microtransactions – have kept those mechanics intact requiring you to randomly gain the same items multiple times to level up. Thankfully, Cypher 007 has none of that.

Cypher 007 instead reminds me more of the golden era of Xbox Live Arcade, where publishers would release small, downloadable games based on big franchises, like Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light. With everything being so small, and the touch screen controls being utterly useless (use a controller), it just doesn’t seem to be a game designed for mobile phones at all, which is a good thing.

The story starts with James Bond falling for a SPECTRE trap and getting brainwashed, being sent back to MI6 as a double agent. You don’t take physical control of Bond, but instead play as him in his own imagination as his brain figures out a way to regain control. This involves reclaiming MI6 (in his mind) from 006 and then undergoing two more missions to try and figure out what is going on with the secret project – it’s actually less “remember X from Y film” than I was expecting.

The game is an isometric style stealth shooter where you have to use a range of gadgets to sneak past or take out enemies. You can see the enemy cone of vision, including where it gets blocked by objects. The right analogue stick is used to gain both weapons and gadgets, using the D-pad to select between three gadgets and your chosen weapon. You have very limited ammo (although you can occasionally get guns from enemies), so you’ll need to watch movement patterns and make your move.

That said, there’s no consequences for dying, you’ll respawn at the last checkpoint but keep objective compression, and any enemies you attack will remain dead or injured. You’ll also regain full ammo, so you can use it to get through difficult sections. That said, if you want to unlock special abilities, you’ll need to be stealthy while searching the levels for intel. Killing enemies in combat will get you a small amount of points, stealth kills a fair amount, but leaving enemies alive and unaware will net you a lot of points. Although you never actually kill anyone – no matter how they die (strangulation, explosion, bullet to the face), there’s always a “zzzz” coming out of them to say they’re asleep.

The game never gets that deep, but it’s more up to you to decide how much you want to embrace stealth. There’s plenty of gadgets to distract guards, stun them or even an invisibility umbrella to hide in plain sight, you’re very open to how you approach enemies. The levels also feel nicely varied and the graphics are very charming. There’s even a couple of levels using the gyrocopter Little Nellie.

The game comprises of three chapters with ten levels each, meaning the game never overstays its welcome, making it a nice little game. There’s also a challenge mode for something extra to do once you’ve completed the main game. This would make for a really fun downloadable games on console or PC.