Originally, Cate Archer was to be a male lead character for No One Lives Forever (NOLF), but was then switched to a female (due to MGM's complaint that he was too similar to a certain debonair spy who likes his vodka martinis shaken, not stirred.) That might have been the best decision for the game, because it gives what would have been a trite plot a nice spin - the 60's movies had a tough time determining what was female empowerment, and what was patronizing. (Then again, film had the same problem 70 years ago and still has it today - apparently, according to Gen X filmmakers, all women aspire to be Las Vegas showgirls as a form of empowerment.)
Cate Archer is no fool, though - the game has her react to what the "empowered" female is supposed to be, and dashes it to bits. She isn't afraid to be sexy, but the game never leers at her. Her past is slowly revealed bit by bit as the game goes along. Unlike most of the divas of gaming today, Cate doesn't have a top-heavy frame. As with the 60's, she is more sleek, and though her figure is somewhat ample, she is more athletic and realistic than the others - though she's stunning in her pleather catsuit; she is not limited to that. She dons various outfits, like a 60's flower-power one piece or a diving suit.
The game itself knows the 60's. If there is anything painfully obvious, it's that Mike Myers missed the point of the 60s British spy movie with the Austin Powers movies. Regardless of how cheesy they got, they always relied on thrilling action and stunts - and that's what NOLF supplies in spades. Whether engaging in gunplay, jumping out of airplanes without a parachute, driving a motorcycle or diving underwater to swim with the ubiquitous spy movie sharks, there is always a sense of daring and adventure. Myers was simply happy to point out in a stilted fashion the spy clichés of the 60's Brit films; NOLF goes further by knowing the camera angles, the incidental music, the dialogue, and it knows the heart and soul of a period espionage flick was not necessarily the gadgets and clothes, but the action and intrigue. If anything, NOLF keeps you guessing.
That's not to say NOLF doesn't satire the genre. Enemies discuss with each other the psychology of belonging to an evil organization. A map at U.N.I.T.Y is entitled "Global Domination Prevention Map". You'll even stumble upon a lackey romancing his favorite goat. (Goats have a huge role in NOLF - they appear as ghosts when you're poisoned.)
The voice acting ranges from Kit Harris' excellent voicing of Cate Archer to Kit Harris' forced voicing of the Inga Wagner. Other superb performances are by Barbara Dirickson, whose Baroness Dumas voice is a dead ringer for Katherine Hepburn; Ken Boynton's Santa, NOLF's version of Q, is a lot like Desmond Llewelyn.
