The late great Sean Connery was not only the original James Bond; for many, he was the definitive, irreplaceable Bond. Without him setting the standard for those original Bond films the franchise might not have had the run it's had over the past half-century. However, since leaving the franchise in the early '70s, Connery spent the rest of his life distancing himself from the character and crafting a legendary post-Bond career.

Despite the occasional rumor that he'd make another Bond canon appearance, Connery never reappeared on-screen as Bond again following the non-canon Never Say Never Again, entering into retirement from acting in the early 2000s. However, Connery did make one surprise return to the James Bond role, performing the voice work for the character in a 2005 video game.

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That game was an adaptation of the 1963 film From Russia with Love, which was the final entry in EA's run of James Bond tie-in games. EA Redwood Shores, now known as Visceral Games, developed the game for release under Electronic Arts following the original Brosnan-era game, James Bond 007: Everything or Nothing. Since Brosnan was technically still the current Bond at the time of Everything or Nothing's release in 2004, it made sense for him to lend his voice and likeness to a Bond video game. Getting Connery to do the same, however, seemed like a tall order considering he was finished with live-action movies and decades removed from being Bond. Surprisingly, Connery not only agreed to do the game, but he actually seemed excited about it.

When interviewed at the time of the announcement, Connery stated that "As an artist, I see this as another way to explore the creative process. . . Video games are an extremely popular form of entertainment today, and I am looking forward to seeing how it all fits together." After four decades in the movie industry, Connery felt burnt out and tired of the movie-making process and the business itself, having retired after the critical and commercial failure of League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, so it must have been refreshing to do voice work for a video game based on a movie and character he had brought to life in the early '60s.

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It's was curious to see Connery, who had once infamously said he had "always hated that damn James Bond" and wanted to kill him. Perhaps a new generation of Connery-era Bond fans working on making an authentic game that pays homage to the films was what won him over to accept doing it. Connery confirmed in a behind-the-scenes documentary on the game that he was excited to play the character again; perhaps he didn't mind revisiting one of his earliest Bond movies, going back to a time when he most enjoyed playing the character.

It also helps that James Bond 007: From Russia with Love turned out to be one of the best James Bond video games since Goldeneye. The third-person shooter has many great action scenes and great moments of nostalgia in reenacting the classic Bond film. The highlight of the game, of course, is hearing Connery perform as Bond once again. Even though he was obviously four decades older than he played the character in the film, it's still a treat to hear him return. Players can tell that Connery is enthusiastic about playing Bond again, something he didn't even show as much at the end of his time with the films. It's a wonderful swansong for Connery's James Bond that helped create a new generation of fans for the 21st century.

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