The British Intelligence Officers Exam is technically an advergame. It's also among the more authentic James Bond experiences I've ever had. Oh, and it's a text adventure - a startlingly unique one, too. Then again, considering its pedigree - it heralds from Hide&Seek, the folks who put together this wild "playful experience" festival Kieron wrote about before he became a ghost - that's not as shocking as you might think. In short, though, TBIOE doesn't actually put you in direct control of a character. Instead, you converse with an agent in the field who's attempting to accomplish any number of objectives - for instance, escaping from baddies with precious data in hand or tracking a notorious arms dealer. I even found myself paralyzed by a couple seriously tough non-black-and-white choices that actually made me think. The real magic of TBIOE, though, lies in its language. Its agents may not seem entirely human, but they do a pretty convincing impression most of the time.
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