Nuclear Power Plant (Tokyo)

Aerial photographs of the nuclear power plant as depicted in Nightfire.

The unnamed location was a fictional disabled nuclear power plant located near Tokyo, Japan. Ostensibly undergoing decommissioning by Phoenix International, the site was secretly re-purposed as a development and training facility for industrialist Rafael Drake's space forces. The plant appeared in Electronic Arts' 2002 James Bond video game, Nightfire.

Background

Following its shutdown, Rafael Drake's company, Phoenix International, was contracted to cleanse the unnamed power plant of radioactive material; decommissioning its nuclear reactor using robot technology. Unknown to the outside world, a space-warfare facility had been secretly constructed by Phoenix on the site. The console variants of the game primarily focused on the Plant's exterior and buildings ST-1 and ST-3; where development of jet-packs and laser weaponry was being conducted. The facility was protected by sniper teams, whose presence was also kept secret from the public. In the PC variant of Nightfire, gameplay revolved around interior locations; investigating a Neutral Buoyancy Facility located in one of the cooling towers. The facility was designed to allow astronauts to get acclimated to the micro gravity environment of space. In a bid to prevent 007 from gaining access, Rook cuts the power to the service elevator, forcing the spy to restore it. It is here that Rook meets his demise in the PC version, killed by the lethal blades of a huge fan.

Trivia

A satellite blow-up image of the location on the world map as depicted in Nightfire (2002).

Although the location is unnamed in the game, the map shown during the mission briefing cites the location of the real-life Hamaoka Nuclear Power Plant, albeit the two share no identical designs whatsoever. The plant, of course, is not decommissioned, as of yet, but following the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami that caused the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster, the plant has been deactivated and lawsuits are underway to have it permanently shut down.

Images

Turbine room, as seen in the PC variant of Nightfire (2002).

Turbine control room, as seen in the PC variant of Nightfire (2002).

Generator control-room, as seen in the PC variant of Nightfire (2002).

The training tank airlock, as seen in the PC variant of Nightfire (2002).

The underwater astronaut training tank, as seen in the PC variant of Nightfire (2002).