When GoldenEye 007 returns to the console it will do so with a mix of covert and run-and-gun action and a brand new script penned by the writer of the original movie screenplay.
Before dropping us into a round of eight player deathmatch on the Wii, Graham Hagmeier, the game's production coordinator, walked us through a look at another level of the game's campaign.
Designed by Eurocom, the folks behind Dead Space Extraction for the Wii, GoldenEye is, of course a reinterpretation of the Nintendo 64 classic. The Wii game's new mission we were being shown at a press demo opened up in a jungle.
In the original movie and game, this level, about 70 percent through the game, took place in a Cuban jungle, but in the remake it takes place in the jungles of Nigeria
The game features four difficulty levels: Operative, agent, 007 and 007 Classic. As you ramp up through the difficulty settings the game doesn't just become harder, it also adds secondary missions you need to accomplish. And playing in 007 Classic mode drops you in a game where you no longer have health that slowly regenerates, but instead health and armor, both of which need to be replenished through pick-ups.
The game's mission briefings come to you via an in-game "smart wall" which goes through the objectives with cut-scenes and voice acting.
The level opens when the small plane that James Bond is piloting over the jungle crashes. Shortly after extricating himself, Bond spots a helicopter bringing in support troops.
While the player can just open up on the bad guys with Bond's weapon, the person playing through during my demo decided to take a stealthier approach.
First, he crept up on a enemy, put him in a forearm chokehold and knocked him out. Then he switched over to a silenced weapon and worked his way through the jungle until he was close enough to dispense a couple more enemies with quick shots to the heads.
The player managed to clear the entire level without making a noise, but had he missed a shot, Hagmeier said, the enemies in the area would have gone on alert and called in reinforcements.
When the game hits there will be 25 weapons to choose from and a number of fun gadgets, like a cell phone that can be used to hack computers and turrets. For instance, in the jungle level, Bond used it to take over a minigun and turn it on the enemies standing on a clearing.
After finishing up the single, relatively short level, the developers handed over controls to the four writers in the room and dropped us into a multiplayer match.
GoldenEye will support four-player offline multiplayer on a single console and eight-player online matches. While playing online you will be able to earn experience and rank up. You can use those experience points to earn different perks, unlock gadgets and weapons and certain content that is only online.
The multiplayer also features a number of modifiers, like the ability to play characters with giant hands, or armed with paintball, or melee-only modes or a mode that causes damages to players who stand still for too long.
For our match we were playing as Oddjob, Jaws, Scaramanga and Baron Samedi. All of the characters use soundbites from their original movies.
I tried my hand at the game controlling Oddjob, using the golden Wii Classic controller only available to people who purchase the special edition of the game.
The controls take a bit of getting used to, especially if you spend most of your time playing shooters on a PC, PS3 or Xbox 360, but once you do it's a solid, exciting and fun experience.
Because I was playing as Oddjob my grenades were replaced with three deadly hats, which I could use to instant kill a player. Something that was a lot harder than you'd expect.
The map we played on had a nice selection of cover, doorways, multiple floors and space. The round was fast and furious.
While I enjoyed checking out the Wii-exclusive shooter, it seems like the sort of multiplayer experience best saved for short bursts of play, rather than marathon gaming sessions.
GoldenEye for the Wii ships this fall.