GoldenEye 007 (DS) Review

I am finding myself in a bit of a strange situation, because this review that I write is quite possibly going to be one of the only ones available for this game. Goldeneye 007 on the Nintendo DS is developed by n-Space, who have done great work on previous shooters on the Nintendo DS in the past. However, despite the hype surrounding the Wii title, not a lot of people know too much about the DS iteration of everyone’s favourite reimagining. But after spending a very good amount of time with Goldeneye 007 for the Nintendo DS, there are probably a few reasons why you’ve not heard anything about it.

Considering that the original Goldeneye 007 game was an abridged version of the film, coupled with some original sequences, and that the reimagining was an even more abridged version – Goldeneye 007 on the Nintendo DS is actually even more abridged. Several sequences from the main game, including the Nightclub and Runway, are completely missing and cutscenes between missions aim to fill in the gaps. The game is still taking place in a modern setting, with a global financial crisis creating unrest through many terrorist groups, and one in particular, the Janus Group, seems to be planning something more sinister. Bond must thus investigate several organisations and individuals linked to the Janus group to stop the use of an EMP weapon, the Goldeneye. Needless to say, this is nearly the same game, and not a unique experience like it was toted previously.

Just like many other games on the Nintendo DS, Goldeneye 007 employs a realistic artistic style in its graphics, and unfortunately suffers for it due to the system’s harsh limitations. The character model for Bond is pretty spot on, and is very recognisable as Daniel Craig; however the models for non-Bond characters such as Trevelyan, Xenia and Ouromov look very, well, odd. Animations for all the characters are pretty nicely done for a DS title, and the environments are built similarly to the levels in its Wii counterpart. The only real issue here is the constant recycling of textures, specifically the use of the same guard model throughout each level. There were about 50 enemies in the opening level and every single one had the same face. I know there are DS games that pull off this kind of thing, so it’s really just coming across as laziness. Similarly, weapons are pretty unrecognisable, I picked up what I thought to be a shotgun and apparently it was an AK47. Things just seem….wrong. There are still some nice effects though, rain still falls in the Dam levels and it’s still snowing in Severnaya (although the mission takes place at night now). The framerate can be pretty unbearable sometimes, but for the most part this is a pretty nice looking Nintendo DS game.

The game utilises both in-game cutscenes rather ambitiously to depict important scenes, and also uses the video overlay sequences seen in the original game – more so than the Wii version. During other parts of the game, cutscenes are voice acted using presumably the same voice samples from the Wii game and played over a bunch of still images, similar to a voiced comic book. This is a nice touch that certainly takes advantage of the DS’s hardware rather than trying to overcome its limitations – however we wish this approach was taken with the whole game. That being said, it is a bit disappointing in the developers removing the opening sequences and the original Goldeneye song, instead replacing it with a rather boring and generic scene instead. It just reeks of rushed, for some reason.

In terms of gameplay, Goldeneye 007 is pretty all encompassing, allowing players to either aim with the stylus or use the face buttons to aim. Both methods work very well, and it’s nice to see this. I used the stylus controls out of convenience, as I felt the button method was way too hard to use. Similarly, both methods require different play styles. Using the stylus, players have to tape a button on the screen to go into aiming mode, and then use the stylus to manually move the cursor / gun around and use L to shoot. With button modes, players have to aim with the L button and fire with the R button. In button mode, thankfully, players also have access to the ADS system. This means that whenever engaging in manual aiming, players will notice they automatically snap to enemies to take them out, making the cumbersome aiming style of the button control scheme a non-issue. When close to enemies, Bond will attack them with a punch or a stylish take down move instead of firing his gun, a very nice touch that worked great in very hectic situations.

Peppered throughout the game are very small minigames designed to coincide with the use of a gadget or interaction with electronic devices. One requires Bond to swipe a keycard to decode its combination, and then type the combination into the keypad itself, while others require Bond to simply press a button as it appears. It’s all very simplistic, but the implementation of these mini games is actually pretty good in that they break up the pacing of the game quite a bit.

And speaking of pacing, a lot of the game is missing from the original, so it’s a bit of a shame to see amazing levels like the Nightclub from the Wii version missing in the DS version, although I am guessing it would’ve been too hard to create the same experience on a handheld console. The game is largely run and gun, and very linear, a far cry from the Wii version. Objectives are extremely simple, including things such as “Open the door to the Dam” or “Find a keycard” – these objectives are always in the path of the player anyway. There is no room for error, besides dying, of course, and levels are built to be rather linear and without any challenge besides shooting people.

Admittedly, the game does offer players many ways to approach a mission stealthily; however the rather cumbersome aiming system removes any ability to effectively perform goals stealthily, which is pretty disappointing. There are no real disadvantages that the player will face if they manage to get caught either, although the game does allow for some nice take down animations that feel rather well animated.

In terms of nostalgic value, the game does carry similar level design to it’s Wii counterpart and takes a few liberties with the designs. However, what I noticed most, which was surprising, was that some elements of the original N64 game’s level design made their way into this version. As an example, Severnaya’s outdoor areas are remarkably similar to the original Surface level in Goldeneye, as is the beginning area of the Dam. But still, these copy and pasted designs are nice to look at with new assets, but I honestly prefer the complete redesigns of the Nintendo Wii version. A mish mash of old design with new assets just doesn’t seem right.

Throughout the game, players can find Intel which can be exchanged for concept artwork in the main menu. Each piece of intel unlocks a “tile” of art, and upon unlocking all tiles, the art must be rearranged like a jigsaw puzzle. This is a nice touch but ultimately pretty pointless in the big scheme of things. The game also has a rather comprehensive multiplayer mode that features both offline and online play for up to six players. We tried a few matches online, but had a lot of trouble finding them initially. The game runs pretty well and there are heaps of customisation options, but overall this isn’t something we could see people playing regularly or long into the future.

Goldeneye 007 surprised me quite a bit in that it features the same full soundtrack as the Wii game, despite sounding a bit strange and compressed. Still, it’s nice to see that this port received the same attention as the Wii version. Voice acting from both Judi Dench and Daniel Craig is superb, although also sounding rather compressed as if being listened to on an obsolete radio. There are a few original pieces composed solely for the DS version, but with the use of the David Arnold sound pieces from the Wii version, these unfortunately seem quite out of place. Similarly, the game takes so many liberties with the sequencing of events that the developers have used audio from the Wii version to create conversations for one level from dialogue that may appear in different levels in the Wii version. Due to a lack of re-recording of these lines, many characters voices will change in intonation and subject quite rapidly, and it almost sounds like a fan project that’s been put together which, as you can imagine, is very distracting.

In terms of lasting appeal, the game can be run through in a little under six hours although this may fluctuate if you choose to explore your surroundings; however, the game doesn’t let you do a whole lot of that either. Multiplayer options are fine and robust although I cannot see many people continuing to play this past a couple of months. Similarly, the campaign isn’t as impactful as the original game, so there is little motivation to continue through it. There are, of course, the concept artworks to unlock although there aren’t many and there is way too much effort involved for what players will get – once again, reducing perceived value and probably leaving players disinterested. There are multiple difficulty levels to create challenge, although the nature of the game’s objective system makes this a rather negligible effect, and the game is just too easy on lower difficulty levels.

Goldeneye 007 on the Nintendo DS is pretty well done overall, but there are a few lazy design decisions that make it hard to recommend to anyone who has a Nintendo Wii and the ability to experience the fuller, more complete experience. Similarly, the game tries to channel nostalgia by reusing some level designs from the N64 version, which is a nice thought, but ultimately also comes across as being quite lazy. Only bother with this version if you have absolutely no way of playing the superior Wii version. If you never liked first person shooters on the Nintendo DS, this one is not going to sway you any time soon either.

Graphics 7.0

Despite some recycling and some blurry textures, locales and environmental effects are a nice touch, particularly for the DS.

Gameplay 6.0

The option to control with either buttons or the stylus is a great implementation, particularly when each scheme is properly developed. Extremely linear mission designs really bring this one down though, especially when theres not much variation in the gameplay at all. Minigames are nice and make good use of the DSs features.

Sound 6.0

While its good to see the implementation of the soundtrack from the Wii version and the voice acting from Dench and Craig, the conversations in the game are put together from various different sources and sound awful as a result.

Tilt 5.5

The campaign is missing rather important levels from the Wii version and skims events with rather annoying cutscenes, and clocks in at just around six hours. Mulitplayer and concept art unlockables certainly lengthen the experience, but overall theres not a lot to do here thatll keep you interested.

Value 5.0

Despite looking forward to seeing how the developers would implement situations from the original game in DS form, I came away ultimately disappointed. The game itself is pretty good, but a good Goldeneye game, this isnt.