GoldenEye 007

Nintendo of Europe: First of all, how do you feel about re-imagining GoldenEye 007 for Wii?

Dawn Pinkney: We are very confident about the potential for GoldenEye 007 on Wii: not only is GoldenEye well known due to the success of the original film and N64 game, but the Bond franchise itself still has a huge and loyal audience. Without a new Bond film out anytime soon, GoldenEye 007 for Wii is one of the only places fans can get a true James Bond experience this year: we see it as the Bond event of 2010.

NoE: Can you tell us a bit more about the ‘hands on’ feel for players? Were you aiming for a specific audience, such as fans of shooters, or did you incorporate options for other players?

DP: We worked really hard to make a game that core gamers will enjoy while allowing a wider, more casual audience to get into it too; a portion of this came down to the controls.

We were fortunate enough to work closely with Nintendo to make the game accessible even to ‘first time’ shooter players by providing different control schemes for the Wii Remote and Nunchuk. Some of the control schemes use auto-aim (like the original N64 game did) and there’s one where you don’t even have to point at the screen with the Wii Remote.

We’ve also developed the game to be played with the Classic Controller, Classic Controller Pro or Nintendo GameCube Controller so fans who may not feel comfortable playing a first-person shooter with motion controls can use something they are more familiar with. We wanted everybody to have an option that made the game the most fun for them.

Fans of classic controls can check out the GoldenEye 007 Classic Edition, a game bundle featuring an exclusive gold Classic Controller Pro.

NoE: David Arnold (composer on the recent Bond films) wrote the game’s soundtrack. Can you tell us a little about Mr. Arnold’s “mission” for scoring the title and the challenges he faced?

DP: David Arnold and Kevin Kiner both composed and arranged the music for our GoldenEye game, I posed your question to them and here’s what they said:

“Our very first discussions about it conceptually were to develop the sound and music as though it were another movie in the Daniel Craig series. Then after thinking about that a little bit, we realised two things: firstly, it’s a part of the Bond world, but it’s a completely different experience from a film and secondly, you can’t ignore the fact that the original film dates from 1995. We thought it would be nice to cover the ground between the original film and the current series.

Stylistically, it’s almost like a greatest hits adventure or a little bit of a retrospective: you travel along with the music through all the levels and it carries you through to the Daniel Craig series. That’s the great thing about a game; it offers you a lot of opportunities to cover a wide range of music.”

NoE: You got Bruce Feirstein (screenwriter of the original movie) on board and updating the setting of GoldenEye to 2010 obviously requires certain changes to the plot. Was there a process applied to updating the story? Did you only make changes if the new time period required it or did you permit other changes if they benefited the story?

DP: The process of updating the GoldenEye story to suit 2010 was very detailed and complicated by the fact we didn’t want to break way from Daniel Craig’s perspective. We didn’t want the player to see or experience something Bond wouldn’t.

We initially broke down the plot, locations, technology and characters, exploring possible updates with the question ‘Would this change GoldenEye too much?’. We updated the script slightly to reflect modern times but the main beats of the storyline remain the same.

The threads of the story are very tightly woven - change one and it can unravel others… We re-sequenced some levels, Zukovsky’s Club and Statue Park for example, to enable the narrative to be seen from Bond’s perspective; which in turn forced the final Trevelyan ‘reveal’ into place directly after the Train level.

This change alone resulted in hours of discussions which were necessary to resolve the problems it presented. How does Bond know to go to Statue Park after the Train level if he is not meeting Zukovsky prior? How can a trap on the train be set if Trevelyan is not in that level; since Bond is not aware of him at that point? Why would Natalya be able to get information on the train to lead to Statue Park if the train is not Trevelyan’s base? Lots of challenges to work through, but we got there in the end!

NoE: It’s been mentioned that the modern GoldenEye 007 will offer different mission objectives when playing on higher difficulty settings, just like the original. Do you follow a similar approach as in the classic game, or have you also modernised the kinds of additional objectives a “00 Agent” must complete?

DP: We ensured our additional objectives are tied into the main storyline and we’ve also taken the interaction forwards. In our Statue Park level, one of the additional objectives is to use Bond’s smartphone to record enemy conversations – but you can only do this if you maintain a covert presence. As such, setting off a firefight would result in you not being able to complete this objective.

NoE: Modern shooters have largely dispensed with health pick-ups, but finding carefully hidden body armour in the classic GoldenEye could also be rewarding. Did you include these kinds of pick-ups or do this in some other way?

DP: We have four different difficulty settings; three of them use regenerative health and one of them does not. It was important to include the 007 Classic difficulty with non-regenerating health so fans could enjoy a nostalgic experience. At Eurocom this is the favourite difficulty because it really forces you to think about your tactics – coupled with the additional objectives in this mode it really provides a challenging experience for core GoldenEye players.

Imagine in the Carrier level trying to rescue the hostages from their captors but accidentally shooting the explosive barrels we’ve positioned nearby: you would fail and have to go back on this difficulty and play again – and for this very reason we love it! I guess we are suckers for the frustration but completing the levels on this difficulty is really enjoyable and rewarding!

NoE: Daniel Craig brings a more physical Bond to GoldenEye. How is this presented in the game?  Can you give any examples?

DP: You can vault through glass or melee attack glass and other physical objects to really interact with the scenery; you even use your melee attack to interact with switches! Daniel Craig’s Bond is much more physical so it would not do to have him simply ‘press’ a switch - much more satisfying for the player to be able to punch them!

NoE: The Artificial Intelligence (AI) of enemies is one area where advancements will be obvious to players who loved the N64 game. Can you tell us a little more about how the AI works? How does a classic level such as ‘Control’ (in which Bond must protect Natalya while she hacks into the computer) play out with the new AI?

The sequence in ‘Control’ where you protect Natalya always was, and still is, very intense. The AI we designed means that enemies will be abseiling in through glass to your location, using cover to their advantage and navigating the environment in a very agile way. If enemies manage to get close to you they’ll do a ‘weapon free’ attack – they even kick you if you are crouched! We designed the AI to be intelligent and challenging, like guards should be.

NoE: You’ve mentioned there will be more Boss fights in this game. Could you expand a bit on what sort of gameplay situations might arise from an encounter with, say, Alec Trevelyan?

DP: We worked with Ben Cooke (Daniel Craig’s stunt double who choreographed the fight sequences on the recent Bond films) to arrange our fight scenes - one of which is the encounter with Trevelyan.

We wanted the fight to be really immersive and epic: there’s a lot more going on than just shooting at Trevelyan! The sequence is very interactive and makes great use of motion controls, however, as he’s the last Boss of the game we don’t want to say too much and spoil it!

NoE: The N64 GoldenEye’s multiplayer included some really fun options and was a big hit with fans. Can you tell us a little about the multiplayer modes available in GoldenEye 007 on Wii?

DP: We really wanted the splitscreen multiplayer to be a lighthearted, fun experience: so we’ve got tried and tested multiplayer modes like Paintball and Melee Only, but we also created lots of new ones that are great fun to play.

To mention just a couple… We have Move Your Feet mode where if you stand still for more than three seconds you explode! There’s also Nick Nack mode, where everyone is the same size as Nick Nack; it makes your experience of the levels completely different. For this mode we made the sound effects into high pitched squeaks, which always brings a laugh!

NoE: How big a part will vehicles play in the game? We know the tank is set to return, but are there any other modes of transport for the player to sink their teeth into?

DP: In addition to the all-out carnage of smashing up St. Petersburg in a tank, we have a few other vehicle scenes that players are sure to enjoy! For example, there’s the airfield escape stunt (which involves riding a motorbike while you shoot enemies off their own bikes in order to escape) and in the Dam level there’s the truck sequence.

When Bond and Trevelyan are infiltrating the Dam, Trevelyan sabotages the mission by shooting the guards at the checkpoint… and a massive chase begins! You get to shoot enemies coming up in trucks to stop you while Trevelyan drives - it gets really hectic and really fun.

NoE: Can you tell us a little about the way weapons are handled in the game? How many weapons can the new Bond carry at once? Are there any new weapons or gadgets that you are particularly proud of?

DP: You can carry three weapons at any one time in single player - because, naturally, your P99 must always be equipped. You can swap weapons in the remaining slots by picking them up from downed enemies or finding hidden weapon crates – of course, these are locked but you can use your melee attack to smash the lock, or simply shoot it off.

In multiplayer you can ‘pre-define your loadout’ (as in, choose your favourites from the arsenal available) and carry two weapons at any one time.

My personal favourite is Bond’s weapon of choice: the P99. It allows you to play covertly with the silencer, so I end up using it the most for headshots. Our covert gameplay timers allow you to take out two or three enemies before they can call for backup, so dealing quick headshots in succession with the P99 is really satisfying!

I also like storming Trevelyan’s base using the night-vision goggles - very intense - and the silenced sniper rifles provide a completely different gameplay experience if you like to play Bond sneaky.

NoE: We know Bond uses his smartphone to take photographs and record conversations. Can you reveal any more of its functions in later missions?

DP: You can also use the smartphone for facial scanning and hacking. The technology on Bond’s phone allows you to hack computers and locked doors from a distance; once the hack is in progress you don’t even need to stay nearby, you can carry on about your business!

NoE: The game supports splitscreen multiplayer and online play via Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection. Can you tell us a little more about the online experience? What kind of modes will be available? Can players unlock gadgets and weapons to use online?

DP: The focus for splitscreen play was lighthearted fun, therefore we have completely different modes in splitscreen than in the online experience - though Golden Gun mode was so popular we made it available in both!

Online play has ‘objective-based’ modes such as Black Box, where one team has to defend the black box whilst the other team attempt to destroy it. There’s also Heroes mode where players will randomly be selected as a ‘hero’ character like Bond or Zukovsky. While this gives you some extra abilities, you still need to work closely with your other, ordinary team members to take out the enemy ‘hero’.

We have loads of great stuff available for unlock online: there are strength, accuracy and damage boosts, as well as proximity mines, the ability to detect other players’ mines on your radar and the chance to leave live grenades behind for other players when you die.

NoE: Last but not least: will we see familiar faces from the original film, or will the game feature a new cast?

DP: We have an all-new cast, with the exception of Judi Dench as M. Barbara Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson cast the original GoldenEye film actors and took the re-casting of the game very seriously, just like they would for a film.

Working with new actors had some great benefits; it allowed us to use motion capture for the cinematic sequences to ensure they were of the very best quality. We’re very proud of what we’ve created and hope that players will enjoy it too!

NoE: Activision’s Dawn Pinkney, thank you very much for your time!