Continue the inside story of the all-new GoldenEye 007 for Wii

Nintendo of Europe: 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!

GoldenEye 007 will be in shops from the 5th of November for Wii.