'GoldenEye 007: Reloaded'

"GoldenEye" is one of the classics of console FPS games. It gave players the freedom to play through levels stealthy or guns blazing and had fairly fun multiplayer. Recently, it saw a remake for the Wii, featuring motion controls and somewhat improved graphics. Now another release of the game is in the works, this time with HD graphics for the PS3 and Xbox 360.

Is this game really so fun that it deserves yet another version in this short span of time? That's what I went into my hands-on preview of :GoldenEye 007: Reloaded" wondering.

Cynical though I may seem, "GoldenEye" is still a great game. Let no one tell you otherwise, because sneaking through the snow covered mountains and taking out enemies from behind is as fun as it's ever been: Very. Playing with Playstation Move, complete with a gun accessory it was attached to at the time, I still found the experience thoroughly enjoyable, in spite of my annoyance at the poor button layout of the Move.

Playing with the far-more-comfortable Xbox 360 controller, I ran through a mission that had me shooting up a few baddies in a club. Even more foes met their death in the subsequent boat section. Hacking a turret to pick off my enemies and melee killing those that remained made for a fun first-person romp.

The problem with all this was the obvious naysaying that I must bring to the table whenever a remake of a recent remake is involved. No matter how fun the gameplay, a voice constantly nagged, reminding me that I'd already seen all this before. It was just prettier now. The enemy placement was the same. The level layout was the same. The scripted events were the same. What differences may have existed were so minor they quite literally passed by without my noticing. Even with a visual upgrade, an experience loses its charm when you've seen it all as recently as I have with the Wii version of "GoldenEye."

The multiplayer was far more enjoyable, because no multiplayer match is exactly the same as those previous it, even should all the basic elements of that match remain unchanged. Activision seems interested in adding a lot of new content and mechanics to this aspect of the game. This will, without question, be the most fresh part of the experience when the game releases. New characters and special abilities tied to many of those characters give the game a certain something that will probably hurt balance even as it increases the wacky fun factor.

If you missed the Wii version of "GoldenEye" or you think you can overcome your feelings of deja vu, it'll be worth keeping an eye on "GoldenEye 007: Reloaded." That said, in a holiday season overflowing with great titles, Activision will really have to go the distance to sell gamers on a been-there-done-that experience, even if it's an amazing one.