Skep·ti·cism (skpt-szm) n.

1. A doubting or questioning attitude or state of mind; dubiety.
2. Philosophya. A methodology based on an assumption of doubt with the aim of acquiring approximate or relative certainty.
3. The rational and historically-proven assumption that any licensed game will suck. Lots. Seriously, have you played half of this stuff?

As they prep the World for War, Treyarch has been quietly plugging away at the upcoming licensed title James Bond: Quantum of Solace. Powered by the Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare engine, QoS blends scenes from the first Daniel Craig Bond film -- Casino Royale -- and the anticipated upcoming sequel of the same name. We spent some time with Bond at the recent Sony Holiday event in Toronto, Canada. Since our last trial with the game, did Bond change our definition of skepticism?

Suave super spy James Bond will live and let buy on November 4th, with the release of his Q-riously named movie tie-in, Quantum of Solace. Coming from Treyarch -- with love -- to every platform ever, the 007 shooter puts you in the potentially exploding shoes of the new(ish) franchise frontman, Daniel Craig, and tasks you with saving the world, swirling martinis and bedding duplicitous dames. Indeed, with the game featuring several flashbacks to Casino Royale, it seems someone definitely understood that our demands are for Eva.

Activision has also announced that those who pre-order the game from GameStop will receive a download token, redeemable for a forthcoming multiplayer map pack. In addition to "a variety of classic modes," Quantum of Solace will grant you a view to a team kill in several modes, including "Bond Versus," "Bond Evasion," and "Golden Gun." Note that this bonus applies to the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 versions -- this isn't the spy who loved Wii.

Alright, no more idiotic puns and references. We've got to save some for next year, you know.

It's so easy to assume that Quantum of Solace is going to be just another rushed license game (even Daniel Craig did!). But after having sat down with a couple of the game's levels (full hands-on coming later), it's easy to see that this is one of Activision's strongest games of the 2008 lineup. We had a chat with the co-design director, Adam Gascoine, about the game and its development.

Quantum of Solace is the first Bond game to be released alongside its movie counterpart. Has this impacted development? Were you rushed?

We were worried about being rushed when we started the project, but thankfully we have a very solid relationship with the movie team. We were one of the first to see the script for the movie, plus we've been able to visit the sets and watch some filming several times now. All this made it a lot easier. We've been developing really since Casino Royale, about two and a half years in total, so we've had plenty of time to develop the game.

Parts of the game are reminiscent of Uncharted. Was this a particular inspiration during the development of Quantum of Solace?

Any good game is definitely an inspiration. I loved Uncharted. I played it twice. Parts of that game may well have influenced design decisions we made during development, just like any of the great 2007 titles. In particular, though, the quality of animation in Uncharted was definitely an inspiration.

This hands-on report is based on the Xbox 360 version of the game, though the developers assure us that the PS3 version will be almost completely identical.

While I may not be the biggest Bond fan, and only watched Casino Royale because the Blu-ray came free with my PS3, Quantum of Solace was probably the most interesting game in Activision's Leipzig lineup. Going in with very few expectations and, to be honest, little interest in the title, I was impressed and intrigued with what I saw. It's easy to dismiss QoS as just another licensed movie game that will inevitably suck, but that's certainly not the case here.

The first section of the game that I played was set in the sewers of Sienna, where I'm chasing someone (the developers weren't allowed to say who). The first thing you notice about the game is that the environments are gorgeous. For the most part these have been lovingly recreated from reference photos taken on the set of the movie, so they'll look identical to the film. As a result they're incredibly detailed and, in parts, colorful.

The controls are both solid and fluid (if that's even possible!), leaving you to worry about what's going on on-screen, and not in your hands. Thanks to various set pieces throughout the level, you feel like you're interacting with the environment, rather than restricted by it. Everything feels a little less static and rigid when you're jumping over railings, falling through rotting wood and clambering over mounds of earth. Even if they are sometimes scripted.

We're happy to report that when James Bond returns to video games this fall with Quantum of Solace he'll be voiced by our new favorite 007, Daniel Craig. But we're a little worried about how we're going to focus on the game when our undies continue to spontaneously drop to the ground, coaxed off by Bond's baritone brogue! The game will also feature Judi Dench as M and new additions Mathieu Amalric and Ukrainian actress Olga Kurylenko.

... Listen, did we type that part about our undies dropping out loud? No? OK, thank goodness.

Poor James Bond. The guy's been passed around so many times by so many companies that no one seems to know what to do with him any more. Activision was so open to ideas that they actually surveyed fans on what perspective they'd like to see in the next double-o adventure.

According to MTV, the community was divided, with 60 percent wanting a first-person view and 40 voting third-person. We know how Activision responded (including both perspectives in Quantum of Solace), but we're curious how you will: Is your perfect Bond game through the agent's eyes ... or the back of his head?

Having foiled countless doomsday devices, monologuing masterminds and aesthetically pleasing assassins, James Bond has felt the bite of reality and become inextricably entangled in a web of legal nonsense. Though an Xbox Live Arcade version of the classic N64 FPS, GoldenEye, continues to make appearances both in dreams and alleged screenshots, nobody's been able to pull the game out of a web spun by numerous lawyers and license holders. "It's kind of locked in this no man's land."

That's according to Rare's senior software engineer, Nick Burton, who recently discussed the game's fate with VideoGamer.com. "It's incredibly hard to solve because there's so many licence holders involved," explained Burton. "You've got the guys that own the license to the gaming rights now, the guys that have the licence to Bond as an IP, and there are umpteen licensees." Last time we checked, "umpteen" was quite a lot ... at least 37 or so.

Burton goes on to explain that the game's release is no longer in Rare's hands -- it's up to the publishers to figure out how Microsoft can get its hands on a Nintendo game starring one of Activision's favorite characters. "It's probably going to go down in the annuls of gaming history as one of the big mysteries."

Wait ... the "annuls" of gaming history? What an appropriate misspelling.

After the glut of James Bond games earlier in the millennium, we'll admit it: We got spoiled. Now, after a long absence and a changing of hands, the Double-OG is back and we can't help but wonder: Does this Quantum of Solace gameplay video really look as good as we think it does?

Because we're going to be honest: It looks really good to us. The Daniel Craig model is spot on, the destructible environments are solid and the Call of Duty 4 engine is under the hood. We're stirred ... and a little shaken. Are you as excited as we are? Or are we just in denial?

You can't tell much from one lousy screenshot so we thought we'd share the following eight screens, recently declassified by Activision. Want to see how the Call of Duty 4 engine looks powering the first-person slash third-person Bond title Quantum of Solace? Here you go. Uninterested in pretty pictures, just want to read words about the game? Well, we've got you covered there too.

James Bond returns to movie theaters this fall in Quantum of Solace, and this time he'll be back in video game format as well. Treyarch has been developing a Quantum of Solace game in conjunction with the new flick, enjoying carte blanche from the producers to photograph and use everything from the movie in the game, including blonde Bond Daniel Craig. You can count on his stoic visage making an appearance, not to mention his recognizable voice. Find out what we learned from this first peek at the game, freshly declassified.

Interested to see what Treyarch is doing with the 007 license? GamesRadar has obtained the first image of Quantum of Solace, built on the Call of Duty 4 engine and due out this fall alongside the film. What can we glean from this screenshot? Well, there's Daniel Craig, and he will probably use a pistol while standing by an indoor body of water at some point. We eagerly await the next screenshot to find out what, exactly, Daniel Craig would shoot at.

CVG's sister publication, GamesMaster, got its hand (the other was holding a martini) on the latest Bond game, James Bond 007: Quantum of Solace. Previously confirmed to run on Infinity Ward's slick Call of Duty 4 engine, it is said to combine scenes and settings from the upcoming (22nd!) Bond flick as well as the previous film in the franchise, Casino Royale. (GamesMaster confirms that one of them is the latter's thrilling "free running" opening sequence.)

Gameplay is set to be a mix of first- and third-person action that sounds a lot like Rainbow Six Vegas. The camera reportedly pulls out for a view of Bond when he sticks to cover, climbs ladders, climbs along ledges, and in other "cinematic" situations, such as stealthy button-timing based takedowns ... or, dare we suggest, for "interacting" with the Bond girls?

The upcoming 007 game just got an ammo clip of good news.* Quantum of Solace, currently in development at Treyarch, is running on the Call of Duty 4 game engine and due out this Fall alongside the movie. "We look forward to launching Bond: Quantum of Solace in Q3 concurrent with movie. This game uses the Call of Duty 4 engine and technology to bring Bond games to a new level," said Activision Publishing CEO Mike Griffith in a conference call yesterday (36:20 mark).

Why does this excite us? Simply put: COD4 is one of the best multiplayer experiences currently available on consoles, and it gives us hope that this version will be able recapture the magic we felt when we first tried split-screen Goldeneye on the Nintendo 64. It also gives us an idea as to what platforms we can expect to see the game on -- likely Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and perhaps PC. Quantum of Solace, the film, is releasing October 31 in the UK, November 7 in North America.

* Note: Fear not, the writer of this joke has indeed been eliminated.