The inventory system also works okay, but you’ll still be required to often pause and enter your inventory mid-battle, either to reload or health up. The game provides quick slots you can tap for an on-the-fly reload and such, but you’ll run through ammo so fast that these hotkeys become practically useless. Space is also limited, so you won’t be able to take everything you find with you. There will be times when you’ll have to choose between what to keep and what to discard.

On the production front, Quantum of Solace DS does some things right and some things, well, not quite so right. The graphics are serviceable and, at times – such as during the first actual mission, as well as a couple of the game’s later levels – there are some very attractive 3D elements to experience. However, the character models are boxy, and you’ll see the same few enemies over and over…and over again. The backgrounds are crafted well enough, but there’s little variety here, either, and some of the game’s environmental objects make little sense within the context of a given mission. Lots of stuff seems thrown together to make the mechanics work, though there’s no real rhyme or reason in terms of the story and setting. Additionally, we experienced lag moments after almost every item pick-up.

The game’s audio performs at about the same level as the rest of the game’s presentation, and you’ll hear the same few musical loops throughout most of the adventure. There is a bit of voice work provided by the movie’s actors, but the way in which it’s used does little to enhance the gameplay experience. The audio’s output is high, but unfortunately, music and effects sound distorted, regardless of the volume level.

The game’s cutscenes are little more than a handful of character stills with a few snippets of dialogue overlaid. The voice work is fine, but everything’s pasted together to make for a hodge-podge of a presentation. The game likely would have benefited by the exclusion of these vignettes, as they add no clear storyline, nor are they attractive in any way. If anything, the game’s cutscenes only serve to amplify Solace’s many other flaws.

There are some fun gameplay ideas in the DS version of Quantum of Solace, but the execution plainly leaves too much to be desired. The cutscenes artificially connect the missions together, and the story makes little or no sense. The game, at various points, is either too easy or too hard, and its only real challenge comes from the inaccuracy of all its gameplay elements. It’s also a very short romp, clocking in at about five hours. A bit more attention to detail, some fine tuning and more practical use of the touch screen could have made this a really fun adventure on DS, but as it stands, Solace is playable, though little more.

By Tony Capri
CCC Freelance Writer