Like its console contemporaries, the DS version of GoldenEye has players taking the first-person role of an MI6 agent working toward elite "00" license-to-kill status, who is dismissed for "reckless brutality." Seizing the opportunity to bring such a highly skilled and well-trained operative into his own organization, infamous Bond supervillian Auric Goldfinger welcomes the player's disenfranchised agent into his ranks.
As the single-player game begins, Goldfinger is in a struggle with the nefarious Dr. No for control of the world's most powerful criminal organization. The game is officially licensed by MGM (which holds the rights to the franchise), so players can expect to meet other famous (and infamous) characters from the James Bond universe, such as Oddjob, Pussy Galore, Scaramanga, and Xenia Onatopp, as they make their way through this adventure.
Rogue Agent supports multiplayer action through the handheld's wireless connectivity features. Standard deathmatches and domination games are featured, as well as a "Tug of War" game that has teams competing to move a bomb across a map by flipping a series of switches. Some multiplayer modes allow "spawning," which enables up to eight DS gamers to play together on a single game card, using the handhelds' "Download Play" features.