Nintendo of Europe today confirmed those pesky Oct. 24 release date rumors for Disaster: Day of Crisis. Still no word from Nintendo as to whether the game will be released in other markets this year.

Lots of juicy details are included in the press release:

Earthquake, tsunami, volcanic eruption, flood, hurricane… and the small matter of an ex-military terrorist group with their hands on some nuclear weapons - and all in just 24 hours?! Welcome to Disaster: Day of Crisis, the action adventure game on Wii from Nintendo and Monolith Soft., sweeping across Europe on 24th October 2008 guaranteed to bring out the survival skills in everyone.

Stepping into the shoes of Raymond Bryce, a traumatised but highly decorated retired US marine and former operative of the International Rescue Team, prepare for a day like no other. Called back into action to deal with the threat of SURGE, an ex-military terrorist unit led by former elite forces specialist Colonel Hayes, Ray must overcome personal tragedy and numerous devastating natural disasters to prevent the threat of nuclear warfare.

Wracked with guilt over the loss of his best friend in the line of duty, Ray finds out that SURGE has kidnapped a leading seismologist and his assistant to predict the arrival of an earthquake, which will act as a diversion for their plan to seize the nuclear weapons. However, upon finding out that the assistant is his lost friend’s sister, Lisa, the mission turns personal and offers Ray the chance of redemption he’s been craving for.

Disaster: Day of Crisis is a dedicated single-player all-out action adventure blending a variety of exciting gameplay activities around an intense and absorbing 23-stage storyline. In addition to vanquishing the SURGE threat, players must come face-to-face with a series of daunting natural disasters and take full advantage of Ray’s survival expertise to rescue stranded civilians left helpless.

As the story unfolds, the player’s skills are thoroughly tested as Ray finds himself in increasingly hazardous situations. Gameplay varies from exploring devastated city streets for survivors to thrilling shooting sequences, as well as driving, swimming and intense quick time events all intuitively controlled with the Wii Remote and Nunchuk. Players are awarded Survival Points and Battle Points which are vital for improving Ray’s abilities and ensuring he has the skills needed to overcome the game’s hard-as-nails bosses, survive the effects of each disaster and ultimately, rescue Lisa.

During the majority of stages, players will find themselves searching for civilians in need of rescuing, which will help improve Ray’s skills. With each civilian saved, Survival Points are awarded that can then be freely distributed amongst five critical skills such as Strength for unarmed combat and lifting objects, Firearms for handling weapons and Mental for Ray’s ability to concentrate his mind.

Along the way, Ray will face adversity from SURGE, at which points the game automatically switches into combat mode. Similar to an on-rails shooter, the action becomes fast and furious where players use the Wii Remote and Nunchuk to dispatch enemies with a variety of lethal weaponry including handguns, automatics and shotguns. Once every hostile is taken down Battle Points are yielded that can be used to purchase new weapons or tune current equipment to perfection.

Even after the main storyline is completed, there are numerous incentives for players to keep coming back for more. With additional modes such as a shooting range and a staminas campaign, and a wealth of hidden content covering unlockable weapons and costumes to the extra hard ‘Real Disaster Mode’ difficulty, Disaster: Day of Crisis will keep gamers entertained for many months to come.

So are you ready to step into the shoes of an action hero and emerge victorious after one hell of a day? If the answer is yes, then Disaster: Day of Crisis is crying out to be rescued from your nearest retailer across Europe on 24th October 2008.

Surviving hurricanes, killing terrorists and rescuing survivors? I’m down! Let’s hope for a 2008 North American release.