Introduction: The James Bond franchise is not just the most famous spy thriller series from the world of cinema. It is also a huge pop-culture phenomenon that has been going strong for more than 50 years. The franchise’s success in the video game industry, however, has been a rocky road that did not see a new game come out for over a decade. Now, the game developers at IO Interactive have been given another chance to bring the legendary gentlemen spy to the gaming audience. The title they are currently developing is called 007 First Light and it should provide an origin story for James Bond, as well as give a second breath to the struggling sequence of video game releases.
Article: When the first James Bond film came out back in 1962, its creators likely had no clue what they were starting. Based on the spy thriller novels of Ian Fleming, the original start to the franchise, simply called Dr. No, blended several factors that enchanted the audiences. The first of these was a colossal leading figure of Sean Connery, the Scottish actor who would dominate the big screens for the rest of his life. But, besides him, the film also had a very interesting mixture of regular spycraft elements, action scenes, high-tech gadgets, and attractive characters. This combination of style and danger made 007 an almost instant cultural icon that continued to gain fans in the years after that. Connery was replaced by several other actors and the approach and directing style of James Bond films evolved as well. But, its core appeal never truly went away, even though the grandchildren of original fans presently are enjoying the new 007 films.
However, despite the success of the film series, the gaming world never really got a continued sequence of titles in the same spy universe. Undoubtedly the best Bond game ever made was GoldenEye 007 from 1997, created by Nintendo for its N64 console. Other games struggled to find success after that. The last major game in the series, 007 Legends, which came out in 2012, was a complete commercial and critical failure. Now, the owners of the franchise decided to try the series luck in the gaming world once again. Since 2020, IO Interactive has been developing a new James Bond game, called 007 First Light. Recently, the developers showcased its first trailer, which generated plenty of positive reactions. Because of that, the title that will come out in 2026 for PC, Switch 2, PlayStation, and Xbox consoles has many eager Bond fans awaiting its release.
IO Experience
IO Interactive, often labeled just as IOI, is a development company that did not get this franchise by accident. The same company is the name behind the famous Hitam franchise. Its developers also worked on other action shooter titles, including Kane & Lynch. All of that generated a lot of experience for this outfit in a genre that fit the James Bond theme nearly perfectly. That is why the joint franchise holders, which include Amazon MGM Studios, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, and the company Eon Productions, decided to entrust it with the next 007 video game. IO clearly took this task of developing a new third-person action-adventure very seriously, deciding to invest nearly six years into it, being that the development of 007 First Light officially began back in November 2020. Still, the undertaking came with clear risks of failure, so the developers decided to take the famous spy character to his beginnings.
Back to the Origins
The new 007 game will not feature James Bond as a master agent, brimming with experience and class. Instead, it will take its audience back to Bond’s beginnings, and feature the origin story of this character. The game will open with Bond being a recruit for MI6, who is young, inexperienced, but very prone to reckless behavior. Here, the players will set out on a daring, globetrotting adventure that should provide James with his 00 status and its famous license to kill. The game’s trailer already showcases that it will be set in the third person and combine elements of combat and stealth. Besides, the game will feature driving and vehicle chases as a major gameplay mechanic as well. All of this will be, naturally, set in some gorgeous locations, spanning the globe. For James Bond fans of all ages, all of this will likely seem like a winning recipe.
Character Appeal
One of the reasons why IO Interactive agreed to make a new Bond game was to be completely free from many previous versions of the same character. This means that the young Bond in their game will not be based on any older cinematic or literary incarnations. The same will be true for both his personality and physical likeness, both of which should be completely original. This shows a big focus on the direct character appeal of the 007 franchise. No matter whether they are Bond’s allies, lovers, enemies, or even main villains, the series managed to capitalize on the appeal of these figures. That is the reason why the game’s trailer showcased an array of different characters, all with plenty of personality and uniqueness, none more so than Bond himself.
Elegant Simplicity
Similarly to several other successful AAA projects from recent years, it seems that 007 First Light is working hard on presenting an elegant game but ultimately grounded as well. Young James Bond is very much someone who should relate to the average gamer who buys the game and slowly becomes immersed in this world of espionage, thrills, and dangers. By steering clear of the baggage of previous films and even games, IO Interactive is practically rebooting the series for new gamers and old Bond fans alike. The reactions to that decision have been positive and show that the creators correctly gauged the sentiment of the audience. The game is still months from its release, but with a solid promotional campaign, its commercial success seems more than possible. This shows that presently, gamers want to reach for products that combine the old and the new in an immersive manner. Getting that combination in the right proportion is hard, but the ultimate goal of many big studios should be clear – like IO, they should think about old and established intellectual properties. If they do get these, however, they have to focus on breathing a brand new life into them, just like it seems that the James Bond character will get with his new game.
Author: Ivica Milaric, game designer and assistant professor of game design at the Novi Sada Academy of Arts, Republic of Serbia