On May 27, the new James Bond game ‘007 First Light’ was released on PS5, Xbox Series X/S and PC.
The game was developed by IO Interactive, the studio behind the creation of the ‘Hitman’ franchise.
The origin of 007
The game tells an original story about the famous British agent, exploring his origin as he sets out to earn his licence to kill.
Bond, depicted as an inexperienced 26-year-old, is assigned a mission that will grant him ‘00’ status upon completion.
The story also features reimagined versions of classic Bond characters like M, Q and Miss Moneypenny to show how they shaped the agent’s early career.
A new version of Bond
‘First Light’ marks the first major James Bond game to be released since Activision’s commercial failure ‘007 Legends’ in 2012.
Upon the failure, Activison’s non-exclusive licence to the franchise was revoked, which led to a hiatus for the character until IO Interactive first announced their game’s development in November 2020.
Irish actor Patrick Gibson (‘Dexter: Original Sin’) portrays the young agent, who was “stunned” upon learning of his successful casting.
Considering no new film adaptation or actor had been announced since the previous Bond, Daniel Craig, IO Interactive had flexibility to craft their own version of the character.
The studio found a balance between honouring the character’s legacy while also providing a unique spin on his story.
American singer-songwriter Lana Del Rey is the voice behind Gibson’s Bond theme, ‘First Light’.
She previously submitted a theme proposal for 2015’s ‘Spectre’, but was rejected.
Adding to the newly-imagined version of the character, audio director Dominic Vega stated that the young Bond has to earn the mantle of the Bond theme as the game progresses.
MORE ON FIRST LIGHT: Lana Del Rey fulfils her James Bond theme song dream
A successful release
In 24 hours since release, ‘007 First Light’ sold 1.5 million units.
Various aspects of the game have been applauded, including the impactful writing, memorable secondary cast and the close-quarters combat system.
The experience of playing as this new Bond has also been praised, with TechRadar especially comparing its cinematic feel to “truly playing a James Bond in a movie”.
Others commented on the originality of Gibson’s version of the character and noted the unrefined and empathetic nature of this iteration.
Hakan Abrak, the IO Interactive CEO, expressed his hope to develop the game into a trilogy where fans can grow with their younger Bond.
The game is now available to play on PlayStation 5, Windows and Xbox Series X/S, with a Nintendo Switch 2 version scheduled for later in the year.
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Shameeka Voyiya 
Newsjustnews writers 
Mary Mae Balasanos