Even with the prior knowledge that 007 First Light would be an origin story, the sight of IO Interactive's youthful James Bond was still a bit of a shock to the system. While there will of course be elements of a quintessential Bond, I was curious to know how this assassin-in-the-making would differ from the older versions we've seen on the big screen. After sitting in on IO's Summer Game Fest showcase in Hollywood, I grabbed cinematic and narrative director Martin Emborg to get a profile on our baby-faced Bond, and also dug into gadgets, villains, and what sets First Light apart from not only past 007 games but also the Hitman experience.
Aston Martins, a watch that makes flames shoot out the back of a motorbike, a tendency to bend the rules - judging by the reveal trailer, 007 First Light certainly ticks a lot of the expected boxes for any interpretation of James Bond. While he may not yet have mastered some of his more advanced assassination and spying skills, young Bond already has the character's iconic wit. Emborg describes him as someone who can "talk his way in and out of trouble and is endlessly charming," and that makes up a "core" part of his presentation in First Light.
Another aspect of his character that the books and films often highlight is Bond's resourcefulness, but Emborg believes that a lot of past 007 games have neglected this aspect.
"I believe the earlier games have been a little one-note, I would say, and they lack that key quality of James Bond that is that he will very often solve a problem in a way that you didn't expect," he tells me. Speaking specifically on his use of gadgets, Emborg says that Bond usually "ends up using them in ways [Q] didn't foresee, oftentimes breaking them."
While all of these Bond hallmarks will be present, IO is trying to break some new ground, too. The spy we know is an "aspirational hero," one who is "fully accomplished." He can woo just about anyone. He can fly and drive pretty much any vehicle you put him in. He can rough up even the hardiest of hard men. We know exactly how he likes his cocktails. While that all makes him an enjoyable, familiar action hero to watch, read about, or play as, Emborg says that it can also make him somewhat unrelatable.
"[Our Bond] doesn't know any of that stuff when we meet him in First Light. So it's interesting being on that journey with him and also having that emotional growth. When we meet him, he's not cold in the way that he will be eventually. There's definitely an emotional journey that people need to embark on."
Another narrative element crucial to any Bond story is the villain. While IO isn't ready to reveal First Light's antagonist right now, I can't help but try and extract a morsel out of Emborg.
"It is a really important thing - having a good villain is just the alpha and omega if you want to have a good Bond story," he says with a smile. "So I will say we approached it very carefully and deliberately, and we spent a lot of energy on making a great villain, but that is probably all that I can say. We tease it a little bit in the trailer."
Given all the parallels that existed between James Bond and IO's beloved Hitman stealth game series, even before the reveal of First Light, I've been curious about how this new 007 game will differentiate itself. The stealthy sandbox and third-person combat of Hitman is absolutely here, but this isn't just a reskin or replication of the formula.
Hitman is "the story of death coming to call, and then you can basically make that a comedy or a tragedy," Emborg explains. It's a story that you can "manipulate" and play mostly how you want. Unlike the relatively blank canvas that is Agent 47, Bond "needs a whole other level of momentum and character [development]."
"It has to be about him. It has to be what he's going through and needs to do," Emborg says. "We do want to deliver on some of the IO pedigree by giving you that creative control, that creative approach - [the question of] 'how do you want to do this?' is always there, but not to the extent [of Hitman]."
In of pacing, Emborg also summarizes that Hitman often requires "patience," whereas 007 is more about "urgency." Judging from these comments and the gameplay snippets we saw in the reveal trailer, I'd predict that 007 First Light will find a middle ground between Hitman and a pure action adventure experience like Uncharted, but it's encouraging to see that IO is still leaning into its strengths and hallmarks as a studio.
With the 007 First Light release date arriving next year, there's still a lot to learn, but these early insights into how IO is going to tell its Bond origin story are pretty enlightening. While his boyish appearance is going to take some getting used to, seeing a different side to the character is an exciting prospect. I hope that IO strikes the right balance between telling this "emotional journey" and delivering some memorable action, though, as too much of one and too little of the other may see it descend into the one-note territory of past games that IO is trying to avoid.