The 007 franchise is probably one of if not the first franchise I fell in love with as a kid. I honestly don’t think I have any affinity to any other cartoon series or toy line from the 90s. All I can remember is watching James Bond Jr.
Okay! That might be a bit of hyperbole. But the memory of watching James Bond Jr was triggered when a certain game for the Nintendo 64 was released and became a cultural phenomenon. It was at that point that I learned who James Bond actually was and that there were so many movies about the guy!
This is actually where a lot of my fandoms and interests kind of intersected. From video games to action movies, cars to gadgets, spies and the Cold War. To be fair, if it wasn’t for James Bond, I might not have discovered socialism and communism. And now I identify as a Marxist-Leninist. You think I’m joking, but Western “propaganda” about the most suave, smooth and sophisticated British secret agent got me interested in the USSR.
But this article isn’t about my interest in seizing the means of production. It’s about the new 007 game being made by IO Interactive! Sony just dropped a 30+ minute video on Wednesday showing off a few parts of the game. They also announced the release date. So let’s dive in!
Bond, just wait by the car…
The first part of the video was a nearly uninterrupted play through of the first mission of Bond fresh out of training. I’m glad we’re supposed to be getting an actual origin story (at least in video game form).
It shows Bond with at least two other agents, including Lennie James (of Walking Dead fame). They are approaching a chateau deep in the mountains that’s hosting a high stakes chess match. Branding is in full display here as they are riding in a Jaguar XJ.
This is definitely a departure from other Bond stories mainly because he’s going in alone. Here it’s excusable because he’s the green agent who isn’t really battle tested. Lennie James’ character, Greenway, has said so in trailers for the game.
Getting back to the game, Bond parks the car in a parking lot where you can see other cars that may or may not look like car brands you’ll recognize. I thought I saw an Aston Martin, but couldn’t really verify it. From their, you play the game a lot like Hitman. You try to blend in, find clues, gain access to areas through creative methods. Ya know, the thing that IO Interactive did very well with the World of Assassination games. That DNA is all over this game, and not in a bad way. I feel like this will be a very welcome site for Hitman fans. This might prove a bit challenging for me, though.
In the interest of time…
The demo then skips to the action set pieces that I normally come to Bond for. This is where IO takes a different approach to gameplay. Normally, in a Hitman game, if you’re entering into a firefight that’s game over. This is not because you’ve been caught, but because you have been outgunned. However, in 007’s universe, that’s never the case.
The demo picks up after what I assume is 007 getting caught and are chasing your target through the mountainous area. It starts off with a car chase in a car that looks like a Mustang, but is legally distinct from one. The chase seems to remind me of the old Stuntman game from the PS2 where you drove your car into specific zones near pyrotechnics to make it look like an action movie. The game even had a spy thriller level.
After the car chase, you end up in an airfield where you are tasked with stopping a plane from getting away. This is where Bond is granted his “license to kill” (literally), becomes a indestructible tank, and dumps tons of bullets into enemies and exploding barrels. There is CQC combat that will allow you to take weapons off enemies in the event you run out of bullets in the gun you’re holding.
After shooting your way through “we have Range Rovers at home”, a stair car crashes into you so you can drive it to the plane, hop on the top, take care of more enemies and infiltrate the plane. From there, you hack the plane and move it left and right to shift the cargo from side to side to handle enemies. You then place your Q watch (which looks like an Omega) that doubles as a bomb on to the plane and seemingly fall to your death until you grab a falling henchman, knock him out, and take his parachute.
007 as a Royal Navy Knife
The video spends the back half explaining all the things Bond can do to achieve his mission. His handgun is neither a Walther PPK or P99, but the Q Pistol. His watch can not only explode but poison enemies and cause other distractions. But I’d be remiss if I forget to mention his most deadly weapon is his charm!
This wait’s gonna take forever…
As a huge fan of the 007 franchise, I’ve been eagerly awaiting a new entry for quite some time. When I learned that IO Interactive was going to take a crack at it, I felt it was going to be in great hands seeing what they’ve done with Hitman.
While previous games focused mainly on the shooting aspects with the actual story and investigative bits tucked into quick cutscenes, it was nice to actually see what I think is a complete package for a Bond game. Being able to infiltrate, gather intel, quip a little bit, and the inevitably fuck it up with some action, I can’t wait to get my hands on this game.
And while it will fill like forever, I know it won’t be because the game will be available on March 27, 2026 for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, Nintendo Switch 2 and PC!
