In one of the most exciting pieces of gaming news in recent times, IO Interactive has finally released the announcement trailer for the James Bond game. It’s titled 007 First Light, and the game was revealed to fans during the Sony State of Play showcase, and the trailer was later dropped on YouTube. According to the trailer, the game seems to pay homage to the films by including several interesting details which help differentiate 007 from any other agent with a licence to kill. While an exact release date hasn’t been communicated by the Danish game developers, the game is all set to release in 2026 for Microsoft Xbox, Windows PC, Sony PlayStation 5, and the upcoming Nintendo Switch 2.
The game will focus on the early years of Bond, before he earned his credentials as MI6’s most lethal weapon, and even the tagline for the game is “Earn Your Number”. While this is just a sneak peek and games have a way of turning out to be very different from the trailer, it does look promising. To be clear, 007 isn’t winning any realism awards and going up in the upper echelons with projects like Red Dead Redemption, but the graphics do seem to hold themselves together. The trailer opens up with the director of MI6 (presumably M) talking to her subordinate about recruiting a young Bond. As portrayed in the books and the films, he is a talented, intelligent and efficient troublemaker who, if honed correctly, could become an asset.
We see some clips from the gameplay as Bond trains in the MI6 developmental programme in order to qualify for field duty. The first proper shout-out to the existing literature comes when he goes into the workshop to prepare for his first mission. Omega watches, dangerous gadgets and vehicles with over-the-top engine power – it’s all there. The game will also feature the forever iconic Aston Martin, and the trailer features what looks like the special edition DBS from 2019, which was built to commemorate 50 years of the film On Her Majesty’s Secret Service.
IO Interactive has made it clear that the narrative of the game itself is completely original and has not been picked up from any of the books or the films. With GTA 6 also slated for a 2026 launch, it will be interesting to see how this game competes with the most anticipated project of all time in gaming history.
