by Aaron Schwitzer, Editor
The last time I pre-ordered a video game was Gotham Knights and that turned out to be a poor decision. I was such a big fan of that franchise with Batman: Arkham Knights being the last game I preordered prior to Gotham Knights. And $70 feels like too much to pay for most games that wind up being discounted to $40 in a few weeks or months and will just get buried in my backlog for years anyway. Nevertheless, the lack of Bond games for the past 14 years and my excitement for IOI taking over the licensing made this an easy decision to break my streak. With about 14 hours into the game at about 75% progress, I can’t help but love 007: First Light while also feeling like there is a lot missing here.
It is always weird when a new Bond arrives on the scene. I remember pushback when Daniel Craig was cast and many were aghast at the prospect of “Blonde Bond.” Craig and his films won so many fans over, so I don’t think it’s a wild take that he is my favorite Bond. Still, I was and am excited to see the next iteration of the world’s most famous spy and Patrick Gibson is certainly bringing his own voice to the role. We haven’t really ever seen a youthful Bond, which makes this take wholly unique, leading to the game’s biggest downfall.
My issues with this game stem from the fact that IOI is making a completely original tale that pays homage to the film franchise, but doesn’t feel handcuffed to it in any way, leading to a disconnect between the Bond we know and the Bond we are presented here. Bond is a complete rookie in the story and the 00 program parallels that with a sudden interest in reinvigorating the defunct program. Naturally he lacks experience compared to Bond in previous games, but he also feels less confident. The Xbox360/PS3 era was lacking in the utilization of Q-Branch and while this game uses gadgets cleverly, there are still only a small handful of gadgets to choose from. Compared to the dozen ways you can use webs in the recent Spider-Man reboot, the options here feel limited. I miss the silly and impossible gadgets of the Agent Under Fire era, and I certainly miss the wailing theme song whenever you did a “Bond Move.”
There is plenty to love with the game, as stated earlier, so I do want to spend time praising it. From a visual standpoint, it is impeccable. I’m playing on an Xbox Series X, and the graphics are consistently high quality, I have yet to have a shudder in frame rate, and the loading times are reasonable for the product it produces. There are several moments where you approach a new area and the camera pans to introduce the setting in such a Bond way that it makes me forget I am supposed to continue playing. Likewise, the audio in both dialogue and music are top notch and as much as I am eager to finally hear the 007 theme, I know it will pay off in the end.
The gameplay is some of the cleanest I have played in quite some time. Moving from cover to cover, silently taking down enemies, and gadget use all feel seamless. The weapon combat feels pretty stagnant if you want to play it like a straight shooter (Like Treyarch’s Quantum of Solace), so it almost forces you to get creative and have fun with the multiple ways you can approach a mission. Much like the map, the game encourages a sandbox playstyle, so there are a million ways to finish both your enemies and the mission. As an extra bonus, there is even a button configuration to perform my favorite combat move – throwing the gun at your enemy!
The story feels lackluster so far, but I do feel connected to the characters. Ultimately, I feel like I’m playing the next generation of Hitman games with an MI6 skin rather than a James Bond game. Maybe it’s because that run of 007 games from Goldeneye to Blood Stone has no bad games and with licensing being all over the place, they are impossible to play on modern consoles, I just miss the silly and often thoughtless games. It takes time to adapt to something new, and I genuinely think this is for the better of the game franchise, but my frustrations are pretty common when you make a prequel or reboot of an iconic franchise.
Playing 007: First Light leaves me incredibly excited for a sequel that features a more established Bond with more gadgets but doesn’t ultimately leave me satisfied. I’m hoping that the remainder of the game, a second play, and some time in Tac-Sim changes that perception and makes me ashamed to have written this column in the first place.
007: First Light is available to play on Xbox Series X/S, Playstation 5, PC, and is available for Pre-order on the Nintendo Switch 2
You can follow Aaron Schweitzer on Twitter and Letterboxd