IO Interactive has revealed the official name of its upcoming James Bond video game, 007 First Light, which is in development for PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X/S.
007 First Light Release Date
IO Interactive hasn’t confirmed a release date for 007 First Light yet, but its Steam page currently lists 2026. Based on our hands-on preview (below), the game already feels close to completion, so if a date isn’t announced tonight, we expect it to launch in early 2026.
- 007 First Light release window: March 27, 2026
007 First Light Preview from GamesCom 2025
IO Interactive was hosting 30-minute presentations throughout Gamescom 2025. There was a presentation almost every half an hour at the show, and as more and more people saw it, whispers of “Have you seen the Bond demo, yet?” “You seeing 007?” began to spread through the people-filled halls of Kolnmesse’s business area. This meant that by the time I saw the presentation on Thursday afternoon, I was already pretty excited about what I was in for, especially since everyone I had talked to was impressed by the presentation.
Well, nothing could have prepared me for how exciting 30 minutes of gameplay could make me because 007 First Light is IO Interactive at its most confident. It is unashamedly taking the studio’s core Hitman experience and meshing it with the action-packed setpieces and moments from Uncharted. The result is a cinematic, action-adventure that makes it feel like you are about to relive the heart-stopping thrills and intuitive infiltrations that make the Bond movies so special.
A Natural Next Step
One thing that really sticks out with 007 First Light is just how perfect a fit IO Interactive is for Bond. While it made a lot of sense when the game was first announced, you have to see the game in action to really understand how IO Interactive’s gameplay formula perfectly matches with Bond as a character.
The Hitman games are all about improvisation and using anything at your disposal to take down targets or outwit guards. That core is still here, but it has been shaken up. The mission we saw took place in a lavish manor and was the perfect setting to showcase this. Bond could observe key opportunities to enter the building, such as an open window or a pipe on the side of a wall he could climb. He is then able to use sleight of hand and various gadgets from Q to allow him to capitalise on those opportunities. One example we saw is the fact that he was able to use a lighter to set a pile of leaves on fire in a wheelbarrow, distracting a guard and allowing him to sneak by.
You can pick up items throughout a level to use for these opportunities, as well as store them for later on, potentially using them for a leg up later in a level or after completing an objective. Upon seeing the gameplay directly, it was surprising just how much of Hitman’s DNA is in 007 First Light, which is sure to really delight fans of the series, as IO Interactive isn’t completely abandoning what it does best.
The studio is definitely flexing its muscles, however. The same level of experimentation and creativity has been infused into the combat as IO Interactive is having to craft orchestrated shootouts and combat scenarios, rather than the stealth sandboxes they are used to. Alongside a look at the more open, choice-based environment levels, we were told that the game will have a number of linear, setpice driven levels. But the level we saw also transitioned from a more open experience to a linear, action-packed chain of setpieces as it progressed, so there will be a lot of variety here to keep shaking things up throughout the game.
Gameplay and Combat
Combat takes those core tenets of Hitman and expands them to create mini-arenas where you can fight your way, improvise and take people out one by one as opportunities strike.
You can sit back and pick people off from afar behind cover. You can engage in hand-to-hand melee combat from cover to quickly take down targets in stealth or as they are hunting you down. You can kick someone down a set of stairs. You can throw a weapon at them. You can even push someone in one direction, use that momentum to push them off a ledge and cushion your fall with their body.
It felt incredibly dynamic, and it all looked fluid and flowed excellently as the fight played out. Bond will kick up a weapon with his foot in the middle of a fight, he will push bodies away with ease when it suits him, and dash from cover to cover in stealth with a handy little crouch hop.
007 First Light’s combat had glimmers of The Last of Us Part 2’s combat, which allows for some captivating sequences where every action flows from one another with ease. This fight then transitioned into a jaw-dropping setpiece that felt ripped right out of the Bond movies. Chasing after his target on an airfield, Bond swings into a giant mobile crane and drives it across the airfield as he runs over people trying to stop him and dodges explosions.
A little later, he then jumps out of the plane and skydives from person to person, also falling from the plane to chase after his target. It was a high-octane ride. It was a sequence that feels like one of those impossible scenes from the movies that you will not be able to play yourself in 007 First Light, and the prospect of the game being filled with them has me extremely excited, especially if they are even half as excellent as the one I saw.
Recreating Bond’s Characteristics
The final aspect that really stood out if how technically impressive 007 First Light was. While the game’s visual quality and environments are stunning, and the grandiose palaces and houses of the Hitman series are back, I want to highlight the attention to detail, which stood out more.
Whether it was the remarkable reflections in the hood of Bond’s car as he drove to the mansion in the mission or the sweat under Bond’s eyes, it is clear IO Interactive has made some substantial engine upgrades and by offering up curated levels, rather than open sandboxes, it has been able to put a lot more detail into every aspect of the environment and Bond’s own animations.
For example, as he was exploring the manor, Bond walked near a balcony and brushed his hand along the edge of it as he walked by. It’s such a small moment, but it stood out because it felt so natural to how humans move and interact with the world, and it felt intentionally Bond in a way inspired by Craig’s recent films and the way he would move through an environment. The same goes for the dialogue, as Bond often used witty dialogue and quips to get himself out of sticky situations in our demo.
IO Interactive has pulled key aspects from the character across his different depictions to create a Bond that feels true to who the character is, even during the early stages of his career when the game is set. You aren’t playing a wooden action hero.
Other highlights technically were how, during a car chase sequence, the car slowly fell apart as it continued, with the metal frame slowly falling off and a number plate hanging as Bond hit obstacles and passed across rough terrain. Additionally, the game’s explosions are incredibly pretty, and the level of destruction during gunfights, such as the way boxes crumpled under gunfire, stood out compared to other action games.
At the end of the demo, I left wanting to play the whole of 007 First Light right then and there and to see what other kind of magic IO Interactive was conducting to make the game feel truly and wholly Bond. Upon its reveal, I wasn’t entirely convinced by 007 First Light, and I felt that a gameplay showcase would help me better understand what the game was going for.
Well, after seeing 30 minutes, I can say IO Interactive’s smart mix of Uncharted and Hitman looks like a winning formula, and the level of detail on offer should make it an absolute delight for almost anyone looking for the next great cinematic action adventure.
007 First Light Price and Platforms
The price tag for 007 First Light hasn’t been revealed yet, but if we consider its similarities to HITMAN World of Assassination in size and scope, we can safely expect the final price to land anywhere between $49.99 and $59.99.
According to Releases, 007 First Light is in development for PC, PS5, Xbox Series X/S, and Switch 2.
007 First Light Trailers
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