007 First Light unveils its gameplay and release date

September's State of Play is entirely dedicated to 007 First Light, the new game featuring the iconic secret agent in Her Majesty's service. Behind the game's development is a stealth specialist, the Danish studio IO Interactive, already known for the Hitman series. 007 First Light shows us James Bond from a different perspective: younger and impatient with authority, but always with his charm.

007 First Light Gameplay

The long deep dive at State of Play opens with a driving session: it's a quiet road trip, preceding the actual mission and serving more to create the right atmosphere, with dialogues between Bond and his passengers. Almost as if to clarify that not all vehicle sessions will be so quiet, later we will also witness a chase, where our car will speed headlong, with off-road excursions and exaggerated jumps.

Side note: the cars in the driving sessions are, of course, two British models, a Jaguar and an Aston Martin. Once the operation's location is reached, IO Interactive moves on to show us the stealth mechanics and interaction with NPCs. Infiltration is preceded by route identification and some small environmental puzzles to distract onlookers, although perhaps the AI seems a little too "prone" to not noticing young Bond moving where he shouldn't.

Later in the mission, there's also room for a third-person shooter session. IO Interactive strongly emphasizes the spectacularization of gunfights and makes no secret of it: more than the gunplay itself, the booming explosions that follow seem to matter. The mission takes an even more hyperbolic turn, continuing on a plane and then... mid-air. The message seems clear: 007 First Light is not afraid to exaggerate, a concept that doesn't seem wrong in the context of a James Bond game.

When and where 007 First Light will be released

After this first taste of the mission, IO Interactive shows us other gameplay sequences where Bond is engaged in another infiltration. If this first, long contact with the gameplay of the new James Bond game has intrigued you, know that the release is set for March 27, 2026. The most famous secret agent will appear on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, Nintendo Switch 2, and PC.

The first gameplay trailer for 007 First Light