007 First Light Review: From Origins with Love

My name is Bond, James Bond! It's almost inevitable to start this way with 007: First Light, the work that renews the "license to kill" and marks his return to the world of video games thanks to IO Interactive, the development team known for creating Hitman and the infallible Agent 47, a notorious assassin who always knows how to complete every assignment. In any case, IO Interactive is not just Hitman, and without mincing words, they proved it with 007 First Light in an operation that was not so simple: to give prestige to a product that not only did its homework well but was also able to enhance and bring back into vogue the agent in Her Majesty's Secret Service.

A new story, therefore, that (in a sense) rewrites the character's origins, a young 007, cocky, reckless, and disinclined to follow protocols or take precise orders. An evolution magnificently constructed, effortlessly, with due diligence, leading us to undertake such surreal feats not seen since Goldfinger. 007 First Light embraces historical fans, the most loyal ones, those who have read every Ian Fleming novel and know this roaring and long-lived agent inside out. Such accurate fidelity surprised us but, at the same time, also manages to embrace those who want a heart-pounding experience, sometimes surreal due to the frenzy of action and at the same time tempered by a strategic approach honed in the field by the developers.

Someone might associate 007 First Light, or rather, hastily define it as a mix between Naughty Dog's Uncharted and Hitman. And in a certain sense, there is something in common, but we believe that this video game is a work that embraces different tastes and projects us into an unprecedented, cinematic story, but to be experienced firsthand with a controller in hand. And can you imagine? Thanks to our passion, we can enjoy a brand-new James Bond and savor an entire, unprecedented epic. What wonders can still be created with this medium?

A Mission Full of Opportunities

To be faced with such an important name as James Bond and 007 is a great responsibility, especially in the video game world, where some missteps have been made, and probably the only noteworthy video game was the never-forgotten GoldenEye 007 on Nintendo 64. A considerable burden for IO Interactive, which seized the opportunity to test itself, to develop all the opportunities the franchise could offer, and to create a unique, distinctive chapter, an original action-spy game that would delight everyone.

A dream that came true, let us tell you, not only for the character's consistency (also characterized by the scar on his cheek as in the novels) but also for telling a new story based on the origins of a young James Bond, before he was "assigned" that double-zero and the matriculation number seven. No one is born a secret agent, and we will discover this in the first minutes of the game when, somehow or perhaps due to a determination worthy of an elite fighter, our hero manages to survive an attack on his military unit, finding himself, despite himself, collaborating with MI6. 

And it is in those difficult moments that a soldier's worth is seen, but not just any soldier, no sir, a reckless, impulsive (sometimes) and determined one to achieve the objective. And even if the results are not always as hoped, with some small problems left here and there, James Bond somehow manages to leave his mark, to get noticed, and to grow as an agent who deserves that double-zero on his chest, damn it, he deserves it!

007 First Light, while telling a story full of emotion and action worthy of an action blockbuster, lets us experience the growth of young Bond, not only as an agent in the field but also as a man: a person capable of enchanting, bluffing, flirting, and drawing his service pistol at the right moment, but only when it doesn't violate any protocol, by the way. In short, Bond gets noticed by MI6, the UK's secret service, which wants to train him and make him a valuable asset in the field. And we will also meet some of the key figures of the franchise, including Q, M, and Moneypenny, not to mention Bond's friends/colleagues (Cressida and Monroe) and instructor Greenway (later a relevant figure in the narrative).

007 First Light impressed us thanks to a narrative/gameplay loophole that we found almost brilliant: Bond's training. This phase is told with a cinematic flair that takes us from one training sequence to another, staging a combat training story while also giving us the fundamental notions for battle, climbing, stealth attacks, and phases where we will have the "license to kill." Succeeding in this endeavor is certainly not easy, and this confirms that the creative team's experience is fundamental to successfully execute such a maneuver.

Experience, exactly, the magic word that is fundamental for developing convincing and harmonious gameplay, and which at the same time wisely combines stealth phases with, excuse the term, more "boisterous" ones. 

Don't Get Caught: You Only Live Twice!

From the very first moments in the shoes of young Bond, you'll need to pay attention to your surroundings, be as silent as a hare, surprise the various villains, and put them to sleep with a stealthy finishing blow. It's so evident how the stealth soul is born from the experience gained with Hitman, where we will be called upon to exploit the enormous environmental potential at our disposal and which will not compromise the positive outcome of the mission. Each area will be full of clues that will be useful for finding opportunities and progressing: we can, in fact, eavesdrop on conversations to extract information about our target, disguise ourselves to infiltrate anywhere, or, even better, bluff the locals with our splendid patter that will leave them almost perplexed.

The opportunities available are quite generous, and in the long run, it will be fun to choose new strategies to discover slightly different outcomes from the original choices. This reminds us of the most recent Hitman games (here, our review of the third chapter), it's true, but let us say that everything has been lightened, and the game will never be so "punishing." The gameplay approach is quite different; no downed guard will or can be hidden, and progression is much more immediate. And besides, the license to kill is always present, but we'll get to that shortly.

In short, in 007 First Light, in addition to snatching warehouse keys, climbing gutters, vaulting, hiding, and striking stealthily, we can unleash our technological gadgets, equipment capable of making a difference out there. James will be equipped with a Q-Watch, a cutting-edge hacking device capable of bypassing most electrical circuits within a short range: the possibilities it offers are numerous and capable of creating quite good diversions (such as taking control of an airplane's control system and tossing opponents left and right). No less important are the dart-shooting phone, to cause momentary nausea and dizziness to those who prevent our entry into a building, and the smoke capsules to launch a surprise attack and make a quick getaway. 

Gadgets are the highlight of any self-respecting 007, and choosing the right ones at the start of each mission can make all the difference: remember, however, to collect batteries or chemicals for the darts, otherwise you'll be unprepared when it's time to put some lurking villain to sleep. 

The story mode of 007 First Light accompanied us for about 16 hours with a few game overs on normal difficulty: an excellent entry level to experience this, even if you have little experience with the genre. However, the Tacsim mode extends longevity, a virtual experience in which to improve skills and use the tools at our disposal creatively to solve challenges. Completing simulations earns information and experience points, which will increase access level, making new gadgets, outfits, and weapons available. 

The only flaw, if we wanted to call it that, is given by an AI that is not always impeccable, sometimes tending to be a bit too "distracted" and following rather linear and shallow patterns. And as if that weren't enough, as soon as someone notices our presence, a battalion of villains will rush forward, ready to make us eat dust (and respawns are not so immediate). In this case, however, taking them down is decidedly satisfying. 

We also like to highlight how 007 First Light deepened the relationship with other team members, even outside the mission, making us live a comprehensive experience, interspersed with car chase sequences and explosions worthy of a Hollywood blockbuster. 

License to Kill, Activated!

Don't for a moment think that during a mission you can pull out your pistol and become a sharpshooter. 007 First Light sets limits, and the use of brute force is only allowed if we have no other escape options: in that case, the license to kill will be activated. In that scenario, in addition to the service pistol, we can retrieve various weapons from opponents (perhaps mid-air while we deliver a good elbow) and riddle the unfortunate target. Not only that, you can choose to shoot them in the legs to make them stumble, opt for a headshot, and slow down the action to achieve a perfect bullseye.

But before using weapons, James can unleash the art of hand-to-hand combat, implemented incredibly well. In these circumstances, and to contain the danger, we will have to combine a series of attacks, break their guard, perform grappling moves, and smash the opponent's head into a display case that will shatter into a thousand pieces. During the brawls, we will witness decidedly explosive moments, so satisfying they rival the greatest action films in cinema.

The experience on console (PlayStation 5 version, tested by us) was truly illuminating, in the sense that the title maintains almost constant 60 FPS in performance mode, despite some understandable graphical imperfections. The difference with quality mode is not so noticeable, so our advice remains not to sacrifice gameplay stability. The DualSense implementations, namely haptic feedback and adaptive triggers, are also excellent. 

007 First Light does not represent gaming and cinematic perfection, but it comes close, reminding us why we have always loved that mocking smile of a legend who, inextricably, is a piece of history!