I Played 007 First Light

IO Interactive makes a Bond game that mostly earns the license

June 9th, 2026

Ten years ago, playing Uncharted 4, I remember thinking Naughty Dog could make a great James Bond game. Apparently I wasn't alone - IO Interactive's 007 First Light has drawn a lot of comparisons to Naughty Dog's game, and after almost twenty hours with it, I can say those comparisons are fair. Going in, though, I expected a faster-paced Hitman. Most of the ingredients were already there in that trilogy, and IO knows that sandbox better than anyone. First Light lands somewhere between the two, though its Hitman-like sections are easily the most polished parts of the game.

In First Light, while the stealth and open-ended sections feel great (which is no surprise given IO's pedigree), the action sequences are a different story. The controls and gameplay for those sections are more in-depth than I expected and mostly feel good, but there's a jankiness to some of it that the game can't quite hide. That matters more here than it would in a lot of games, because First Light is clearly trying to blur the line between game and movie. It also seems to encourage stealth but forced me into some challenging hand-to-hand combat early on. I eventually got the hang of it, but I felt so overpowering that I no longer felt like I needed to sneak around. More often than not, it all clicks and the action feels as natural as breathing: shooting, tossing a gun when you run out of ammo, and transitioning straight into a brawl with the limited ammo pushing you forward. It genuinely looks and feels like a movie at times, but it's not always that smooth (especially in the beginning) and the illusion can fall apart pretty hard.

The story was pretty good too. Licensed game writing tends to be weak, and IO has never been known as a studio that leads with narrative. My expectations were low, but the tone and presentation are confident from the start. It's not as grounded as the Craig films or as campy as Brosnan, but somewhere in between, which actually suits a younger Bond still finding his footing. It takes a few turns I didn't see coming, the characters are mostly fresh and likable, and by the end it feels like a real Bond story rather than a spinoff cash-in. The actor they cast in the role is well chosen too - convincing enough that I'd believe it if he ended up in the new films, however unlikely that is. The story never reaches any real emotional highs, and the dialogue isn't especially witty, but it stays engaging all the way through, which is more than I expected.

There are a few rough patches and a learning curve, but neither is enough to outweigh what the game does well. If you're looking to scratch that linear action-adventure itch, First Light is definitely worth your time.