007 First Light review – a flowing thriller that blends occasional sandboxy spying into an exotic rollercoaster ride

007 First Light is built on the bones of IO Interactive’s Hitman, and makes no effort to hide that fact. But it’s far from just Agent 47 in a wig and doing his best posh English boarding school accent. The section that properly convinced me of this, ironically, is when First Light gets closest to resembling one of Hitman’s murder sandboxes.

James Bond has been Bondily bundled off to a remote resort in Vietnam, to help solve some bureaucratic bother with his trademark extreme Bondulence. Arriving in the guise of toff holidaymaker St John Smythe, wearer of a garish pink shirt and short shorts, Bond immediately starts being a smarmy dick to the staff. There’s a clear difference between this behaviour and Bond’s usual mannerisms, despite both being strains of the same insufferably establishment Englishness that infests the southernmost reaches of Sadness Island like a particularly nasty case of genital warts. Bond is a smug git, a symbol of mainstream English aspirations and ideals as he’s always been, but he’s got enough unique substance behind his buttery witticisms and self-satisfied grin not to be an insufferable presence.

As with all of his predecessors, Patrick Gibson’s Bond drips with privilege and leads a life no regular person can relate to in anything more than very abstract terms. Yet, I’ve still really enjoyed spending time in his designer loafers. In this Vietnam mission, he wanders around The Pearl, the exact sort of ludicrously luxurious paradise for the ultra-rich that IO have become masters of bringing to life through years of CEO-death-backdrop-sculpting for Agent 47’s ops. For a lot of its runtime First Light is a deliberately pacey romp from action set piece to infiltration sequence, but here IO pump the brakes just a little, freeing you up to hunt opportunities to make three targets swallow one of Q’s magical techno-cocktails. These sections aren’t as complex or leash-free as a Hitman level, but the eavesdropping on conversations and finding ways into restricted areas nails a similar rush.

Rather than poisoning drinks so he can follow queasy guards into the loo and nick their clothes, Bond relies on a suite of special watch-powered MI6 gadgets to get what he wants. Staff get briefly blinded by a quick blast of his watch strap-mounted laser so Bond can pilfer their keycards, the same vomit-inducement 47 relies on is dispensed via a dart fired from 007’s phone, or a camera flash can be used to fire a stunning burst of electricity. Oh and the classic pen that doubles as a rocket launcher is also present and accounted for, in case things get really hairy. Hitman’s always had its own gadgetry, but First Light’s emphasis on these cartoony contraptions certainly helps its more open sections not feel like a bald assassin tribute act. Bond also has a power MI6 could only dream of bottling up. The ability to tell a big fat lie when caught in a restricted area, which temporarily pacifies groups of enemies so you’ve got a window to get in and out sharpish.

Though, the fact First Light’s designed from the ground up not to have both melee and gun combat be a last resort does a lot of the heavy lifting. Lest you fear you’re walking into Call of Duty, Bond’s bound by the strict codes of the MI6 rulebook not to go into massacre mode the moment the stealthy approach will no longer cut it. His first resort is his fists, locked and loaded for a fairly typical action game blend of sneaky button-press takedowns, quick bursts of battering to take down small groups before they call for backup, and open brawling based around punches, timed parries/dodges, and the ability to throw blocking foes into walls.

I’ve found the latter the toughest and most frustrating aspect of First Light. That’s not a total surprise. I’ve long struggled with timed parrying in games which aren’t charitable with their reaction windows, but Bond often feels like he’s given up on blocking towards the end of an enemy’s two-or-three-hit flurries. The kicks which finish such sequences are particularly nasty and absorbing just one tends to leave Bond barely standing. Melee hits from enemies on the standard difficulty might be tuned up a tad too high, with baddies feeling like they can tank about 20 punches while Bond’s done for in three to five tops. Ironically, I’ve had an easier time using my fists when I run out of bullets in gunfights than when the battle’s billed as a boxing match from the off.

In order for Bond to whip out his gun, someone has to shoot at him first, at which point he goes into licence to kill mode. An arsenal of pistols, rifles, SMGs, shotguns, and the occasional sniper rifle can be used to plink foes to death with bodyshots or take them out with a single uber-satisfying headshot. Well, unless they’re a tank, in which case they’ve had the good sense to pop on a helmet you’ll need to shoot off before turning their brains to mush in the name of king and country. While nothing totally fresh, First Light’s gunplay is slick and simple to get to grips with, and shootouts boast numerous enough enemies that you never feel like you’re breezing through too easily.

The brief driving sections, on the other hand, have clearly been designed to serve as no more than conveyor belts between action set pieces (and an opportunity to show off Aston Martin, Jaguar, and Land Rover’s brand placements). Cars, bin lorries, and even a dump truck have no tangible feel to them as you turn, jump and smash through objects. That said, these sections are never any more than brief breathers between being dumped back onto foot or into a cutscene, so the fact they’re miles away from what you’d need in a racing game or even the likes of GTA isn’t too big a deal. You’re far more concerned with watching the cinematic destruction unfold than you are trying to get a proper drift on.

Finally, get ready for some quicktime events, baby! You will press A to do push-ups! You will hammer X to break the grip of an enemy in the latter stages of a boss fight! You will push a different button to set off an explosion in very cinematic fashion! You will flick the right stick to tie a bow tie! You will also press Y to select one of seven watch strap colours! That last one, luckily for me, doesn’t have a timer attached to it. All of this is as meh as quicktime events always are, if a serviceable way of giving you something to do in set pieces that’re intimately choreographed.

As for the tale of Bondulence that these many secret agent activities power you through, it’s one that to my eye fits in well with the plots explored by Bond movies since the cold war sputtered out. Bond’s battles with the likes of international crime syndicate SPECTRE were arguably a bit ahead of the curve we’ve seen with the likes of military shooters moving away from traditional nation vs nation battles of jingoistic patriotism to more apolitical battles with felons or rogues. So is true here, with the central battle pitched around internal conflict over the future direction of MI6.

Here’s your warning to skip the next few paragraphs if you don’t want any spoilers more specific than that last line.

As IO teased prior to release, First Light’s conflict is a philosophical debate between man and machine. Its Bond starts off as a new recruit to a 00 programme restarted by a freshly promoted M following a decade or so of MI6 opting to entrust the thrust of their espionage to a supercomputer dubbed Theia, rather than flesh and blood superspies. Bond, naturally, is a complete counterweight to that data-driven approach, a brash and instinct-driven human positively overflowing with disregard for what the numbers say.

Initially, that recklessness sours most of his new colleagues on him, but because he’s brimming with charming Bondiness, he’s able to gradually break down everyone’s walls through the power of smiles and well-timed one-liners. The early hours, which are also very tutorial-heavy, focus on establishing Bond’s relationships with his fellow 00 recruits. Cressida and Monroe, the pair of them who become his flatmates, are given a commendable amount of fleshing out as decent mates despite being higher on the toff-o-meter than Bond himself. It all feels very much like a cheery spy university, up until a mission which turns Bond’s world upside down. The narrative’s breakneck pace doesn’t allow the spy lots of time to confront the shredding of his idyllic and chummy existence in the fashion a more expansive or openly structured game might. That said, it dedicates at least as much time to dealing with the loss as a Bond movie would. Young Bond also arguably isn’t yet at a point in his character arc where he’s endured enough emotional punishment that his stiff upper lip should start to wobble a bit more noticeably.

With that as the emotional underpinning, Bond and his more experienced superiors also grow closer as they grapple with the threat that emerges, the emotional journey that the young spy and his dour mentor John Greenway go on being a particular highlight. Encounters with mysterious thief Isola Vale, more than a match for Bond in the wits department, also stand out memorably. The baddies, on the other hand, aren’t very memorable. Lenny Kravitz’s African underworld overlord Bawma, for example, makes a surprisingly brief cameo that ends rather unsatisfyingly. Reverberating around the entire plot thematically is the subject of AI, how it’s used, and how much humanity should be comfortable relying on it. While a Bond game’s never going to pause the action to write a thought-provoking essay delving deep into all of arguments at play in that particular nest of wasps, in my estimation First Light’s writers have done a good job of not getting lost in buzzwords and presenting the issue of the day in a way which matches the fairly down to earth tone they’re going for.

Right, we’re out of spoilerville.

Overall, 007 First Light’s a thoroughly enjoyable romp I recommend to any fan of the Bond films, games, or IO’s work on Hitman. It certainly lacks the replayability that’s long been one of the strongest points of the latter’s sandbox levels, so the ability to enjoy a more linear action world tour’s a must. Well, unless First Light’s more arcadey tactical simulation mode, which has you replay mission sections with quirky new rulesets à la Hitman’s escalations, really takes off. As of right now, though, I think the main story’ll remain First Light’s calling card.

With that in mind, I reckon its legacy will be more in line with that of MachineGames’ Indiana Jones and the Great Circle than any of Agent 47’s recent adventures. A reference-stuffed blend of game and movie built on the tried and tested foundations of a well-established developer’s main offerings. One well worth seeing the credits of, even if you put it down for a good while not long after they roll.