IO Interactive has released the official story trailer for 007 First Light, an action-adventure video game that tells the origin story of James Bond. Watch the trailer above, then read on for key story details and what IO says makes it stand out.
Origin story before legend
The trailer, released at Sony’s PlayStation State of Play, positions 007 First Light as the least sophisticated Bond. It’s a bit dangerous for a rookie to be talented, sharp, and convinced that his instincts are always right.
After coming to MI6’s radar during an early mission in Iceland, Bond is drawn into the newly revived 00 program. Actor Patrick Gibson (Dexter: Original Sin) portrays him as inexperienced and sometimes reckless, which quickly affects the structure of his new world. The film leans into the tension, interspersed with set pieces that flit around from location to location, from scrambles along cliffs to shootouts on rain-soaked rooftops to the chaos of close-quarters combat in more public spaces.
Priyanga Burford’s M (who also played Dr. Symes in the Bond film No Time to Die) emerges as an unlikely champion who sees his potential even as he forces him into a system that values discipline over improvisation. Training instructor John Greenway (Lennie James, The Walking Dead), a former 00 agent, seems like the sharpest obstacle in the room. I’m not particularly interested in Bond’s habits of being precise, exacting, and doing things his way.
A bigger threat arrives with the return of former British agent 009, who has gone rogue, and forces Bond and Greenway to the scene together. From the Carpathian Mountains to the Aleph black market, the chase introduces new characters like Bauma (Lenny Kravitz) and the mysterious Charlotte Ross (Noemi Nakai), whose loyalties and motivations are intentionally kept vague.
IO Interactive CEO Hakan Ablak said: “With 007 First Light, we set out to reimagine the origins of James Bond, exploring the formative moments that shaped the James Bond as the agent players know, but stopped short of making him a legend. This is a version of Bond who is still inexperienced and finding his footing in the world of espionage, but already defined by the instincts, intelligence and determination that set him apart.”
Stealth with forward movement
Stealth has clearly been a mainstay in IO’s Hitman history, but the studio has been careful to frame it as something unique. Trailers suggest a faster, more aggressive rhythm, with Bond navigating danger in a way that feels more like continuous problem-solving under pressure than a slow, patient build-up.
In an interview with Game Informer, gameplay director Andreas Kroe compared the approach to Hitman, emphasizing the change of pace, saying, “Hitman was a game that thought about[stealth]as puzzle design. We’re bringing that same type of stealth to Bond.” “But the key difference is that with Bond, we always strive for forward momentum gameplay, whether it’s combat or stealth.”
“In Hitman, we had some setups where we wanted you to take your time and observe the situation and poke around a little bit to see what would happen. In Bond, you can take your time to observe the situation, but obviously there are options at your fingertips that you can use to see what happens and move forward. We want to reduce decision-making time so that we can always keep moving forward and be a little faster.”
Release date is fixed
007 First Light will be released on May 27, 2026, and players who pre-order digitally will receive 24-hour early access (May 26). The game will be available on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, Nintendo Switch 2, and PC.
IO Interactive / PlayStation
