I started playing the new James Bond video game, 007: First Light over the last week, my interest piqued by it being described as Hitman meets Uncharted (and Hitman being a cousin of sorts to the stealth action of Metal Gear Solid1). A few hours into the game, I’m glad to say that in addition to the game being incredibly fun, it’s also an impressively good James Bond game.
What do I mean by that? That’s a question that’s been bouncing in my mind as I play the game — what is a good James Bond game? The term theming is used in board gamesto describe how the abstract concepts of the game are dressed up to mean something. The same thing applies to video games: one could, in theory, take the programming/controls/level design of Super Mario Bros and change the art to be a bunch of wombats or only gray blocks. The theming of a moustachioed plumber jumping on turtles is part of the charm. A James Bond game could then, in theory, be a reskinned Uncharted-esque action blockbuster or Hitman but with Bond instead of Agent 47. The game could even just be Metal Gear Solid 3 with the serial numbers filed off, keeping all the gadgets and espionage (and “Snake Eater” which is one of the best Bond themes).
As it turns out the Bond theming in First Light goes beyond just slapping a fresh coat of paint on established games. Sure, the Uncharted influence is clear — a sequence has the player chasing down an escaping plane as chaos erupts around them — as is the puzzle-playground of Hitman where you scope out the level and decide a route to get your target. But there’s also a unique streak of James Bond DNA throughout. And I don’t just mean gadgets that give you a bunch of creative options. While on missions, there is a distinct demarkation between the normal areas where Bond is exploring the area and assessing options and ‘restricted areas’ where Bond will get in trouble if he’s seen and, should a bluff fail, may have to punch his way out. It’s only when all hell breaks loose that you’re able to start shooting. The game’s name for this mode? License To Kill.
It’s a small (and perhaps obvious) detail, but it also demonstrates how the game ties together the disparate parts of a James Bond narrative. By separating normal exploration from sneaking and sneaking from gunfights, the player is forced to, well, become James Bond. You can’t try and beat up everyone in sight to get into a fancy gala, nor can you shoot your way out of every problem. Being James Bond means smooth-talking through problems and hatching ingenious solutions to get around and the game makes doing that as vital to the gameplay as the car chases you go on.
But perhaps where the game most embraces its source material is outside of the missions. A staple of a James Bond story is the lead up to the mission itself, where M gives him the mission and Q the gadgets. A video game version of that could make that beat into a mission briefing screen or a cutscene, like Armored Core VI or XCOM. First Light instead makes that whole sequence playable. After listening to M’s instructions you, the player, guide James Bond through the MI6 building to Q Lab where you can look at all the gadgets and mad science going on before talking to Q to get (and test) your new gear. Then you walk through the building to Moneypenny’s office for the briefing. By letting the player engage with the MI6 building and actively poke around Q Lab, the game draws the player into the world of James Bond. You’re not just watching the briefing, you’re taking part in it.
So when I say that First Light is a good James Bond game I say it because it feels like James Bond. The narrative has that romantic spy fantasy that the idea of a ‘classic James Bond story’ evokes and the gameplay itself plays into and enhances it. It’s made by the studio behind Hitman and it is definitely influenced by Uncharted, but First Light is its own thing, and that thing is decidedly a James Bond game.
- Which in turn borrowed a lot of James Bond’s trappings in Metal Gear Solid 3. *
* Which in turn I believe heavily influenced the latest James Bond movie, No Time To Die. **
** Man, I love how art is able to influence and draw on other works. ↩︎
Essays, Not Rants! 