Last year, some exciting news dropped on the doorstep of gamers everywhere: James Bond is back in the world of video games! As IO Interactive’s Project 007 is set to return the super spy to consoles and PCs for the first time since 2012’s 007 Legends, a new era of Bond games is about to kick off. According to IO interactive's in-studio head Hakan Abrak, that freshness extends to the spy in the tuxedo himself, as we’ve been warned not to expect a digital avatar of Daniel Craig, or any other 007 actor, playing the role.
Speaking with the Danish Broadcasting Corporation (via IGN), Abrak provided some of the first details of just what Project 007 is going to entail. While there’s no time frame for production or release mentioned, the rough plan for what this new game is supposed to do has been provided. Hakan Abrak set the following expectations for what fans can see in James Bond’s return to consoles:
We have been allowed to make our own digital Bond, which will not lean on a Bond actor. We also come up with a completely original story, and you could easily imagine that a trilogy could come out of it.
Gone are the days where video game tie-ins like Goldeneye or Quantum of Solace are sent to shelves to promote the latest film. So whether No Time To Die holds fast to its 2021 date or gets pushed into 2022, Project 007 isn’t trying to rush its way to shelves to cash in on Daniel Craig’s big swan song. However, this also means that you shouldn’t expect a game like Blood Stone, Nightfire or Everything or Nothing, which take a familiar face, like Pierce Brosnan, and drop him into a new adventure written specifically for the digital realm. Project 007 is going to forge its own path, which means all sorts of crazy things could happen.
Even more ambitious is the fact that Hakan Abrak totally lays out the intention for Project 007 to become a trilogy of games, much like IO Interactive’s reboot of the Hitman series, which saw its third installment hit shelves earlier this year. Which only means that if James Bond fans want to get a taste of just how IO Interactive landed the Bond license to thrill, it might be a good idea to pick up a copy of Hitman III and just pretend that Agent 47 is Agent 007. Though that shouldn’t be too hard to imagine, considering Hitman II already had players hunting down Goldeneye villain Sean Bean:
If you’ve found yourself frustrated about not knowing who the next 007 will be in the post-No Time To Die era, then you’re probably going to see yourself wound a little tighter without the knowledge as to who will be Project 007’s leading man. Though if it helps any, there’s a good chance that the look of this digital 007 won’t be that of a singular actor, which only leaves the question of who will lend their pipes to the phrases and dialogue that make James Bond an intriguing hero to follow. So try not to get to shaken, or stirred, as all will be revealed in time.
