Here’s Hoping 007 First Light Isn’t Another Victim Of The AAA Curse

Ever since I played GoldenEye a good 20 years ago, I’ve always admired the idea of a James Bond game. Of course, we never really got anything else as impressive all these years, but how I wish I could go back now and tell the 6-year-old me, “You will be rewarded someday.” This is what I felt when the 007 First Light trailer came on my screen for the very first time. Just six days left to go now, and I can’t be more excited.

Still, as the launch comes closer, so do the doubts. This is one game I sincerely want to be an absolute banger, and that’s only possible if it tries something new and unique rather than just building upon Hitman in some way. James Bond and Hitman are two very different things, and all I want from this game is to maintain that. I’ve read a lot of previews, and they seem to favor my thoughts, too, but after so many botched AAAs recently, can you blame a guy for wavering a little? So grab a 007 First Light Eneba key, a hopium tank, and join me.

007 First Light – Will It Be Peak James Bond?

I’m as diehard a Hitman fan as they come. From the amazing conclusion of Codename 47, where you kill an army of yourselves, to the unrivaled mission design of Blood Money, and finally, the utter variety of approach in the remake trilogy, Hitman has been one hell of a journey for me. I personally prefer the older ones (except Absolution, of course), but there’s no denying IOI has done a great job with the remakes.

But now, 007 is a whole new realm, and demands a totally different style of presentation than Hitman. The social sandbox elements, of course, but all the blazing action, snarky attitude, parkour, close-knit encounters, and more make up the whole James Bond experience, and fitting it all naturally into an interactive experience is easier said than done. I have faith in IO’s capabilities, but this game is too big a deal for me personally, so naturally I’d want it to be perfect, selfish as that may sound.

My mind is just blown away by this game 🤯
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If you ask me, 007 needs to look beyond the Hitman roots and try something completely new and unique. Nothing can be accomplished without some creative risks, which AAAs hardly take these days. First Light will be a lot more impressive as a creative wildcard rather than playing it safe with the Hitman core and some parkour or social interactions sprinkled in between. It needs to be “James Bond.” Well, the world runs on hope, and I’ve got a ton of it. Let’s wait and see.

Indie-Level Creativity Is Needed

With how the AAA industry’s been lately, I hardly ever get hyped for a major release. Blockbuster visuals, inflated budgets, equally frustrating development cycles, and all that just to play it safe with established ideas; this is the grim reality of gaming in the last couple of years. Due to absurdly high costs, AAAs just don’t have the margin for a risk these days, but is reusing the same-old concepts the gaming we know and love?

AAA games have lost any and all creativity
byu/JTP709 ingaming

All the more reason why indies are carrying this industry on their small-budget shoulders. You won’t find more love and appreciation for creative gameplay and out-of-the-box design choices anywhere else. Instead of caring about hyperrealistic visuals or how to wring out the most cash out of players’ pockets, these passion projects are all about devs trying their best to make a “game,” and that’s what this medium is truly about.

I’ll be honest, I was a AAA slave my whole life, but it’s only around 6-7 years ago that I started seeing indies for what they really are: gaming’s savior. You stumble across a short and sweet game that makes you appreciate fun gameplay again, and this feeling is all I want. Thus why I hope 007 First Light is something so incredible it makes me relive those GoldenEye days. With some strong game design choices centered around James Bond’s personality and quirks, IOI can reinvent this Stealth-Action hybrid genre once again.