First 13 Minutes of 007: First Light Unveiled, and It’s a Mixed Bag

007 First Light is finally launching this week, with the official release on May 27 for those who resisted the FOMO pre-order urge (May 26 for the eager ones). However, it seems that a few players managed to snag the disc early, prompting the developers at IO to release the first 13 minutes of the game in 4K on YouTube, allowing us to experience it “as intended.” You can check it out below.

As IO warns, “Spoilers ahead, so if you’d prefer to save it for your in-game experience, it’s best to avoid this!” If you’ve been eagerly anticipating this game since its announcement in 2020, you might want to hold off on watching until you can dive in yourself. But if you’re curious about how the team behind Hitman is tackling the legendary spy, here’s a glimpse of the beginning:

To me, it oddly resembles a Call of Duty cutscene. I’m not a die-hard James Bond fan and lost track of the series during the Daniel Craig era, but I expect a Bond film to kick off with some outrageous stunt, like skiing down a mountain while taking out faceless foes, not with a dull scene featuring men in a helicopter that could belong to any shooter from the last several decades.

After that, we get a full minute of almost nothing, before a young James is seen floating underwater like an in vitro baby. Then you hit L to start the action, and it definitely feels like a video game.

And I mean, it really feels like a video game. It’s dark and rainy, you’re hiding behind rocks, crouching in tall grass, mashing that triangle button, and shimmying along cliff edges. He sidles through tight spaces, and oh my goodness, he squeezes sideways through a narrow cave opening. It’s reminiscent of every Tomb Raider and Uncharted, but with the lights turned off. Where’s my jetpack chase? Where’s the mid-air fight without a parachute? Why isn’t he wearing a plastic crocodile on his head?

Sure, we want a stealthy experience, and this is what IO excels at. But I’m genuinely surprised by how dreary and generic this opening feels. I’m confident the full game will showcase thrilling sequences and spectacular stunts, because, after all, this is IO. But wow, what a bland way to kick off a James Bond game.

The voice acting seems solid, and we know that at least three hours of the game are a blast. So I’m still looking forward to playing it later this week when it releases. But man, what a strange way to start a James Bond adventure.