James Bond is one of the most iconic characters in cinematic history. The British spy has survived several reboots and reincarnations, and even made the jump to video games. Unfortunately, the last game to feature the unmistakable Agent 007 was Activision’s poorly-received 007 Legends from 2012, and the series has been AWOL from gaming since then. That might be about to change, though. Hitman developer IO Interactive has announced Project 007, a new game set to release sometime in the future. Here’s everything we know so far about the upcoming title.
The First James Bond Origin Story
While it’s hard to tell based on the few details we have about the upcoming title, it looks like this will be the first time fans get to step into the shoes of an entirely original version of the secret agent. IO co-owner Christian Elverdam recently spoke to Eurogamer, and revealed that the game will follow an “original” Bond in order to give players a brand-new experience. It’s unclear what format that will take, but the stealth gameplay used in the Hitman series could certainly work well with the license.
The Project 007 team is also working closely with the film production entities behind the franchise, including EON Productions and MGM. This will help ensure that the game stays true to the canon of the franchise, and also provide some interesting plot points. In addition, IO’s use of their proprietary Glacier game engine will likely allow them to create some visually stunning missions.
It’s not clear what platform or platforms the final game will launch on, but it’s expected to release for modern systems and devices. IO’s last major release, Hitman 3, launched on PS5, Xbox Series X & S, and PC. The studio’s commitment to bringing their titles to as many different platforms as possible makes it likely that Project 007 will see a similar release.
The exact date of the release is still a mystery, but IO has promised that the game will arrive “sometime in the future.” While 2022 seems like a plausible launch window, the studio isn’t really at full steam on the game yet. IO is currently hard at work on the Seven Deadly Sins DLC for Hitman 3 and is still hiring for some important positions.