IO Interactive, the creative force behind the wildly-successful Hitman franchise, has found a new espionage-adjacent sandbox to play in. This morning, the developer announced that they’ve reached an agreement with MGM and Eon Productions to create Project 007, the next video game starring James Bond.
James Bond has a long and (mostly) storied legacy when it comes to game adaptations, but Activision bowed out of the spy game in 2012 after the release of 007 Legends, which resigned the Bond license to a state of semi-retirement (much like the character himself in On Her Majesty’s Secret Service, License to Kill, Skyfall, and the upcoming No Time To Die).
However, IO Interactive isn’t interested in the end of Bond’s career, but rather the beginning. Project 007 will serve as a “James Bond origin story,” and it won’t just follow the beats of Daniel Craig’s Casino Royale either. The game is said to be “a wholly original Bond story” that will be told “exclusively” as a video game.
“It’s true that once in a while, the stars do align in our industry,” said Hakan Abrak, the CEO of IO Interactive, “Creating an original Bond game is a monumental undertaking and I truly believe that IO Interactive, working closely with our creative partners at EON and MGM, can deliver something extremely special for our players and communities. Our passionate team is excited to unleash their creativity into the iconic James Bond universe and craft the most ambitious game in the history of our studio.”
Project 007 is currently in development for “consoles and computer screens,” and a Teaser Trailer has been embedded above.
