A New James Bond Video Game From 'Hitman' Developer IO Interactive Will Tell The Secret Agent's Origin Story

The first James Bond video game in eight years is on its way, and it's coming from IO Interactive, the respected developer behind the hit Hitman games. Intriguingly, it will be a "wholly original story" that tells the origins of Bond and how be came to be the world's most famous martini-sipping secret agent.

James Bond is no stranger to the video game medium. The secret agent has starred in over two dozen video games for a variety of consoles, often in first-person shooter games that only hone in on one aspect of 007's glamorous job. So it's almost a surprise that James Bond has not yet had a game under IO Interactive, the developer behind the acclaimed Hitman games, which blend humor, stealth, action, and espionage in a way that would be perfect for a story centering on the British spy.

But we'll soon be getting just that with Project 007  (working title), a brand new Bond video game with

"a wholly original story" from IO Interactive, which will be the first video game to tell the James Bond origin story, IO Interactive announced Thursday. A teaser trailer loaded with Bond imagery and that familiar theme tune teased the project, which is described as:

"Featuring a wholly original Bond story, players will step into the shoes of the world's favorite Secret Agent to earn their 00 status in the very first James Bond origin story."

IO Interactive is currently in the early stages of development on the Bond game, recruiting "elite talent from around the world to join the team that will build out this exciting and unique gaming title" on its website. IO Interactive are working on Project 007 in collaboration with MGM, EON Productions, and Delphi.

"It's true that once in a while, the stars do align in our industry," Hakan Abrak, CEO of IO Interactive, said in a statement to Entertainment Weekly. "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."

Robert Marick, MGM's Executive Vice President Global Consumer Products and Experiences, added, "Working with our partners at EON and the talented team at IO Interactive, we plan to bring a new take on this legendary franchise to gamers and Bond fans around the world. IO Interactive are masters of crafting living, breathing worlds of immersive storytelling."

This will be the first Bond game since Activision's release of 007 Legends in 2012, which followed with a downloadable Skyfall-inspired mission. Bond has been active on video game consoles since 1983, with the release of James Bond 007 on multiple consoles, but it really exploded with 1997's GoldenEye 007 on the Nintendo 64, a massively popular and influential first person (and for me, very hard!) shooter that transitioned to a more realistic gaming style and helped pioneered atmospheric single-player missions and multiplayer death matches on home consoles. A new game from IO Interactive seems like it could be that next evolution of Bond games, given how complex, flexible, and rewarding their Hitman games have been.

It's uncertain whether Project OO7 will feature Daniel Craig's Bond, who will be making his last appearance in the upcoming No Time to Die, scheduled for theaters on April 2, 2021, or if it will be the new Bond who takes the mantle. Or if the game will recruit its own Bond, unique to the game. We shall see.