In-Development Trilogy from Hitman Devs to Feature "Young Bond"

IO Interactive has finally unveiled more details about their upcoming title, Project 007! Read on to discover more about the project based on the legendary spy, James Bond.

A Younger James Bond Takes Center Stage in Project 007IO Interactive Aims for Project 007 to Initiate a Trilogy

The studio behind the critically acclaimed Hitman series, IO Interactive, is setting its sights on one of the most iconic characters in cinematic history—James Bond. Their upcoming game, currently titled Project 007, isn’t just aiming to be a standalone adventure. In a recent interview, IO Interactive’s CEO Hakan Abrak expressed his desire for Project 007 to mark the beginning of a brand-new trilogy, breathing new life into Bond’s universe for a fresh generation of gamers.

Since the announcement of Project 007 back in November 19, 2020, there has been a growing buzz around how the studio famous for stealth and espionage with Hitman will translate these skills to a Bond game. Speaking to IGN in an October 16 interview, Abrak has teased that the game is progressing "wonderfully well" and will introduce players to a younger version of Bond—one before he earned his iconic double-O status.

"What’s exciting about that project is that we actually got to do an original story," Abrak shared with IGN. "It’s extremely exciting with all the tradition and all the history there is… to work on this together with the family of creating a young Bond for gamers; a Bond that the gamers can call their own and grow with."

Abrak highlighted how the studio has been preparing for this project for over two decades. With Hitman, IO Interactive became known for crafting immersive, stealth-driven experiences, and it seems Project 007 will tap into these strengths.

However, James Bond presents a different challenge. As Abrak puts it, this is the first time IO is working with an external intellectual property (IP) rather than something they’ve created in-house. "James Bond is a different IP. It’s a huge IP. It’s not our IP… I just hope that we’ll do a thing that will define James Bond in gaming for years to come," Abrak said, adding that the goal is to create a "universe for gamers to own for many years to come that we can grow with that next to the Bond on the movies."

Abrak’s ambitions for the series don’t stop at a single game. He envisions Project 007 as the foundation of a trilogy. "It’s not a gamification of a movie," said Abrak. "It’s completely beginning and becoming a story, hopefully for a big trilogy out there in the future." This echoes the success of IO Interactive’s Hitman series, which has seen Agent 47 traverse the globe on deadly assignments over three critically acclaimed installments.

Project 007’s story remains under wraps, but some key details have emerged over the passage of time. We at least know that, according to the game’s official website, it will feature "a wholly original Bond story," where "players will step into the shoes of the world’s favorite covert operative to earn their OO status in the very first James Bond origin story."

As mentioned, it has been confirmed in an interview with IGN that it will have no connection with any of the actors who have portrayed Bond in the films. Speaking to Edge Magazine back in 2023, Abrak did, however, mention that this version of James Bond will have "a tone closer to Daniel Craig than Roger Moore." Project 007 will show a much younger James Bond, during his early days as a clandestine operator—before he became the suave, skilled spy we know today.

Project 0007 Gameplay

Likewise, we know nothing concrete about Project 007’s gameplay, save for what Abrak mentioned to Edge Magazine back in 2023: "The few other breadcrumbs we’re able to pick up in the office suggest… a more scripted experience than Hitman’s freeform jaunts," Abrak said. "It’s been pitched as ‘the ultimate spycraft fantasy,’ which suggests gadgets—and perhaps a step away from the murderous objectives of Agent 47."

Moreover, the game will likely be a third-person action experience, as suggested by job listings from IO Interactive. According to PlayStation Universe, back in July of 2021, listings emerged that emphasized a focus on "sandbox storytelling" and "cutting-edge AI," which might indicate that players can expect a dynamic open-ended approach to missions similar to the Hitman series.

Project 007 Release Date

Though we don’t have a release date yet, the anticipation continues to build, especially with IO Interactive teasing that the game is progressing exceptionally well. Even Abrak couldn’t contain his uncontainable excitement for the game when he told IGN that, "I don’t have an update today, but believe me, it’s itching here as well to be talking about it soon… I know it was a little teaser, not a lot of information, but there’s a lot of exciting stuff coming up. We are also very excited and when we are ready with that, we’ll be opening up."