Bright Lights of Svetlov

With few missions, an awkward structure and no sprawling sandbox, 007 First Light's TacSim mode stands little chance of matching Hitman's brilliant postgame.

007 First Light is finally here, and it's clear that IO Interactive is already planting the seeds for Bond's future.

Confident and charismatic, James Bond's long-awaited return to games is the best since GoldenEye.

IO awkwardly welds together two schools of game design.

The magic of 007 First Light is in the bluff. When IO Interactive's young James Bond is caught out yet again trying to sneak through some restricted area, he has numerous ways to resolve the situation. Gadgets. Fists. Guns. Whatever's lying on the nearest surface. But the most novel, and in some ways most satisfying, is simply to blag it. Pressing Circle (on PlayStation) will cause Bond to blurt out some impeccably improvised lie, stunning guards into second-guessing their suspicions and opening a brief window for Bond to slip by. Read more