Hitman developer IO Interactive recently teased that it had a big project in development, but stopped short of confirming what exactly it was. It's now been confirmed that IO Interactive is working on a brand new James Bond game, currently known by the working title Project 007. What's more, Project 007 will be an origin story for the world-famous spy, revealing how James Bond earned his 00 status.
Project 007 will utilize the Glacier engine, which powers IO Interactive's acclaimed Hitman games. Further details on what exactly the gameplay will entail or what else the game will feature are hard to come by at the time of this writing. All that's been said by the developers is that Project 007 is being developed in collaboration with both MGM and Eon Productions, which should go a long way in ensuring that it is of higher quality than licensed video games are typically known for.
While the Project 007 teaser trailer is light on details, one has to imagine that the game will share a lot in common with IO Interactive's Hitman games. It's pretty easy to see how the stealth assassination gameplay of those titles would translate well to a James Bond spy thriller, so it will be interesting to learn more.
Of course, James Bond has a rich history in video games. James Bond video games have been produced since the early 80s, and GoldenEye 007 on the Nintendo 64 is considered by many to be one of the absolute best video games ever made. The World is Not Enough on the Nintendo 64 received strong reviews as well, though no James Bond video game adaptation has ever quite reached the same heights as GoldenEye.
The most recent James Bond video game was 2012's 007 Legends, which was, unfortunately, not well-received. Developed by the now-defunct Eurocom, 007 Legends was widely panned by critics at the time of its release, and Bond has yet to make an appearance on home video game consoles since. It having been so long since the last James Bond video game released works in Project 007's favor, though, as it means Bond fans should be hungry for a new game.
Before Project 007 hits store shelves, IO Interactive will need to finish development on Hitman 3. Hitman 3 is set to launch at the end of January for numerous platforms, allowing those who own the previous two games to carry their maps and progress over to the new installment. Hitman 3 looks like it will please fans of that franchise, and hopefully it will keep IO Interactive fans busy until they can get their hands on Project 007.
Project 007 is in development for unspecified platforms.