Forget 007 First Light, We Could Have Had LEGO James Bond Instead

Once upon a time, we almost had a LEGO James Bond game. Now, after the success of 007 First Light, we could finally get one.

007 First Light is a solid 9/10 game, which is exactly what the review by GAMINGbible’s own Olly Smith says. Olly described the game as a “remarkable achievement” by IO Interactive and said that it’s finally a game that gets Bond right.

Honestly, it’s only let down by a bit of jankiness and some pointless boss fights. Definitely one to keep an eye on come Game Award season.

007 First Light is now being hailed by many as the best James Bond game, but that’s only because LEGO James Bond never came to fruition…

License To Build

Back when Traveller’s Tales made good LEGO games, a pitch was presented for a new game adapting stories from the James Bond films.

Several iterations of Bond would have been playable, with scenes from the films being parodied with that iconic LEGO humour.

The concept trailer was shared a few years ago but was struck down due to copyright. You might still find it online somewhere though.

Traveller's Tales

Now, as far as LEGO game concepts go, this was a fantastic idea, so what happened? The 2006 Bond film Casino Royale is to blame.

Daniel Craig’s first outing as the world’s most famous superspy was quite a different adaptation of the character popularised by Ian Fleming. It was a much darker depiction with no clever gadgets from Q-Branch, nor cars with ejector seats installed. Instead, Bond finds himself going undercover for one of the most intense poker tournaments in human history, and strapped to a chair for the most painful-looking torture scenes ever brought to the cinema.

It’s a great Bond film but the darker tones didn’t help Traveler’s Tales' pitch for a LEGO title. It apparently didn’t feel like the right fit for a young audience despite Indiana Jones getting a LEGO adaptation a couple of years later. You know the series where someone gets their face melted off by the Ark of the Covenant?

However, we’re living in a different time now. The films that followed Casino Royale retained the darker themes to an extent but there was still levity and humour.

007 First Light also strikes the perfect balance between the campy tones of old-school Bond films with more modern flourishes. Bond is consistently funny but serious when the situation calls for it, and while there’s plenty of violence, it never feels gratuitous.

You could absolutely adapt the Bond films in LEGO games now. The question is, which ones? LEGO Star Wars The Skywalker Saga had to support nine films, which meant the overall pacing suffered as a result.

In comparison, there are over two dozen Bond films, making it a fool’s gambit to try to do them all justice.

Ideally, each iteration of Bond would get one of their stories adapted into LEGO form, with maybe 007 First Light thrown in for good measure.

You can’t tell us it wouldn’t sell well, especially with First Light ushering in what’ll hopefully be a new golden age for 007 games.

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