007: First Light’s Newest Dev Diary Has Audio Director, Composers Discussing Sounds and Music

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IO Interactive has released a new installment of its “Beyond the Light” series, offering a look at the making of the upcoming game, 007: First Light. This episode highlights the game’s music and sound design, featuring interviews with missions and audio director Dominic Vega and the composers from The Flight. You can watch it below.

When discussing the sound design for 007: First Light, Vega explained that the audio team at IO Interactive approached their work differently than the rest of the developers. While others were busy with initial concepts, the audio team needed to immediately consider details like the characters, environments, and recurring musical themes.

According to Vega, the heart of a Bond film has always been about the character and the story he’s involved in. From the beginning of production, the creative team develops the overall concept and visuals. However, the audio department immediately begins to focus on the musical themes for each character, the unique sound of the film’s locations, and what sounds and accents will be needed to bring the world to life. They start planning the acoustic landscape of the film early on.

As we prepare for each development phase, we create simple, initial designs and start gathering resources. Simultaneously, we begin building and testing the core technology right away. We quickly sketch out ideas and collaborate closely with our designers, which makes for a very creative and motivating workflow.

IO Interactive primarily relied on its own teams for the project, but they also brought in outside experts when necessary. For example, The Flight led the internal music team for 007: First Light. They collaborated with talented soloists for specific instruments and even recorded all the brass parts at the renowned Abbey Road Studios, featuring some of the world’s top musicians.

The composers behind The Flight discussed their work on the game, explaining they brought their unique musical vision when they joined IO Interactive. They intentionally avoided making drastic changes, aiming for a classic sound while still incorporating their own style and ideas.

One of the strengths of the Bond franchise is its longevity. Because it’s been around for so long, it’s adapted to many different musical styles. As kids growing up in the UK in the 80s, watching Bond movies with our fathers every Christmas, we developed an innate sense of what ‘sounds like Bond’ – whether it’s a specific musical figure, chord progression, or melody.

The game 007: First Light will be available on PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X/S starting May 27th. A version for the new Nintendo Switch 2 is also in development, but its release has been pushed back to sometime this summer. You can also check out the game’s theme song, performed by Lana Del Rey, for a sneak peek.

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2026-04-20 16:41