Last year, Ecco the Dolphin creator Ed Annunizata teased plans to remaster the first two games in the series and create an entirely new sequel. Ecco the Dolphin: Complete, announced by Annunziata's studio A&R Atelier, appears to be the result of that work. The game doesn't have a release date yet, but A&R Atelier says it combines the planned remasters and third title into "the complete, definitive Ecco the Dolphin experience, created by the people who made the originals." Complete includes "all versions of Ecco the Dolphin and Ecco: The Tides of Time," according to the developer, alongside "a brand-new contemporary Ecco game." Besides graphical improvements, A&E Atelier says the game will introduce "built-in speedrunning support, achievements and leaderboards," and things like the ability to create custom courses from existing levels. And while A&R Atelier's announcement doesn't include footage of the new game or the platforms it'll release on, the official Ecco the Dolphin website has a countdown clock that could point to when more information will be released. Annunziata sued Sega to try and win the rights to the Ecco the Dolphin IP in 2013, the same year he failed to get The Big Blue, a spiritual sequel to Ecco the Dolphin, fully funded on Kickstarter. Sega and Annunziata ultimately settled their lawsuit in 2016, which may have laid the groundwork for Ecco the Dolphin: Complete to happen.

Vampire Survivors developer Poncle has big plans for the future, according to an interview The Game Business conducted with the company's chief strategy officer Matteo Sapio. It's opening two new studios in Japan and Italy and has over 15 games in active development. That's a lot of action for a company primarily known for one franchise. Sapio says the company is developing three basic types of games. There are spinoffs to Vampire Survivors, like this week's deckbuilder Vampire Crawlers. Poncle is also making original IPs and says there are two games set in new universes coming down the pike. Finally, it's working on some roguelites with similar mechanics to Vampire Survivors, but using other IPs. We already know about one of these, a roguelite set in the Warhammer 40K universe called Warhammer Survivors. It's set to land on Steam sometime this year. To assist with these plans, Poncle has developed an engine that can turn pre-existing IPs into games that play like Vampire Survivors. If you're wondering if there are enough fans for multiple top-down roguelites with simple controls and bullet hell mechanics, let me point you to Halls of Torment, Deep Rock Galactic: Survivor and Soulstone Survivors, among many others. This has become a popular genre in recent years, likely due to the continued success of Vampire Survivors. To that end, the original game has surpassed 27 million players. Poncle has, however, paused all of its third-party publishing plans after releasing a couple of games last year. "It was a learning experience," Sapio said. "But we found that we weren’t able to give the right support." The company could revisit third-party publishing in the future. This is great news for Poncle and fans of the Vampire Survivors franchise, but there's always risk when a company tries to grow like this. Remember Embracer Group? It went on a massive buying spree beginning in 2019, before having to sell off and close a number of studios. However, this isn't a AAA game development studio. Poncle makes indie titles and the new studios will be lean operations, with "little teams of people." Sapio said this organizational structure will help keep the company "agile and flexible." I personally have high hopes for this endeavor. This is because the just-released spinoff Vampire Crawlers is so very good, which proves to me that Poncle isn't a one-trick pony. It plays like a mix of Slay the Spire with a first-person dungeon crawler like Etrian Odyssey, all while successfully capturing the vibe of Vampire Survivors. If Poncle can keep up this level of quality, gamers could be in for a long-term treat.

Control is one of my favorite adventure games of the last decade or so, a mind-bending trip through an ever-changing building where you get to use telekinesis to battle some pretty freaky enemies. It was a graphically-demanding game when it was released in 2019, but a lot can change in less than six years: Control: Ultimate Edition is now available on the iPhone and iPad for a mere $5, following its announcement last October. It’s a universal purchase, which means if you buy it it’ll work on the iPad, iPhone and Mac as well. Developer Remedy promises that it’s the full Control experience, with the DLC episodes included. Remedy rebuilt the UI and controls to make it work on touchscreen devices; the company says that it has tweaked aiming and the various puzzles to make them work better for the iPad and iPhone. But naturally, the game also works with controllers. If you’re serious about having the best experience with the game, finding a way to play with physical controls is probably a good idea. The game will run on iPhones with at least an A17 Pro chip. That includes the iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max, as well all of the iPhone 16 and iPhone 17 series. Plenty of iPad models can run the game, as well — any iPad with an M-series chip or the A17 Pro will work. That means the current basic iPad, with its A16 processor, is left out of the fun. But any iPad Air or Pro from the last four years or so should be good to go. I tried a test version of Control when I reviewed the new iPad Air recently and, unsurprisingly, the tablet’s M4 chip was more than powerful enough to make for a smooth experience. My main gripe is that when sprinting, you have to hold down the L3 button the entire time you’re running rather than just click it once, which is how it works on other platforms. Otherwise it looks and plays smoothly, though I can’t vouch for how it’ll perform on hardware older than the M4 from 2024. Control marks the latest “AAA” title to hit the iPad and iPhone. Apple has aggressively courted developers for its platforms in recent years, and while most games don’t hit the Mac or iOS when they launch, more and more are showing up eventually. There are multiple recent Resident Evil titles for the iPad, and other games like Death Stranding and Assassin’s Creed Mirage have been ported recently as well. There are others on the Mac as well, including demanding titles like Cyberpunk 2077 and Lies of P. Apple’s platforms aren’t going to be an avid gamer’s first stop still, but having high-profile games to supplement the many indie titles available helps round out the options for Apple users.

Yoshi's solo titles have always been a product of contrasts: lovingly crafted art styles belying somewhat thin gameplay meant to appeal to a younger audience. But after getting the chance to preview Yoshi and the Mysterious Book, it feels like Nintendo has created a cozy side-scroller that retains the accessibility of earlier titles while adding extra depth and replayability for gamers of all ages. As you'd expect from Nintendo's lovable green dino, Yoshi's moveset consists of familiar techniques like his signature ground pound, egg toss, extendable tongue and jumping flutter kicks, the latter of which now last longer than ever before. Seriously, if you get enough height, you can float across entire levels. However, one new mechanic is that Yoshi now also possesses a tail flick that allows him to toss certain enemies onto his back. Not only is this a nice twist after years of often being treated as a beast of burden by Mario and co., it also allows Yoshi to use whoever he's carrying to interact with other elements in the stage. By flicking a Crayzee Dayzee (one of the new flower characters) into his saddle, Yoshi can make plants bloom to earn stars and uncover secrets, for example. Instead of simply remixing the gorgeous textile-inspired visuals we saw in Yoshi's Woolly World and Yoshi's Crafted World, Nintendo opted for a treatment that looks like a children's bedtime story. The game looks hand-drawn, while also featuring a cell-shaded effect that adds extra depth and impact to characters and backgrounds. Animations have a sort of hitch (which I initially mistook for a bug) that gives them a stop-motion effect, as if you're seeing the pages of a flipbook whiz by instead of frames being refreshed on a digital display. But the biggest change in Yoshi and the Mysterious Book is that it's not a traditional side-scrolling format. In many ways, this title plays like a mix between an adventure game and a platformer. Instead of just running to the right as fast as possible, the game encourages you to explore, experiment, backtrack and see what kind of new hijinks Yoshi can discover. Don't do what I did and mindlessly run around and eat up every enemy you see, because there's a good chance they are more valuable alive instead of being turned into an egg. It's almost like Nintendo applied a similar approach to subverting expectations in Super Mario Bros. Wonder, but builds on that style of gameplay even more here. To really drive home the children's storybook conceit, Yoshi and the Mysterious Book gives you greater control over how you unlock and explore new levels. Instead of linearly moving from one stage to the next, you actually select stages by moving a magnifying glass over a new character, allowing you to learn who they are experientially. Collect enough stars from quests and you can decide where you'll go and who you'll meet next, while spending tokens found throughout each level allows you to reveal hints about how to find and complete specific objectives. Then, once you finish a stage, Mr E. (who is both the titular book and acts as the game's narrator), allows you to name each new character whatever you like. The one thing that may rub old-school sidescroller fans the wrong way though is that Yoshi doesn't take damage — for all intents and purposes, he's invincible. This is great for kids because they don't need to worry about running out of lives or looking for coins to heal. But after playing through a couple of chapters, I found that the game can still be quite challenging — the learning process is just a bit more forgiving. One objective required me to bounce off the heads of a series of Croakaokes (the chubby amphibians that make sounds when you jump on them) to the tune of "Mary had a little lamb" while trying to reach a high-up platform. If you play a note out of order or miss a jump, it's not game over, but you will need to start over from the bottom. And even without damage, enemies like Bunchabees will still chase you around and disrupt your adventuring if you try to ignore them. Yoshi's latest adventure might not be a super traditional side-scrolling platformer, but it offers a fresh take on the genre while also providing a new level of exploration and adventure for gamers of all ages. But I suppose the real test will be if it gets my own kid's seal of approval. Yoshi and the Mysterious Book is available for pre-order now for the Switch 2 before official sales begin on May 21 ($70 for a physical copy or $60 for a digital download).

Xbox is cutting the prices of both Game Pass Ultimate and PC Game Pass, effective immediately, but there’s one big caveat. First, the good news: Game Pass Ultimate now costs $23 per month, down from $30. PC Game Pass will now run you $14 a month instead of $16.50. The Xbox team noted in a blog post that prices may vary by region. That’s a smart, much-needed decision. In a memo that leaked last week, new Microsoft Gaming CEO Asha Sharma expressed concern over the high price of Game Pass, stating that it “has become too expensive for players, so we need a better value equation. Long term, we will evolve Game Pass into a more flexible system which will take time to test and learn around." Sharma reiterated that publicly in a post on X. In October, Microsoft increased Game Pass Ultimate to $30 per month, which was a 50 percent price hike. It was the second time in 15 months that the company had jacked up the monthly fee, making it an unjustifiable expense for many. The price of a PC Game Pass subscription also rose by $4.50 per month, and now Microsoft is bringing that back down a bit too. “Our players cover a wide breadth of geographies, preferences, and tastes, so while there isn’t a single model that’s best for everyone, this change responds to a lot of feedback we’ve gotten so far,” the Xbox team wrote. “ We’ll continue to listen and learn.” There is one giant tradeoff here: new Call of Duty games will no longer be available on Game Pass Ultimate or PC Game Pass on day one. They’ll eventually hit those tiers about a year later, during the following holiday season. That means Call of Duty titles will be the only first-party Xbox games that don’t hit Game Pass on their release date. This, of course, is an attempt to generate more revenue from one of the biggest gaming franchises in the world. Call of Duty is a major reason why Microsoft shelled out $68.7 billion to buy Activision Blizzard a few years back. While Call of Duty fans on PlayStation still had to pay full price for the last few annual releases to play them as soon as possible, Xbox and PC players have been able to hop in to them via Game Pass. (There’s still no sign of Call of Duty on Switch or Switch 2 as yet!) There had been rumors that Microsoft would carve out Call of Duty from the current versions of Game Pass and give those tiers a price cut. Chatter suggests that the company may introduce yet another, higher-level Game Pass tier (or an add-on) that will include day-one Call of Duty games, but there’s no official word of that as yet.

Nintendo has padded out the Switch 2 release slate for this summer by revealing that Splatoon Raiders is coming to the console on July 23. This is the first spinoff in the series and while it's a "single-player-focused Splatoon game," there is a multiplayer element. Nintendo announced Splatoon Raiders (the title of which is a soft pun on Tomb Raider) last June. You play as a mechanic and after customizing your character's appearance, you'll go hunting for treasure across the Spirhalite Islands. You'll be working with Deep Cut — a fictional band that appeared in Splatoon 3 — and upgrading your weapons as you take on enemy sea creatures. The colorful, inky action and wacky weapons in the latest trailer remind me a bit of Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart. You can mount Deep Cut member Big Man (a manta ray) as you venture into battle and it seems as though you'll be able to cut through swarms of bad guys by firing a shark at them. Alongside Splatoon Raiders, Nintendo will release an Amiibo pack featuring the three members of Deep Cut. The company also confirmed there's a multiplayer mode in Splatoon Raiders. You'll be able to team up with as many as three friends locally or online to take on raids together.

Sony is adopting new age verification policies for PlayStation users in the UK and Ireland. The company isn't making this a blanket requirement, but steps to confirm age will be needed to access "communication, broadcasting, and certain in-game features" beginning in June 2026. That includes essentials for online and social gamers, such as joining a party, voice chatting, text messaging or using third-party chat programs such as Discord. Some in-game communication tools, like chats or sharing user-generated content, will also only be available after an age check is completed. Although the new requirements will not be enforced until summer, users are already being prompted to get the verification process squared away. Several states and countries began adopting this type of legislation in 2025, pushing restrictions as a way to protect children and teens from inappropriate content. It seems the trend will be continuing into this year, despite the concerns about privacy risks and new questions about whether these restrictive laws are even effective at their stated goals, but companies have still been moving to comply. Discord was one of the more notable gaming-centric services to begin age verification policies last year, although the company did walk back some of its initial plans at the start of 2026 in order to better protect users' personal data and their anonymity. Roblox also began requiring age checks and those results were not great.

It's happening. Ubisoft has scheduled a livestream for April 23 at 12PM ET to discuss the long-awaited Assassin's Creed Black Flag remake. The showcase will be available to watch on the company's YouTube and Twitch pages. It's officially called Assassin's Creed Black Flag Resynced and has been rumored to be in development for years. Ubisoft ended speculation by announcing the game last month. We don't know anything about how the game will play or look, as Ubisoft has only dropped some promotional art featuring protagonist Edward Kenway lounging on a boat. The livestream should feature a trailer that will answer many burning questions. For instance, rumors have been swirling that this is a total top-to-bottom remake and not a simple port. That makes sense given the continued popularity of Black Flag. It's also been rumored that this new version will cut out all of the modern day gameplay sections, with a total focus on pirate-themed action. We don't have that long to find out. Maybe the livestream will also give us some information about that upcoming mainline franchise entry, which is currently being developed under the moniker Codename Hexe. Ubisoft has promised it will be a "unique, darker, narrative-driven Assassin's Creed experience."

Designer Kenny Sun spilled most of the beans about the update on the PlayStation Blog, revealing that it will add two new characters, 11 more balls with special powers, four passive upgrades and a new building. If you opt to play as The Tiptoer, you'll be able to get close to enemies without fear of them attacking you, but you'll have lower health and damage. She could be a good partner for The Shieldbearer, so you can right in front of bosses to rapidly bounce back balls and ramp up the damage in no time at all. As for The Tunneller, that character fires balls that wrap around the edge of the screen and return from the other side. The latest balls and evolutions include Venom, which slows down targets and can paralyze them in place after hitting them enough times. Other new time-based balls can freeze enemies too. Erosion saps away a percentage of a target's health, which could weaken bosses very quickly, and the Warp ball jumps to a random place and increases in speed every time it hits an enemy. I can't wait to see how effective these are after merging them with area-of-effect abilities or ones that spawn more balls with the same powers. The Sniper ball sounds interesting too. That will reward precision as it cuts through every enemy in a straight line until it hits a boundary. I prefer a more chaotic approach, though. As such, the Full Metal Rapier passive ability seems like one I'll want. It scales up the damage of each ball depending on how many enemies and baby balls (i.e. ones that don't inherently have special abilities) are on screen. The Arrow of Fate passive is intriguing as well, as it turns every enemy projectile that hits you into a smattering of baby balls. I smell some synergy between those two. On top of that, the new Guildhall building that you can place in the citybuilder side of the game allows you to change upgrades that you've already chosen for your character. Looking forward to seeing how that plays out in practice. This is the second of three free updates that Sun and publisher Devolver Digital have announced for Ball x Pit. The first one, which introduced more upgrades and an endless mode, dropped in January. The third one is expected in July.

Not everyone had the money for the original Neo Geo Advanced Entertainment System when it released in the '90s, but there's still a chance to experience it as an adult with disposable income. SNK and Plaion Replai, who is also behind the all-black remake of the Commodore 64, announced a faithful remake of the high-end retro console, called the Neo Geo AES+. To bring the original console into the modern day, the collaborating companies added HDMI compatibility for resolutions up to 1080p and DIP switches on the bottom of the console to allow for language selection, overclocking and switching display modes. Rounding out the upgrades, SNK and Plaion Replai included a permanent way to retain high scores on a memory card and a low-power usage mode. For the purists out there, the Neo Geo AES+ still works on those chunky CRT displays since it has the original AV output. Preorders are currently open for two versions of the Neo Geo AES+, including an all-white 35th anniversary edition bundle that includes an Arcade Stick, a limited-edition Metal Slug game cartridge and a memory card, for $349.99. The standard edition in classic black will only come with an arcade stick, but will be available for $249.99. Coinciding with the console release, Replai Plaion will release 10 modernized game cartridges, including Metal Slug, The King of Fighters 2002 and other classics, for $89.99 each. If you think those prices are high, don't forget the original Neo Geo AES' release price was $649.99. The Neo Geo AES+ is set to start shipping on November 12.

Welcome to our latest roundup of what's going on in the indie game space. Once again, there are some neat new games for you to check out this weekend. We've got a bunch of updates and announcements for upcoming titles to tell you about too. There have been a bunch of solid indie showcases lately (and highlights from another one to tell you about below). If you want to learn about a ton of other games ASAP, you might want to set your alarm pretty early on April 25. Starting at 5AM ET that day, the latest edition of Indie Life Expo takes place on YouTube, Twitch, TikTok, Bilibili and elsewhere. This one will feature more than 200 games! A rapid-fire Indie Waves segment will power through 160 of them. Organizers received 1,100 submissions for this installment, so hats off to them for featuring a sizable percentage of those. Before that, you can check out another showcase on April 21. Top Hat Studios Presents: Spring Showcase 2026 will start at noon ET on the publisher's YouTube and Twitch channels. The stream will feature Motorslice, Well Dweller and survival horror game Becrowned, as well premieres and other Top Hat games. I've been looking forward to Motorslice, which has a May release window. I wager we'll get a precise release date for that during this stream. Meanwhile, there's an interesting Steam event taking place soon. InterfaceX26 will run from April 27 until May 4. This one is focused on games that deal with made-up operating systems and other custom interfaces. Organizers have brought together more than 150 developers and publishers, who are asking Valve to introduce an official "Fake OS" tag for games on Steam. Some neat games will be included in a sale and a showcase on May 2, including Blippo+, TR-49 and The Roottrees are Dead. Expect demos and relevant new releases too. Speaking of which... We've been waiting a very long time for Replaced. This cyberpunk adventure from Sad Cat Studios and publisher Thunderful finally landed this week on Steam, GOG, Xbox on PC and Xbox Series X/S. It's on Game Pass Ultimate and PC Game Pass. Otherwise, the base game costs $20. A supporter edition that includes the soundtrack is $25. It'll hit the Epic Games Store at a later date. The game was initially supposed to arrive in 2022. It certainly didn't help that Sad Cat Studios was forced to relocate from Belarus to Cyprus after Russia's invasion of Ukraine. But the game is finally here and it debuted to generally positive reviews. Replaced is a 2.5D action platformer set in an alternate version of 1980s America, in which you play as an AI trapped in a human body that may or may not dream of electric sheep. I haven't yet had a chance to properly jump into this gorgeous-looking game, but I'm hoping to do so this weekend. Speaking of games I've long had on my wishlist, Gecko Gods arrived this week. I think I first clapped eyes on this around 2022. Various trailers charmed me with the idea of a puzzle exploration platformer that casts you in the role of a gecko that's able to run along walls and ceilings. I've played around 90 minutes of this one so far. I dig the look and the gecko is very cute (being able to customize its appearance is a nice touch). I love that you "collect" different types of bugs by eating them. It's a fairly relaxing game, which is broadly what I need at the minute. I think there are some issues here, though. I've explored two of the main five islands in the open world and it feels a bit sparse so far. The joy of being able to clamber up and around any object complicates things when it comes to more precise platforming sections. While the sailing sections are pretty, the boat is clunky to control on the choppy water. I ran into some mild technical issues as well on PS5 with occasional framerate dips and objects popping in. Hopefully, that's something the developers at Inresin are able to address. Gecko Gods — from publishers Super Rare Originals and Gamersky Games — is available now on Steam, PS5 and Nintendo Switch. It's normally $20, but there's a 10 percent launch discount until April 30 (on PS5, this only applies to PlayStation Plus members) Another highly anticipated game landed this week in the form of Mouse: PI for Hire. We've had our eyes on this first-person shooter/detective game with sumptuous rubberhose-style animation for quite some time. Reviews have been generally positive so far, and it seems that there's enough substance here to live up to those stellar visuals. Mouse: PI for Hire — from Fumi Games and publisher PlaySide — is out now for $30. It's available on PC, Nintendo Switch 2, PS5 and Xbox Series X/S. Thirsty Suitors developer Outerloop Games and co-publisher Outersloth served up the cooking-themed Dosa Divas this week. It tells the story of two sisters who set out on a journey with their mech to take down a fast food empire and reconnect communities through cooking. It caught my eye when I saw it during a showcase a while back and it has a great concept, though I don't exactly love turn-based combat. I've read a few lukewarm reviews of the game, and the consensus seems to be that the cooking mechanics and combat perhaps needed some more time to simmer. If you'd like to try Dosa Divas yourself, you can pick it up on Steam, Xbox Series X/S, PS5, Nintendo Switch and Switch 2. It'll usually run you $20, but there's a 10 percent launch discount until April 28. If you're looking for a puzzle game that can be relaxing or rather dark, depending on your mood, it might be worth checking out A Storied Life: Tabitha. As you pack up the home of a late loved one, you'll need to decide which items to keep in the limited storage space you have and discard the rest. You'll need to wrap fragile items in bubble wrap and vacuum pack soft items to save room in the boxes. As you save items, you'll unlock words that you can use to fill in the blanks of your loved one's life and tell their story, Mad Libs-style. Given that you'll find items like a blackmail letter and a shirt with lipstick on the collar, it seems like there's a lot of variety to the kinds of stories you can tell. A Storied Life: Tabitha is available on Steam now. It'll normally run you $15, but you can save 10 percent if you buy it before April 28. To round out this section, I’ll quickly note that Hades 2 is out now on PS5 and Xbox Series X/S for  $30, with a 20 percent launch discount. It's on Game Pass Ultimate, Game Pass Premium and PC Game Pass too. I bought Hades 2 when Supergiant Games brought it to Steam early access two years ago, telling myself I'd wait until the full game was out. But I still haven't gotten around to it yet. There are always too many games tugging at my fragile attention span and Hades 2 faded into the background for me. I really ought to play it, I know! I'm keeping an eye out for Agefield High: Rock the School from Refugium Games. This spiritual successor to Rockstar's Bully is set to arrive this summer on Steam. It emerged this week that it will hit PS5 and Xbox Series X/S later in the year. It's a coming-of-age adventure in which you play as Sam, a young lad who has moved to a new school in the early 2000s. He wants to make his last few months of high school a time to remember. There's a branching narrative with multiple endings here — you can opt to go to classes and be a good student, or skip school and cause trouble. As a mostly rule-abiding student way back when, I'd be tempted to go for the latter. This seems like a bit of a life sim with a broad array of activities and ways to get into bother. I’m looking forward to it. The latest edition of the Galaxies Showcase — yet another indie spotlight event — took place this week and The Backworld caught my attention. This is a Mother-inspired RPG from Numor Games and publisher Top Hat with charming art direction (yes, I did see that one character doing a Naruto run), an intriguing mix of characters and... Oh no, why did the music stop? Why did it get so dark all of a sudden? What are these horrifying beasts that are chasing my character? Yup, there's a heavy horror element here. Numor took inspiration from The Backrooms as well. The Backworld will be released later this year. A demo just hit Steam. A Study in Blue, from Relate Games, was another highlight of the Galaxies Showcase, thanks in large part to that impressive animation. This is a point-and-click adventure in which you play as two characters with complex pasts: private detective Kenneth and runaway Blue. You'll explore a semi-open world and solve crimes by collecting clues and calling out characters' lies. There are three intertwined story acts and multiple endings. A Steam demo featuring a side quest from the main game that'll take around two hours to complete is available now. I'm always going to be interested in any game that riffs on The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past. On the face of this trailer, Elementallis developer AnKae Games seems to borrow quite a bit of the design language and other ideas from the SNES classic. Still, if you're going to crib from anything, it may as well be the best game of all time. This 2D action RPG, which is also published by Top Hat and has a heavier focus on elemental powers than A Link to the Past, looks very much like my kind of jam. It's coming to Steam, GOG, Switch, PS4, PS5, Xbox Series X/S and Xbox One on April 28. Per the eShop listing, it'll cost $18.

The James Bond franchise has a long history of getting pop stars to record its theme songs (perhaps most memorably with Live and Let Die), and it looks like that tradition will now extend to video game adaptations about the fictional spy. IO Interactive has announced that Lana Del Rey co-wrote and performed the theme for 007 First Light, the developer's playable James Bond origin story. "First Light" is written and performed by Lana Del Rey and composer David Arnold, and like the moody and abstract opening credits released alongside the song, could vaguely gesture at the themes of the game. IO Interactive has previously said that its game focuses on a young, inexperienced and more reckless Bond, before he developed his trademark cool. The developer is also integrating the stealth mechanics it perfected in Hitman into the upcoming game. Del Rey's personal gaming experience may begin and end with her hit "Video Games," which was apparently written about a former boyfriend's love of World of Warcraft, but the artist does know how to write a song with Bond in mind. Lana Del Rey shared in 2024 that her song "24" from the album Honeymoon was originally written for 2017's Spectre, one of several songs that were cast aside in favor of Sam Smith's "Writing's on the Wall." 007 First Light is coming to Xbox Series X/S, PlayStation 5 and PC on May 27, 2026. A Nintendo Switch 2 version of the game is now coming out this summer.