IO interact has had a lot going on since the release of Hitman 3 earlier this year. While we know that the Hitman franchise is not finished by any stretch of the imagination, their next project is set to be an original take on James Bond and the 007 moniker. Project 007 was announced in November of 2020, with the team working closely with MGM and Eon Production.
While very little has been stated about the game, recent job listings might give us a hit at what we can look forward to. The listings are for several vacancies including AI Programming, Senior Programmers, and animaters.
As they point out in then AI listing they have “created a brand-new AI framework ready to be implemented across multiple projects.” Yet other listings ask for applicants with experience in stealth games. Stealth games usually rely heavily on AI owing to the complexities of forcing players to plan their paths and the multiple ways to deal with enemies.
Another feature that the listing notes is “Experience working with 3rd person action games.” When coupling that with the studio’s AI needs might mean that 007 will be similar in design to the Hitman games we are used to. This would be an interesting way to go as many 007 games in recent years have leaned more into the action side.
Another listing, this one for an animator requests applicants “Focus on character performance, and cinematics that reflect the personality of the character, and show their motivation, emotions, and fully immerse the player into the game narrative,” meaning this will most likely be a very story-driven game.
There are way too many things listed throughout the job listings to go over fully here, but based on small excerpts we can start drawing a picture of what to expect. It looks like IOI will not be straying too far from their wheelhouse, though as a team as talented as they are at that style of game this is not a bad thing.
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Includes several titles.
Which was showcased at E3 2003.