At Gamescom 2025, ExpectingMrBond.com sat down with Rasmus Poulsen, Art Director at IO Interactive, to explore the creative vision behind 007: First Light. In our conversation, Poulsen explained why the team sees Bond’s world as “timeless,” how they balance Fleming-inspired realism with larger-than-life spectacle, and why the Omega Seamaster has become the beating heart of the gadget system. He also reflected on the visual heritage that shapes the game, the search for new and surprising destinations, and the cast of allies and rivals that help define this younger Bond.
Rasmus Poulsen – The Artistic Vision Behind 007: First Light
Rasmus Poulsen is a veteran art director with nearly 20 years in AAA game development and more than 15 years at IO Interactive. A graduate of the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts, he joined IOI in 2004 as a Concept Artist and soon advanced to Art Director, contributing to projects such as Kane & Lynch 2: Dog Days. After senior roles at Square Enix Montreal and Ubisoft Montreal, Poulsen returned to IOI in 2017. With his long history at the studio, he has helped define IOI’s artistic identity across multiple generations of games—experience that now feeds directly into the most ambitious project yet: bringing James Bond to life in 007: First Light.
About the Transcript
Alongside the video, we are also providing an edited transcript of the interview. We know that many of you around the world follow our coverage and often use translation tools to enjoy our articles in your own language. To make this easier, we decided to offer the transcript as well—so everyone can access the insights from the conversation, even if the video in English alone might be less convenient.
007: First Light – A “Timeless” Visual Identity
ExpectingMrBond.com (EMB): Hi, I am André from ExpectingMrBond.com – your unofficial source for 007: First Light. Today I have got the license to chat with Rasmus Poulsen from IO Interactive – the game’s Art Director.
So maybe let’s jump right into the questions:
EMB: As Art Director, you’ve helped define the look and feel of 007: First Light. If you had to describe the game’s visual identity in just a few words, what sets it apart from previous Bond interpretations?
Poulsen: Absolutely:
The word we used a lot is „timeless“.
We know we have an IP with 60 years of width, which is a lot, and we wanna somehow see that we can encompass of it. Of course, it is a modern take, specifically for the gamers. (Obviously) That’s clear and on the same time it is important to really adhere to expectations and legacy: everything from color choices to locations choices to cinematographic. Things like that were really inspiring.
Timelessness is super important to us. And one of my favorite terms we coined was in the development of the game when were doing the HUD and were discussing it with our designers. They said „So it’s tactical elegance, isn’t it?“ and I am like „YESS!“ So these words have been beaten around a lot and I think they describe quite well what the tonal spectrum of a Bond experience must be.
Classical Echoes: Greek and Roman Symbolism in 007: First Light
EMB: In the latest trailer, many fans picked up on Mediterranean and classical influences – Roman-style statues, ruins, Latin words like Sagitta, and even what seems to be a reference to Theseus during the Carpathian sequence.
Combined with the golden mask and laurel crown of the antagonist, it almost felt like IOI was deliberately drawing on Greek and Roman symbolism for that villain’s identity. Was this an intentional creative direction, or more of a coincidence in how the environments and designs came together?
Poulsen: Some of the references you mentioned are – lets say – incidental, but the statue aesthetic is certainly not. And for the villain I can’t dive into the details right now, but what I will say is, going back to the style choice, it is important important to visit vast and wide aesthetically speaking and that there is both, modernity and something old, as well. It’s important that you visit different layers of time.
Again, about timelessness it’s important to get a sense of dynasties throughout time. And of course – what is MI6 about? It’s about protecting and fighting for king and country, right?
EMB: Was it the villain we saw in the trailer or the henchman of a villain?
(Both looking at Senior Communication Manager Yann Roskell and the camera)
EMB: So we can’t say it?
Poulsen: I am looking at the camera.
EMB: Yes, sure!
Poulsen: Come back at a later date and we will discuss it another time.
How IO Interactive Designs New James Bond Locations
EMB: Both the Bond films and the Hitman games have already taken players to a wide variety of locations around the world. Was it challenging for you as Art Director to find fresh settings and new visual appeal for 007: First Light?
Poulsen: Yeah, I mean it’s always a challenge. Thankfully, we had a lot of practice in globetrotting within the company and the team I am working with has that mindset, as well. So we are quite well versed in that particular job, I would say.
What is different for Bond is that – yes, we want to take you somewhere new and unexpected, like a either a vacation destiny you wish you could gonna go to or a dangerous location you definitely don’t wanna go to. And at the same time, push it a little bit further and be a little more original than you thought.
That can be in many different ways and it shouldn’t be the initial idea – it should be more than that and that is also important for the Bond franchise.
It was always a challenge to push further and find the „unexpected B roads“ if you will in and around these locations.
Ken Adam’s Influence on the Game’s Art Direction
EMB: Ken Adam is legendary as the set designer who shaped the look of so many classic Bond films. Was he an inspiration for your work on 007: First Light, or did you and your team deliberately aim to explore a creative direction independent from his influence?
Poulsen: What I’ll say is you can’t really look at the legacy of Bond without looking at the work of Ken Adam for sure, because his work is so pivotal. In many many respects was he an inspiration. Unfortunately it is a little bit too early to go into details, but I will love to talk about it at another date. But you cannot deny the influence and – let’s say having a take on it, (because his work is pivotal for sure).
Video Game Inspirations Behind 007: First Light
EMB: I would describe 007: First Light as a cinematic, action-driven spy game with strong elements of adventure. Which other video games have inspired you during development – whether in terms of storytelling, gameplay mechanics, or overall atmosphere?
Poulsen: What I will say about other video games is that we have been inspired by far and wide. From a lot of different pop titles to strange underground things, as well. Just as we look wide from a legacy of Bond point of view (for more than) 60 years we look wide for games, as well. I think a lot of different games have inspired our sense of timing, of flow, things like that and our own legacy catalogue has inspired us greatly, as well.
Riff on the things you know while being acutely aware of what unique new features are needed to create this Bond experience.
Agent 009 and His Role Compared to James Bond
EMB: In the Bond films, 009 has always existed in Bond’s shadow. In Octopussy, he’s killed in disguise before Bond even arrives on the scene. In The World Is Not Enough, we only hear of him—he was the agent who shot Renard, but failed to kill him, leaving Bond to finish the job. And in Spectre, Q reveals that the new Aston Martin DB10 was actually built for 009—only for Bond to steal it and take the glory. In 007: First Light, this pattern seems reversed: Can you tell us more?
Poulsen: The writing team behind these characters and the Narrative Director know all of these Bond characters in depth.
I would say for the wider cast like the surrounding cast with M, Q etc. we have our own unique take on who they are to Bond and what they represent. Without going into further details about 009, what I will say is that it’s important to us that you come to these characters with that expectations and we together play with these expectations in discovering this new Bond with who he is and what shaped him during his journey.
The Importance of Bond’s Supporting Characters
EMB: This links up to my next question, since unlike Agent 47, James Bond is surrounded by a wide range of personalities in 007: First Light. How important is this ensemble of characters for the way you tell the story in the game?
Poulsen: It is super important, because while a lot of people see 007 as some sort of lone wolf character – what he certainly is as well – there is a reason for things to be like they are and he is shaped by the people around him.
For example in terms of who he gets support from:
Who has his back […] who will challenge him in the right way he needs? Who can make him grow and who will be an obstacle? […] All these types of characters are super important for him.
Without them I think the journey of getting to know him is much lonelier. He is not fully formed yet, he has a little bit naivety and yet his British writ that you know, but he isn’t dated, he is not fully torn down by the world out there.
Strong Female Agents in 007: First Light – Cressida and Isola
EMB: Can you tell us more about two strong women from the demo: Cressida and DGSE agent Isola? Isola seems to be a much stronger and tougher personality than I would have guessed just from the trailer.
Poulsen: As I mentioned the Narrative Director is working with a wonderful team of men and women on the floor to craft these characters. We have internal discussions about all these subjects as you would expect and as most teams would have. It’s important to not have a singular dogma on the team.
Of course when you have a franchise lasting as long as Bond with 60 years – what we have done is that we looked at „What the DNA of this character? What is the source, the core of Bond?“. He is a man of action, he takes chances, he has sharp British wit and he gets the job done and how this is expressed during the different eras of time. It can be expressed in many different ways and in ways you may not ever agree with.
Thankfully for us, we can take those elements and express them how we feel is appropriate for both the character and what we think is important as humans and creatives, right? These discussions are ongoing on the team and that debate is part of the core of what makes Bond Bond and what his values are and what drives him.
Staying in James Bond’s Perspective Throughout the Story
EMB: Will the player always stay close to Bond’s perspective, or are there also moments where the story unfolds without him – for instance, showing the villains’ side? I’m asking because in the reveal trailer there was that intriguing office scene where Bond is being talked about in his absence. Was that created just for the trailer, or can we expect similar narrative shifts throughout the game?
Poulsen: It is important for us that you and Bond are together on this journey and that you discover and form his fate together. On the one hand you are roleplaying and making the choices for him and on the other hand you observe him how he engages with the world around him with dry quips and having a good time with him. It’s important that we stay with him.
EMB: So that particular scene from the trailer was more for presentational purposes?
Poulsen: Yes.
Linear Narrative, Open Gameplay – Storytelling in 007: First Light
EMB: 007: First Light combines more open maps with sections that are quite linear. How about the story itself – will players be able to make choices that change the course of events, or is it told as a fully linear narrative?
Poulsen: The story as such is linear, because we have a singular story with a singular message we want to tell and e singular – lets say end point.
But you are absolutely correct: Within the levels we have areas that open up and that allow exploration and quite a wide width of gameplay from social engineering, charm, bluffing to gadget use, weaponry, combat and all the way to driving to action set pieces.
The game has varying width that suits both the narrative and the experience we want you to have, but there is lots of variety of gameplay, lots of choices for you. Because of the key gameplay pillars is creative approach. We believe that its super super important to give you a full width Bond experience.
Designing James Bond’s Gadgets for a Modern Spy Game
EMB: Given how much the world has become digital and connected compared to earlier decades, has it become more challenging to design exciting spy gadgets for 007: First Light? How do you balance plausibility with the sense of wonder that Bond gadgets are known for?
Poulsen: Absolutely, you are right, especially with the question where are we, where are we going and what is happening with all these things? That’s why I come back to the word „timeless“ as being the key word for the artistic team on the project.
A lot of the gadgets and things are timeless and they are physical objects. Not all of it are smartphones. We have a relevant present day technology, as well, but Bond stands out of that to a degree.
He could be anywhere in time and gets the job done, he doesn’t need technology, but he will certainly use it, right?
That is an important aspect. I love that observation. It’s a specific challenge to design something that feels timeless and not specifically anchored in the time we are in – by the same token.
(Yann Roskell asking to wrap the interview up)
EMB: Oh well, I had so much more prepared…
(All laughing)
Vehicles and Gadgets – Core Features of 007: First Light
EMB: Ok, maybe let’s try to crunch it together. Apart from the combat, gadgets are one of the two new major aspects of the game. We have seen the Echo Trace gadget, smartphone dartgun or Shockwave camera maybe and the Omega Seamster? Can you explain how gadgets work? Because I think I have seen some icons on screen such as the battery.
Poulsen: The Omega Seamaster forms the home of the gadget use and via your lense you can observe the world and it will tell you what you can manipulate and how. Then you have got different resources you can acquire by pick up or actions you do. These resources drive a system that allows you to play in a bondy fashion.
Playing Bond-ily allows you to keep playing Bond-ily.
It helps you steer the game in a way where you combine wit, observation, action, change taking and smarts some sort of nice mixture to get that engaging flow of experiences.
We explored gadgets before in our previous game so I think were pretty adept at that. But of course it is important to mention that Bond uses the power that is used against him. He will have to fit in the environment he’s in and will not break the rules, because he is not an agent of chaos even though he will take chances and do ridiculous things. He will meet the level of opposition appropriately, but he will not overreact before he has been met with that. He will get license to kill when the enemy decides it’s time or we as a developer, telling you a story, decide it’s time. It’s both systemic, but also narratively decided.
EMB: To come to the second part of the question: What were the core design pirllars you have chosen when designing vehicles as a feature in the game?
Poulsen: For vehicles it’s about feel. And we had to bring on specialized knowledged team members to help us lift that task, because that is a new thing for us. That has been a magnificand and wonderful challenge, as well.
I can tell you personally: When I test game segments, which contain vehicles, the test takes 10, 15 minutes longer than it should, because I am just sitting there, having a good time. Feel is key to vehicular aspects of the game…
EMB: And gadgets and cinematic stunts…
Poulsen: I mean if you want to take it back, it’s obviously a flow between all these things, like you mentioned. From cinematic flow, nice intro, ease into an open area, go in, use gadgets, manipulate, into combat, seamlessly into a car chase and a massive spectacle moment.
Henchmen: Between Fleming’s Realism and Cinematic Spectacle
EMB: There was a little echo to Moonraker in the demo, when Bond was skydiving and trying to get a parachute on. It reminded me of the beginning of Moonraker with Jaws.
In previous interviews, you’ve mentioned that Ian Fleming’s novels are a strong source of inspiration. What does that mean for the henchmen in 007: First Light? Should we expect them to be more grounded and realistic – since characters like Jaws or Oddjob never appeared in Fleming’s books – or is there still room for the kind of eccentric and over-the-top villains that have become iconic in the cinematic Bond universe?
Poulsen: Also the approach is to found everything in credibility: Credible dialogue, credible character motivation, credible story locations etc. Then to allow you to have fun on the other side of things like action moments and set pieces. I would say it’s a balance of these two forces and you can’t have one without the other. I can’t get more specific about these characters for now.
Bond’s Character Progression in 007: First Light
EMB: Will Bond’s progression in 007: First Light be tied to some kind of unlock system or skill tree, or is his growth represented more narratively through the story and missions?
Poulsen: Good question – It’s a linear narrative where we land in a specific space for Bond and you as a player. In terms of acquired skill, you have got your skill and you have the skills that are added to you through story beats, where things become obvious and you have got gadgets, which are awarded to you when Q deems you ready to accept that level of action.
Why 007: First Light Feels Like Coming Home
EMB: As a final question: as Art Director, what has been the most enjoyable or rewarding aspect of working on 007: First Lightso far, compared to your experience on Hitman?
Poulsen: That’s a wonderful question. I have been inspired by 007 in my entire professional career and just coming into this franchise properly has been amazing.
Then geting a chance to really dive in and finesse our sense of locations. That is something that is near and dear to my heart – like set dressing – where are we and how does it feel being there and what are the colors?
And maybe you have gathered that from what I have said: from a gameplay point of view, the car aspect is really, really wonderful.
Overall it is a really good place to be and I am so proud of what we have done and I think it feels like coming home im many respects
