First Playthrough Tips — What IO Interactive Recommends
007 First Light beginner tips: what IO Interactive and the community recommend for your first run, which difficulty to choose, and how to get the most from your first playthrough.
Contents
IO Interactive's Official Recommendation
Start on Intended difficulty for your first playthrough. This is the developer-recommended setting that the entire game was balanced around. Intended gives you the full experience — combat that feels meaningful, stealth that stays satisfying, and resource decisions that add depth without becoming frustrating.
The Core Principle: Play Your Way
IO Interactive built 007 First Light around player-driven creativity. Every mission has multiple solutions: stealth, social deception, combat, or any combination. The game rarely punishes experimentation. Use Chapter Select to replay and try different approaches.
What to Prioritize on First Run
Recommended priorities for first playthrough:
- Complete the story — it is the strongest part of the game
- Grab collectibles the Q-Watch highlights after Chapter 4
- Experiment with gadgets — find what playstyle suits you
- Do not worry about 100% — Chapter Select handles cleanup after credits
- Try both stealth and combat approaches to see which you prefer
What Not to Do on First Run
Mistakes to avoid:
- Starting on Purist difficulty — save it for a second run
- Button-mashing in combat — learn parry timing instead
- Hoarding Instinct — use it actively to maintain momentum
- Skipping intel documents — they contain bluff topics and puzzle clues
- Ignoring the Q-Watch — it is the most powerful tool in the game
Chapter Select After Credits
After the credits, open Chapter Select with your full gadget kit (including Laser Strap from Chapter 9) and sweep for collectibles. The game is designed for this workflow. Do not try to 100% on your first run — it is not the intended experience.
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The Four Pillars: Spycraft and Instinct Guide
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