007 First Light Art Blast
There are few IPs that are as long standing and as iconic as 007. So long standing and iconic, in fact, that it seems naturally woven into our perception of entertainment in general. From the books, to the cinema to Sunday evenings on the telly all throughout our childhoods, Bond has become synonymous with having a cool and outrageously good time. Plagiarized and spoofed so often that the action spy genre which 007 created has become so self-aware and self-referencing that it can be hard to know the appropriate way forward. So when we started this adventure years ago, naturally the team had varied opinions on what exactly constituted a core Bond experience. How much charming spy work, how much hand to hand combat or shooting and how many car chases? What components – and balanced in what way – constituted the perfect 007 experience?
One thing we weren’t doubtful of however, was the quality we wanted to reach. We had to ensure the work would reach the sky high ambitions we had for ourselves, as well as meet the demands of audiences all over the world.
The character department began developing facial animation rigs from the ground up, new ways of rendering stitching and fine details on clothing, as well as reshaping our skeletal systems for better results. This alongside the work done to ensure great skin, hair and eye solutions that would allow us to push for the cinematic and emotional aspirations set out by team management and the narrative group. Our environment team employs several veterans from the Hitman series that have proven IOs penchant for recreating detailed locations from all over the world. All well and good. But we were also toying with game ideas that would fundamentally challenge the way we build environments: From general driving and full on car chases, to falling out of planes and other exciting action moments the team would need to learn and develop many new skills and technologies.
Venturing on an artistic journey to add to one of the main cultural pillars of entertainment – to one of our favorite IPs of all time – has been a huge honor for all of us. From Istanbul and Malmo, to Brighton, Barcelona and Copenhagen we have all worked to build a visual stage upon which the game could unfold. It has been fun, rewarding, challenging and difficult, all in the name of bringing you a singular and holistic Bond experience that we can proudly call “proper.” Hopefully you feel the same way.
It is with great appreciation and pride that we share some of the wonderful work done by the crafty and relentlessly ambitious and dedicated team, leads and partners.
Rasmus & Claudio
Franchise & Production Art Directors
Art Direction
Rasmus Poulsen – Franchise Art Director – IO Interactive
Alexander Andersen – Technical Art Director – IO Interactive
Character Art
Garima Chauhan – Senior Character Artist – IO Interactive
Bastian Stockenborn – Character Artist – IO Interactive
Ludvig Ribbnäs – Senior Character Artist – IO Interactive
Natthawut Boonsan – Character Artist – IO Interactive
Vincent Lu – Character Artist – IO Interactive
Concept Art
Ward Lindhout – Principal Concept Artist – IO Interactive
Gonzalo Salles – Senior Concept Artist – IO Interactive
Nacho Felechosa – Senior Concept Artist – IO Interactive
Anders Poulsen – Senior Character Concept Artist – IO Interactive
Cinematics
Nick Andersen – Senior Cinematic Artist – IO Interactive
Ellen Shelley – Senior Cinematic Lighting Artist – IO Interactive
Level Design
Thomas Pulluelo – Senior Level Designer – IO Interactive
Environment Art
Hilde Sunde – Lead & Senior Environment Artist – IO Interactive
Agnes Hallin – Environment Artist – IO Interactive
David Axelsson – Environment Artist – IO Interactive
Jakob Poulsgaard – Senior Environment Artist – IO Interactive
Jill Ralmark – Senior Environment Artist – IO Interactive
Malin Fröjd – Environment Artist – IO Interactive
Marko Prokopcev – Environment Artist – IO Interactive
Mathis Widrat – Senior Environment Artist – IO Interactive
Noah Baumann – Environment Artist – IO Interactive
Sander Agelink – Environment Artist – IO Interactive
Seref Atilla Gurbuz – Environment Artist – IO Interactive
Victor Ek – Environment Artist – IO Interactive
Lighting Art
Irene Andersen – Lead & Senior Lighting Artist – IO Interactive
Eythor Herwarthsson Pohl – Lighting Artist – IO Interactive
Mees van Hout – Lighting Artist – IO Interactive
Tom Verbeeck – Lighting Artist – IO Interactive
Props & Weapons
Alexander Molested – Prop Artist – IO Interactive
Davide Lattanzio – Prop Artist – IO Interactive
Marius Brill – Prop Artist – IO Interactive
Can Özmen – Prop Artist – IO Interactive
Albin Bång – Prop & Weapon Artist – IO Interactive
Daniel Gryningsstjerna – Prop & Weapon Artist – IO Interactive
Technical Art
Alexander Karlsson – Senior Technical Artist – IO Interactive
Dag Bjärum Bengtsson – Senior Technical Artist – IO Interactive
Alex Hodgson – Technical Artist – IO Interactive
Gasienica Laskowy Michalina – Technical Artist – IO Interactive
Lukas Pålsson – Technical Artist – IO Interactive
Malte Hedenström – Technical Artist – IO Interactive
Per Magnusson – Technical Artist – IO Interactive
Simon Säaf Malm – Technical Artist – IO Interactive
