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In the wake of the last James Bond movie, No Time to Die, there was a surge of articles asking whether it should spell the end for Ian Fleming’s secret agent. In that movie, Daniel Craig played the character as a fading force, mentally and physically exhausted, and out of touch. “The world has moved on,” Lashana Lynch’s younger agent told him at one point, and in a lot of ways she was right. A product of the cold war era, 007 was a sociopathic misogynist addicted to booze and amphetamines – Craig tried to play all that down, creating a more rounded character and, controversially, giving Bond the ultimate redemption arc at the end of his final outing.

But five years later, with the franchise’s new owner Amazon still trying to pull the next film together, we’re about to get what looks to be the best Bond game since GoldenEye. Created by the Danish developer IO Interactive, famed for its Hitman series of anarchic open-ended assassination sims, 007 First Light follows a fresh-faced Bond from his early career as an aircrewman to his first mission as a double-0 operative. The games press was recently given a three-hour hands-on demo to play, and reports suggest that it combines elements of the Hitman games (Bond navigating a gala event, either sleuthing or punching his way to the mission objective) with major set-piece shootouts, chase scenes and miraculous gadgets. (For more on its making, read this piece about how developer IO Interactive brought it together.)

Two main concerns came out of the demo. Some considered the action a little too guided at times, with the player propelled through sometimes narrow corridors of action à la the Uncharted series. (The game’s art director, Rasmus Poulsen, told PC Gamer they were going for a “more orchestrated experience”.) Others thought Bond actor Patrick Gibson was a little much (“too eager, and far too chatty”, reported Polygon). And, in truth, James Bond games have always fallen short of capturing the precise feel of the classic movies: the pomp and bombast, extremely charismatic actors and use of sex and seduction as a driving component. (In a separate, thought-provoking piece, PC Gamer’s Joshua Wolens wondered if these qualities mean “rowing club Tory boy” Bond can ever work as a video game protagonist.) In GoldenEye, Bond himself was invisible and silent on screen, a disembodied gun touring a series of familiar set-pieces. Electronic Arts made a couple of good stabs – namely Agent Under Fire and Everything or Nothing – which smartly abandoned trying to replicate individual movies altogether, instead creating explosive amalgams that mashed together all the best bits. If you can’t beat ’em, conjoin ’em.

But 007 First Light doesn’t look like those older titles. It seems to have a character of its own, an understanding of what a mainstream contemporary audience wants from Bond. So I think it makes sense that Amazon’s first dip into 007 mythology should be with a game – perhaps this is even a ceremonial handing over of the reins. In the cinema, Bond’s legacy as a character has become problematic and his motivations as a modern British secret agent uncertain. In games, though, he can much more easily become a cipher for whatever brand of action a player wants to indulge in. You want him to use his charisma to get out of fights? Fine. You want him to indulge in melee fights with the heavies? Go for it. And in games, there is no overriding expectation for him to form relationships. It’s too early to say whether First Light will have Mass Effect-style romance options, but if there aren’t any, the video game can and will survive.

As acclaimed titles such as Indiana Jones and the Great Circle, and Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order have shown, modern video games are able to sidestep the complexities of, let’s say, compromised cinematic franchises, giving fans the bits of the experience they want without the detritus of dodgy story arcs and straitjacketed mythologies. Thanks to that mercurial and highly immersive relationship between player and lead character, they can daintily sideline troublesome plot and character elements. It’s possible that no one will be thinking about Bond’s implicit role as violent symbol of British imperialism while they’re personally falling out of a helicopter or mucking about with a watch that fires lasers.

Of course, video games can tell deep, complex stories with three-dimensional characters, but they can also just quietly not do that and still get by. It’s possible what we need from Bond in the 2020s is not games about homicidal state institutions but an escapist action fantasy that empowers the players. This is something video game developers are really good at. The grenade is in their court. If, when the next film arrives, reviewers are, like, “the movie is OK, but it’s not as good as the games”, we will know I’m right.

What to play

I’m a big fan of experimental games that combine one or more genres in interesting ways and, boy, does Titanium Court manage this. Part match-three puzzler, part tower defence sim, part real-time strategy war game, it has you moving your fortress through a series of landscapes made up of tiles representing different enemies and scenery types. Matching tiles will remove opposing soldiers or perhaps move you closer to a river which provides defensive benefits. Between rounds, you can explore the court, which is filled with eccentric characters. The visual style is all chunky pixels, weird glitchy colours and bizarre semiotics. The ideas flow like hallucinogenic wine. Fans of indie classics Downwell or Hypnospace Outlaw, or the recent Mythmatch should come this way, and surrender.

Available on: PC/Mac
Estimated playtime: more than 10 hours

What to read

• You may already have seen the tense new trailer. Now GamesRadar has a set report from the new Resident Evil movie. The hero is no gun-toting Stars operative, but instead a hospital courier named Bryan, who finds himself in Raccoon City at exactly the wrong time – roughly the period covered by Resident Evil 2. Directed by Zach Cregger, creator of the films Barbarian and Weapons, it appears to be an interesting, idiosyncratic take on Capcom’s survival horror series.

• While on the topic, Eurogamer’s fascinating interview about Resident Evil Requiem looks at the creative decisions behind the latest survival opus and the lasting appeal of zombies as a horror motif.

• It’s encouraging to see the revival of physical media based on video games. Publishing newcomer Rocket Books has revealed its first project, a reprint of the Ridge Racer zine One More Win, written and designed by Andy Kelly. It’s a loving look at Namco’s racing classic R4: Ridge Racer Type 4, with in-depth essays and gorgeous illustrations. Rocket says it already has a second book in the works.

• As a self-confessed Sega nut (and – subtle plug, ahoy – author of Sega Mega Drive: Collected Works), I have to mention the announcement of a Lego Sega Mega Drive model. Releasing in June and priced at £34.99, the 479-piece kit can reportedly be customised into either the European Mega Drive or the US Genesis, and it comes complete with controllers and a Sonic cartridge. It’s Lego’s latest retro console build after the successful NES and Game Boy models. I’m hoping we’ll also get a Master System or even, gulp, a Lego Dreamcast.

What to click

• ‘RAMageddon’: is the era of cheap phones and laptops over?

• No cults, no politics, no ghouls: how China censors the video game world – podcast

• The rise of cosy gaming: is this the closest many young people will get to home ownership?

• My mother is addicted to gaming and emotionally unavailable. What should I do?

• I touched a ZX Spectrum for the first time in decades – and I liked it

• Forbidden Solitaire – cards flip into delirious trip back to 90s horror | ★★★★★

• Saros – you’ll strafe until your thumbs hurt in this primal alien shooter | ★★★★☆

Question Block

A salty question this week, which came to me from Tom, via email:

“I want to play video games with my grandad, who loves the sea and sailing. I think Sea of Thieves was a little cartoonish for him – can you suggest something else?”

Well, if he’s not completely put off by pirates, Ubisoft has just announced a remake of the excellent Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag, out on 9 July. There’s a lot of oceanic exploration and boat battles with beautiful visuals, but there’s also a fair bit of land-based stuff, so maybe not what you’re looking for.

If he’s after something more serious, there are two sailing sims – SailWind and eSail – that have good reviews and seek to provide a more realistic and demanding experience, or for military-minded challenges, Uboat and Dangerous Waters are good, while a promising newcomer from genre specialist Matrix Games, Modern Naval Warfare, is out on 16 May.

I also recommend a few darker narrative experiences: Dredge, Abzu and Subnautica. But it depends on how comfortable your grandad is with fishing horror, aquatic dreamscapes and watery extraterrestrial peril.

If you’ve got a question for Question Block – or anything else to say about the newsletter – hit reply or email us on pushingbuttons@theguardian.com.