Pick the right gadget for each job, manage your Electrical and Chemical resources, and know exactly when Bond can pull the trigger.
007 First Light hands Bond a spy’s toolkit rather than a war chest, and knowing which of its eight gadgets to bring — and when to fire them — matters far more than raw aim. This guide breaks down the best gadgets and loadout for every mission, covering what each gadget does, the Electrical and Chemical resource system that powers them, and the Licence to Kill rule that decides when you can actually shoot.
Whether you favor silent takedowns or loud, fast solutions, the loadout you pick at the start of a mission is the single biggest decision you make. Here’s how to build Bond for the job in front of him, and how to fight when stealth falls apart.
How gadget resources work: Electrical vs Chemical
Your gadgets are not unlimited. Every activation drains a little of one of two resources, both tracked on the gauges of your Q-Watch:
- Electrical (Battery) powers Bond’s tech-based tools.
- Chemical feeds his screening and dispersal gadgets.
To avoid running dry mid-mission, watch for resource pickups as you explore. If an item’s icon is blue or green, you have room to grab it; if it’s greyed out, you’re already full for that resource. A separate pool, Instinct (the yellow lightning meter next to your Q-Watch), fuels skills like Lure, Bluff and Focus, and refills a little every time you pull off a spy move.
Bond’s core tools: Q-Watch and Q-Lens
These two are always on you and should be running almost constantly:
- Q-Watch — hacks objects in the environment to create distractions or disable security cameras, and can even hack a live Frag Grenade to shut it off before it detonates (which also unlocks the Damp Squib trophy). It also displays your resource gauges.
- Q-Lens — Bond’s scanning lens. Use it often: it reveals hidden items on NPCs like Keys, Keycards and Cash Bundles, highlights nearby interactables in orange, outlines enemies and staff through walls so you can read patrols, and previews exactly how a gadget will affect a person or object before you commit.
Quieter gadgets for a stealth approach
If you want to distract, stun and slip past, these are the picks that shine in stealth:
- Dart Phone — temporarily disorients and disperses enemies, creates distractions and remotely activates objects. Its stun lasts far longer than any other gadget, making it the go-to when you need someone to leave an area for a while.
- Laser Strap — the jack-of-all-trades. It briefly blinds enemies in or out of combat and slices through metal barrels, locks and the wires holding chandeliers and other hanging objects. The stun is short, but it’s perfect for a quick pickpocket or sneaking past a guarded entrance.
- Smoke Pods — situational but powerful against groups. They throw up a thick cloud that blinds and confuses everyone caught inside, letting you walk past enemies you couldn’t otherwise sneak around. Best when you can bunch foes together first.
- Flash Mine — a placed trap that triggers a blinding flash to stun whoever trips it. Drop it on a patrol route or in a doorway to cover your back during an infiltration and neutralize a chaser without making noise.
Louder gadgets for going loud
Flashy and effective, but their uses are limited if you’re playing quietly, since they take enemies down fast and rather noisily:
- Shockwave Camera — a burst weapon built for quickly downing enemies and blowing apart environmental objects. Great for clearing a room when the mission has already gone hot.
- Missile Pen — the loudest tool in the kit, ideal for a fast, explosive kill or destroying a target object, but a poor fit for any stealth challenge.
The best gadgets and loadout for your playstyle
For a stealth run, build around control and quiet: Q-Lens plus Q-Watch are non-negotiable, then pair the Dart Phone for long stuns, the Laser Strap for its versatility, and either Smoke Pods or a Flash Mine depending on whether you expect crowds or need to cover an escape route.
For a combat-forward run, keep the Q-Lens for spotting threats and slot in the Shockwave Camera and Missile Pen to blow through resistance quickly. Check the Challenges menu at the start of each chapter, since a Pacifist or Ghost objective should push you back toward the quieter loadout.
The Licence to Kill rule: when Bond can shoot
Unlike most shooters, 007 First Light only lets Bond draw a firearm when enemies are actively firing on him — signalled by the Licence to Kill prompt and a red glow at the top of the screen. Ammo is scarce, so swap weapons with fallen enemies constantly, or shoot a foe in the hand to disarm and catch their gun. Prioritize the enemy radioing for backup (marked with an antenna icon) to break their call and, ideally, slip back into stealth. When you do fight, aim for headshots to save ammo, or leg shots to daze and eventually incapacitate; pick sturdy metal cover over destructible crates, and kite enemies around obstacles to regenerate health when things go red. Once the area is clear, the prompt fades and Bond holsters his weapon.
Once your loadout is set, keep building Bond on Solo Jugadores: our 007 First Light best settings guide dials in performance on your platform, our beginner tips guide explains the systems the menus skip, and our TacSim guide shows how to master strikes, parries and grabs before the next mission goes loud.
