Difficulty Settings

007 First Light has three difficulty presets from the start, which guides call Novice, Intended and Purist (IOI's own posts say Easy, Normal and Hard), plus the 00 difficulty added on Oct 1, 2026 for players who finish the campaign. Difficulty does not affect trophies or achievements.

4:53 007 First Light has three difficulty presets available from the start, which Beebom and PowerPyx name Novice, Intended and Purist, plus a fourth, the 00 Difficulty, added free on Oct 1, 2026 and unlocked by finishing the campaign. Intended is the one the developers recommend for a first playthrough. Difficulty has no effect on trophies or achievements: PowerPyx confirms everything can be done on Novice. The names are muddled by IO Interactive itself, whose own Steam post calls the three presets "Easy, Normal, Hard"; the section below sorts that out as far as the sources allow.

Quick facts

Presets at launch	3: Novice, Intended, Purist (guide names)
IOI's words for them	Easy, Normal, Hard (Oct 8, 2026 Steam post)
Recommended first	Intended
Hardest	00, unlocked after the campaign (since Oct 1, 2026)
Trophies and achievements	Not affected by difficulty
PlayStation Store tag	"Adjustable Difficulty (Basic)"

Sources: Beebom, May 26, 2026; PowerPyx, May 26, 2026; IOI on Steam, Oct 8, 2026; IOI 1.3.0 notes, Oct 1, 2026; PlayStation Store, read Nov 4, 2026.

What each difficulty changes

Difficulty	What changes	Who it suits
Novice	No cooldowns on gadgets and abilities; enemies "easily killable"	Players here for the story
Intended	Balanced enemies, a steady challenge	A first playthrough (the developers' pick)
Purist	Much stronger enemies; resources and abilities must be used with care	Players who want a fight
00	Foes spot Bond faster and hit harder; two-hit kills; tighter parry and side-step timing; tougher guard types; gadgets blocked in a guard's line of sight; resources restore only a fraction of a gadget's use	Players who have finished the campaign

Sources: Beebom, May 26, 2026 (Novice, Intended, Purist); IOI 1.3.0 notes, Oct 1, 2026, and IOI on Steam, Oct 8, 2026 (00).

4:22 Beebom gives no numbers for the three presets, only these descriptions, and does not say whether Intended and Purist change gadget cooldowns or enemy health. Mortismal Gaming's review after 100% (May 29, 2026; the clip above) says the presets change Bond's health, the damage enemies deal and how readily gadget resources come. IOI has not published a breakdown of its own, as of Nov 4, 2026.

Novice, Intended, Purist or Easy, Normal, Hard?

1:20 Three sets of names are in print. Beebom, PowerPyx and Game Rant (which played on "Intended") use Novice, Intended and Purist, the names they report from the game's menu. IOI's Oct 8, 2026 Steam post invites players to replay on "Easy, Normal, Hard or the brand new 00 difficulty", and its Sep 30 New Game+ post also says custom loadouts work on Easy, Normal and Hard. Before launch, GamingBolt reported "Story, Normal, and Hard". IOI's own Extended Operations trailer (Oct 1, 2026; the clip above) settles the menu names: its Select Difficulty screen shows Novice, Intended, Purist and 00 side by side, so IOI's posts use plain words for the same three presets. No source reports them being renamed in an update.

The new top setting has a naming wrinkle of its own: IOI's Sep 30, 2026 announcement called it "007", while the Oct 1 patch notes and later posts call it 00, described as "the hardest way to play".

Which difficulty should you pick?

8:20 Start on Intended. It is the developers' recommendation, and reviewers who played it found the game forgiving rather than punishing: getting caught is "rarely a death sentence", and TheSixthAxis found the melee not especially hard. The exception is crowds: GamingBolt warns that brawls against many enemies are hard "even on Normal". Pick Novice if you want gadgets without cooldowns for a relaxed run, and Purist if you know IOI's Hitman games and want guards that hurt. Boomstick Gaming's May 26, 2026 tips video (the clip above) goes further: anyone with Hitman, Uncharted, Splinter Cell or The Last of Us behind them should start on Purist, since Intended skews too easy for them. Players chasing the trophies lose nothing on Novice. Game Rant finished the story in about 13 hours on Intended; see How Long to Beat.

The 00 difficulty

The 00 difficulty came with the free Extended Operations update (1.3.0, Oct 1, 2026) and opens only after completing the campaign, on any difficulty. It is played through New Game Plus, which keeps your unlocked outfits and gadgets. IOI's own description is short: "The ultimate test for any agent". PowerPyx's trophy list has no difficulty trophies, and 00 added none. The full rules are on 00 Difficulty.

Can you change difficulty mid-game?

No source we read says, as of Nov 4, 2026: Beebom states only that you choose a difficulty at the start. New Game+ lets you start a fresh run on another difficulty, and the game keeps 5 profile slots for new playthroughs beside its one autosave.

Frequently asked questions

What difficulty should I play 007 First Light on? Intended, the developers' recommendation for a first run. Choose Novice in 007 First Light for no gadget cooldowns and weaker enemies, or Purist for much stronger enemies.

Does difficulty affect trophies in 007 First Light? No. 007 First Light has no difficulty trophies or achievements, and PowerPyx confirms everything can be done on Novice.

Is there an easy mode in 007 First Light? Yes: Novice, which IOI's posts call Easy. It removes gadget and ability cooldowns and makes 007 First Light's enemies easy to defeat.

What is the hardest difficulty in 007 First Light? The 00 difficulty, added free on Oct 1, 2026 and unlocked by finishing 007 First Light's campaign. It brings two-hit kills, tighter parries and limited gadget resources.

What is the difference between Intended and Purist in 007 First Light? Purist makes 007 First Light's enemies much stronger and asks you to ration resources and abilities; Intended is the balanced setting the developers recommend first.