As an international man of mystery, you’ll be juggling a lot of different skills in 007: First Light from driving to hand-to-hand combat. One of the most important things to master, however, are the game’s stealth mechanics since Bond can meet a quick and untimely demise if he’s spotted while snooping around. Luckily, we’ve put together a few tips for staying incognito while trespassing in places you don’t belong. Here are six tips for becoming a stealth master in 007: First Light.

Don’t Forget About the Swap Cover Button

One of the most helpful tools in your arsenal in First Light doesn’t come from Q’s Lab, but is instead the Swap Cover button that allows you to quickly bridge the gap between bits of cover while staying quiet and unseen. To use the mechanic, you’ll want to be crouched at the end of a piece of cover, position your camera to where you want to run to, and you’ll see your target destination marked with a white outline. Hit R1 on PS5 or RB on Xbox, and Bond will quickly and quietly make a dash for it.

What’s so helpful about the Swap Cover button is that while some enemies might briefly notice you as you dart between cover, you won’t be in their sight long enough for them to be alerted to your presence, if they aren’t already looking for you. It’s a really quick and easy way to maneuver around the environment without drawing attention to yourself by flat-out running which should make the Swap Cover button one of the core mechanics you lean on while getting through 007: First Light.

Keep An Eye Out For Cameras

There are a lot of different things you should keep an eye out for while sneaking behind enemy lines, however, the single most important thing to avoid is the attention of security cameras that are affixed to the walls in certain areas.

You’ll be able to see where the cameras are looking by paying attention to the floor. If you see a circle of light with a handful of plus signs inside it, that’s the gaze of a camera. If you trigger the camera for even a single second, the light will turn red and reinforcements will be called in to immediately investigate the area, increasing your odds of getting caught significantly.

The best thing to do is avoid cameras entirely. That said,if you must cross paths with them on your route through a level, you can easily hack them with your Q Watch. Open the watch UI by holding down L1 on PS5 or LB on Xbox and use the hack tool to temporarily disable them. If you hack them, the camera will go down for a few seconds, long enough for you to quickly get through their coverage area.

If you want to completely disable the camera, you can use the Laser Strap gadget and they’ll be taken out permanently. I’d suggest doing this instead of simply hacking them since it takes them out of the equation entirely, however, it’s only an option if you have the Laser Strap equipped.

Don’t Forget About Your Gadgets

Given the sheer number of stealth options available to you at any given time, it can be easy to forget about the gadgets you’re given in Q’s lab. That said, it’s very important not to forget their functions and how they can easily help you out if you’re caught in a jam. Each equippable tool has its own intended use that can create essential openings for sneaking past guards, covering your tracks if you get caught, or giving yourself an edge if a fight breaks out.

You can only equip up to two gadgets per mission (three in the late-game), so experiment early and try to find which ones you like the best. Our go-to items are the Dart Phone, which is useful for getting stationary enemies to move out of the way by temporarily making them sick, the Laser Strap for disarming enemies and easily breaking padlocks, and the Flash Mine for locking down entryways that I don’t want enemies bursting through.

Keep your eyes peeled for different ways you can use your gadgets as you make your way through each level. It’s always a good idea to survey the area with your Q Lens as you go to see things like electronics that can be turned on or off to distract guards, places where your trip mines will be most effective, shotty electrical wiring that can electrocute people, crates hanging above held on by a single flimsy wire, and anything else highlighted in the environment that you might be able to manipulate to find a way through.

Every single time you encounter a roadblock while stealthing it up, we recommend taking a moment to pause and look for different kinds of additional openings that you might be able to make with your gadgets.

Remember: There’s Always An Alternate Path

If you do find yourself in a situation that you can’t gadget yourself out of, however, it’s essential to remember that there’s always an alternate path you could be taking through each level. 007: First Light is designed for you to carve your own path through it so if you’re encountering what you perceive as an insurmountable roadblock, try turning around and taking a different approach to whatever you’re doing.

It is very rare that the game will put you in a situation that has only a single solution, so keep your eyes peeled for other paths through each level. Sometimes those paths might be opened using gadgets, sometimes you’ll find alternate areas that circumvent enemies entirely, or sometimes you might need to take a second to memorize enemy patrol patterns and find an opening in a guard’s blindspot.

Disguises Are Incredible

As you explore the various levels in 007: First Light, make sure to keep a special look out for disguises. Disguises take the form of hats that Bond can put on to completely bypass an area’s security by blending in with the security itself.

These items are pretty overpowered since, instead of stealthing your way past guards and other enemies, you can simply walk right by them without any issue. The only thing you’ll need to worry about when wearing a disguise are the Watchers who can see through the ruse.

Luckily, Watchers are easily identified since they’ll be wearing the same hat as your disguise and have a big white dot over their heads, so just make sure to give them a wide berth and move quickly when they’re around. Because of how overpowered disguises are in First Light, it’s a good idea to carefully search each area you’re in to see if you can find one.

Don’t Run If You Get Caught

If you do end up getting caught by guards, there are some things you can do to minimize the amount of enemies who get alerted to your position. Getting caught can be bad, but it’s much worse to notify every guard in the area by making a break for it the second someone sees you.

Instead, if you’re careful about keeping your fights contained to small areas, you can take out anyone who sees you without alerting anyone else. As it turns out, fighting doesn’t make much noise which means that, as long as nearby enemies don’t see the fight, they won’t be alerted of it happening, even if it’s in the same room as them.

If you’re seen by a small group of just one or two guards, it’s a good idea to consider simply taking them out to contain the situation instead of blowing your cover and sprinting in search of somewhere else to hide.

In situations where you’re spotted by a large group of enemies, avoid getting tunnel vision and focusing entirely on a single bad guy. Foes that you leave alone will likely try to call in reinforcements or take out their guns – blowing your cover completely.

So as soon as you see a circle above an enemy’s head start forming, try to take them out before you have to deal with even more enemies.

What works even better than combat, however, is the bluff mechanic that allows you to lie to guards if you get caught. If you get spotted, you can hit the Circle button on PS5 or the B button on Xbox to lie about why you’re trespassing.

Take note that in order to perform a bluff, you’ll need to charge your instincts by performing takedowns of unsuspecting enemies, so it’s not always available, but it can definitely save your skin in a pinch. You can also spend your instinct points on luring guards away from their posts to disrupt their formation.