Well, this is a pleasant surprise. IO Interactive has started rolling out a free DLC pack for 007 First Light called Extended Operations, and it's a meaty one. We're talking New Game+, a Photo Mode, additional missions, and a stack of other goodies, all for the low price of nothing. You can read the full rundown over at Nintendo Wire.

Free post-launch content done right is one of my favorite things in gaming, and it's rarer than it should be. I remember when an "expansion" meant driving to the store and buying a box with a CD-ROM inside, then hoping the disc didn't have a scratch on it. Now a studio just... pushes new missions to your console while you sleep. My granddaughter Jess would tell me that's simply how it works now, Aunt Beth, but I still think it deserves a little appreciation.

The headline feature for most players will probably be New Game+. If you finished Bond's origin story and wanted a reason to slip back into the tuxedo, this is it. You carry your progress forward and replay the campaign with everything you've unlocked, which is exactly how I like my second playthroughs. Comfortable, but with teeth.

The Photo Mode is the addition I'm personally curious about. The Hitman studio has always had a knack for gorgeous lighting and detailed environments, and giving players a proper camera to freeze those moments is a lovely touch. Expect social feeds to be flooded with moody tuxedo shots within the week.

And then there are the new missions, which is really the substance of the pack. More missions means more reasons to actually boot the game back up rather than admire the patch notes from a distance. IO Interactive hasn't been stingy here either, with a list of extras beyond the big three that should keep completionists busy for a good while.

The rollout is happening now, so depending on when you check, the pack may already be waiting for you. If it isn't, give it a day. These things tend to stagger their way around the world like, well, a certain spy.

I've said this before about gadgets and it applies to games too: good add-ons should work for you, solving the "okay, now what?" problem that hits after the credits roll. Extended Operations does exactly that. If you already own First Light, there's genuinely no reason to skip it. And if you've been waiting on the sidelines to buy the game, a free content drop this generous is a pretty good signal that IO is planning to support it for the long haul.

I'll be curious to hear what the Photo Mode crowd does with it. Some of you are far more artistic than I am, and I say that with love.