Hitman has always been a franchise I’ve never hesitated getting excited over, although the latest one (simply titled Hitman) has more causes for concernthan ever. It’s got a weird purchasing model that splits up the game into many pieces, while emphasising competitive play through leaderboards and frequent assassination runs. And while that sounds confusing, the gameplay itself isn’t. In fact, it looks rather beautiful in motion.
That’s probably thanks to the gorgeous, sunny villas that Agent 47 finds himself stalking prey in while still looking like a pubescent teenager, and less thanks to seeing true gameplay. Still, it’s fun to see the iconic clone sneak up on foes with all manner of weaponry, including a chef’s knife, his legendry silverballer pistol and a sniper rifle that doesn’t go with any disguise you could hope to wear.
When it comes down to raw gameplay, Hitman seems to be checking all the right boxes too. From what we’ve seen it’s keeping the small sandbox approach that the series has been perfecting over the years, but with far more stealth gameplay along the lines of my favourite entry – Blood Money. Setting up kills to look like freak accidents has always been my favourite way to play, and Hitman certainly is littering its levels with the tools to do it.
But it’s hard not to wonder about the weird way in which its being sold. Originally meant to release this December, Hitman is being sold in chunks. Only a handful of missions will be available at launch, while IO Interactive works on more to add in the coming months. You, as a player, can then choose to buy a pass to all the content outright, or buy it bit by bit. This segregation lends itself to the multiplayer nature of the game, but also means Hitman won’t feature an interconnected narrative. It’s just a collection of levels at this point.
But if the gameplay manages to hold up, it might not matter. Hitman launches next March on Xbox One, PS4 and PC.
Last Updated: October 29, 2015
Grand Admiral Chief SpaceNinja
October 29, 2015 at 10:07
Look, I LOVED the Hitman games, but this episodic crap does not meet the [Admiral Chief Stamp of Approval]
Rock789
October 29, 2015 at 10:25
It should GITFS? Coz that’s my thoughts precisely when it comes to making Hitman episodic…
Hammersteyn
October 29, 2015 at 10:32
Imagine COD was episodic, 10 minute SP missions XD
Grand Admiral Chief SpaceNinja
October 29, 2015 at 10:32
DELETE THIS COMMENT YOU ARE GIVING THEM IDEAS!
Hammersteyn
October 29, 2015 at 10:34
Good, sink the rat ship already
Grand Admiral Chief SpaceNinja
October 29, 2015 at 10:33
10 Minutes SP missions…..you mean the loading times on XBOX?
Hammersteyn
October 29, 2015 at 10:34
hahahaha
Greylingad[CNFRMD]
October 29, 2015 at 11:14
Would those be the extended versions?
Deceased
October 29, 2015 at 10:47
I’ll wait for the whole series of episodes to release before getting it 🙂
It looks epic though 😀
Grand Admiral Chief SpaceNinja
October 29, 2015 at 10:48
Agreed, but the episodic milking is despicable
Deceased
October 29, 2015 at 11:44
Meh … Better than micro-transactions I guess 🙂
Hammersteyn
October 29, 2015 at 10:15
Phone me when the game is finished. Would be funny if they pull the plug midway because of poor sales
Greylingad[CNFRMD]
October 29, 2015 at 11:17
Cough…cough…not because of poor sales, but it starts with an H ends with an e and ran out of enthusiasm/possible ways to create the final chapter before it too got uhm…snipped…
Hammersteyn
October 29, 2015 at 11:31
ouch
Rock789
October 29, 2015 at 10:26
Oooo… Shiny! But still not interested until it’s actually complete and I can see what the game is like as a whole…
oVg
October 29, 2015 at 10:31
I see what you did there 😉 “as a whole” In other words the GOTY edition 😉
Rock789
October 29, 2015 at 10:32
😉
oVg
October 29, 2015 at 10:27
Rince made me watch Agent 47 last Saturday. Im still recovering. I thought it was directed by Uwe Boll it was so bad.
I need 10 years before I can look at a bald man ever again.
Hammersteyn
October 29, 2015 at 10:32
Awwwww fuck, was kinda looking forward to it.
oVg
October 29, 2015 at 10:34
I would not even strap down a guantanamo bay inmate and loop it in front of him for 24hours.
Hammersteyn
October 29, 2015 at 10:38
Rince must hate you if he made you watch it
oVg
October 29, 2015 at 10:40
troll I think he tried to shock me into a vegetable state. But what he did not know is, is that I watched the last Hitman movie with the Nude French Bond Girl. That kind of brought me out of the comma.
Rock789
October 29, 2015 at 10:33
It’s a relatively entertaining action movie (relatively speaking… although the plot is as thin as rice paper). But a Hitman movie? I think not!
Grand Admiral Chief SpaceNinja
October 29, 2015 at 10:33
Good luck going to pee
oVg
October 29, 2015 at 10:35
My penis is non religious.
Too much… Ya
Grand Admiral Chief SpaceNinja
October 29, 2015 at 10:36
BRAIN BLEACH STAT
oVg
October 29, 2015 at 10:32
I LOVED THE LAST GAME. NOTHING BEATS NUNS WITH GUNS!!!! NOTHING 🙂
Alien Emperor Trevor
October 29, 2015 at 10:37
…
oVg
October 29, 2015 at 10:39
Good old Chuck.
He was born with three testicles. The doctors cut the third one out and threw it into the Ocean. Its now commonly known as Australia 🙂
Grand Admiral Chief SpaceNinja
October 29, 2015 at 10:40
No wonder they are so salty
oVg
October 29, 2015 at 10:32
Rock789
October 29, 2015 at 10:34
I see what you did there… Insert controversial video and sit back and watch the fireworks? 😉 :p
oVg
October 29, 2015 at 10:37
Its only controversial to gamers who do not even know that Japan exists.
Nothing wrong with it. Quintin Tarantino would have been proud. In fact it was no different to grind house movies.
Hammersteyn
October 29, 2015 at 10:39
controversial in the eyes of activists (pussies)