The team at IO Interactive recently claimed that full-sized follow up in 2018. Not only did Hitman 2 ship with loads of new maps, but it also ported the maps from the original game into the newer release so players could experience the entire journey so far with all the bells and whistles of the sequel.
For Hitman 3, IO Interactive has said that this trend will continue, with the latest game described as the finale of the "World of Assassination trilogy," wrapping up the self-serious storyline that has run through both previous releases. There will be six new locations, and the developer promises a world that reacts to franchise star Agent 47's every action. This is a game designed with new consoles in mind, and a recent interview puts that into focus on the technical side of things.
Speaking with the UK edition of Official PlayStation Magazine, Game Director Mattias Engström spoke about the technical improvements that the next generation will bring. The fine folks at Wccftech have reported a few details from the interview, including how important quicksaves and loads are to the Hitman experience. According to Engström, "we see the save/load as an important feature to encourage just that. The blitz-fast load times we are seeing on the PS5 makes it the perfect home for the HITMAN trilogy, encouraging experimentation more than ever."
Mattias also talks about the graphical fidelity afforded by the new hardware. He speaks about how locations in the new game will be memorable particularly because of the work done by the team's environment and lighting artists. "Screen space reflections are truly pushed to the limit in HITMAN 3. These improvements will be added across the trilogy. The other day Dag, one of our tech artists, showed me some before and after shots on the Paris fashion show and the difference in quality was mind-blowing to me."
One common next-gen improvement not mentioned is ray-tracing, but the interview also doesn't outright say that it won't be included in the final product. One also assumes that this work goes over to the non-PlayStation version of the game considering that the interview was conducted for a PlayStation-specific publication.
Hitman 3 will offer something that the franchise's previous sequel didn't' despite IO Interactive's best intentions. While Hitman 2 was more Hitman, no one could hide the fact that it likely started life as more episodes for the original game. It very much felt like an expansion pack, and work was done on it before Square Enix separated from the developer and forced an altered business plan. IO know they're making a brand new game with Hitman 3 so players can expect innovations in gameplay and an exciting finale to go with the boost in power that next-gen provides.
Hitman 3 is coming in January 2021 on Xbox Series X, Xbox One, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, and PC.
Source: Official PlayStation Magazine UK via Wccftech
