Hitman 3 - Reviews & Discussion

The world of assassinations, homing briefcases and Sheikh Zanzibar comes to it's conclusion this wednesday and it seems like it's a satisfying one.

• Eurogamer - Recommended
• Gamespot 9/10
• Gameinformer 9/10
• IGN 9/10
• PC Gamer 90/100
• Polygon
• RPS
• Waypoint

While the week/days ahead of launch have been a little rough (mostly because of people needing to buy Hitman 1&2 again on PC, though now that has been thankfully addressed), I'm glad to see that the game itself seems to deliver on some excellent Hitman content. I haven't been fully on board the whole time myself, mostly due to Hitman 2 and how little I ended up playing it in comparison to the one before it, even though I did still enjoy my time with it a lot. But it's more Hitman and I really do like Hitman even in it's non-episodic format, so I think I'll be strangling some fools on launch day like many others.

I think I'll give this a go on PS5 this time, just because of how my PC can't handle a 4K/60FPS combination and this game looks like it's really pretty. Plus I do have my PSVR in the closet and Hitman VR looks like a good enough excuse to finally dust off that thing.

Pretty surprised by this since I thought 2 was better then 1 and yet it got 7s and 8s for being more of the same so I expected the same for this game. Very hyped for this!

Just when I settled on probably getting this on my Series X ..some new widespread firmware bug is causing Xbox controllers to constantly lose connectivity..

Well, I already got it for Series X. Thankfully this controller bug doesn't seem to have hit me. All of my disconnects come from "A pair of AAs last all of 6 hours in this controller" rather than firmware problems.

wanted to get a ps5 before I played this but considering it's still impossible to get one I'll probably start it on my ps4 in the mean time. Super pumped for this game, was easily my most anticipated of the year since they announced it last summer, and I'm even more eager after seeing the positive reception it's getting.

@therealturk: @inevpatoria: I started noticing that my controller started randomly losing connection while playing Valhalla these past 2-3 days so I Googled it and apparently there’s like a 50 page thread on the Microsoft forums about it. Haven’t had any issues until like these past few days and apparently if you have it plugged in it’s no problem. For me last time it broke so bad I couldn’t get the pad to connect no matter what. I could even control the system with my phone through the mobile app but the controller would just keep blinking.

Waypoint's review is out too.

It's the first negative review I've seen of the game. I do think the game will end up being really divisive in the long run, judging by what the reviewers are saying. We've just gotten people who liked the changes up first.

@retris: This review makes me extremely skeptical, comparing it to Absolution and bringing up some rough sounding level design.

It doesn't sound quite as dire as Absolution, but it sounds like some of the core problems people have with it are creeping up here.

I read the Waypoint review and had mixed feelings. On one hand, the criticisms seem pretty valid and like kind of a bummer, but on the other hand, I only played Absolution for like 10 minutes and doubling down on story stuff and Absolution-esque moments isn’t a deal breaker for me. I’m sure I’ll play it and love it. Maybe not as much as the first two, but i can’t see myself hating it.

@humanity: I've also developed this issue over the last week and it's very frustrating... One time it was so bad that turning the console on and off didn't even fix it, I had to unplug from the wall to fix the issue.

I have disagreed with Cameron's writing on certain games before but this tempers my expectations quite a bit and makes me very curious to hear more from the Waypoint and GB crew.

So much of my enjoyment of Hitman comes level to level. Hitman and Hitman 2 each had 3-4 fantastic levels and usually about 2 meh ones. So it's not outside the norm that one or two kinda fall flat. However, the hope is that the rest can hold it up and the overall ratio of quality is in the positive direction.

@fistoh: come on dude, 9/10 isnt good enough anymore. The game's fine. Just get it. Lol.

Does anyone know if hitman 1 or 2 get the VR update. I don't really like the new series but I like VR and the old ones are free on PSPlus

@topcyclist: What are you on the cut or something?

@topcyclist: yes every Hitman level is in VR

im so excited for this! gonna play tomorrow asap

@humanity: Oh shit is that whats is going on? Been playing Immortals recently and controller would randomly turn off for a few seconds...thought it was that game. Thanks for the heads up.

I can not wait for this to drop tomorrow. I am very in love with the story and world that modern Hitman 1 and 2 have set up, and I can't wait to see conclude.

I was waiting for reviews to make sure this wasn't a buggy mess, but it seems like its cleared that bar so I'm excited to jump in tomorrow after work. Really enjoyed the first couple games.

@x_sammyd_x: Naw, I don't think you understood my question. Thanks for the help cause I looked online and no one really has a clear answer. I assume most are just Getting hitman 3 cause why would you play 1 or 2 years later. Well, I never got around to hitman 1 or 2 at the time. I kept bouncing off. That said VR can make anything fun for me. I wanna know if I can pop in Hitman 1 without 3 and jump into some sorta update that allows VR or do i have to import hitman levels to 3 then play VR in 1. If the latter then it's a no from me dawg.

Edit for others with same question: found this on a reddit q/a

Will you be able to use VR in HITMAN 1 and/or 2?

You can only play VR with HITMAN 3. There’s no VR update coming for HITMAN 1 or 2 and there’s no standalone VR separate from HITMAN 3.

If you already own HITMAN 1 or HITMAN 2, you can import those locations into HITMAN 3 and play them in VR there.

:C sad face

I'm pissed that this is exclusive to Epic. I'm going to replay Hitman 1 & 2 and pickup 3 when it eventually lands on Steam, and only after it receives a very deep sale price.

@youeightit: It'll be an interesting experience for me, since I have never played any of the older Hitman games, so I don't really know what to expect when someone describes the game as having "too much Absolution" in it.

On the other hand, that Waypoint review kinda feels like they played a completely different game than everyone else in spots? That review specifically complains that the Mission Stories are too rigid. But most of the other reviews I've seen say that the Mission Stories are way more open-ended and less hand-holdy than the first two games.

I'm also not sure how much stock I put into complaining about the consistency of the levels. The modern Hitman games have always had great levels mixed in with some really bad ones. 2016 had Paris and Sapienza, but also had Colorado and Marrakesh. Hitman 2 had Miami and the Bank, but also Whittleton Creek. It's maybe disappointing that they haven't found more consistency after three games, but it isn't like it's a change for how the games have been before.

After watching all of Giant Bomb's hitman content (quite possibly my favorite content the site has produced), I have finally decided to really jump in myself. I just bought all three games, and will play through them all on the PS5. Bring it on!

@therealturk: Absolution had over the top camp some of which worked and some that really didn’t but it seemed like the sort of stuff that Waypoint guys - Patrick specifically - could get behind. Then again Absolution did have those sexy nuns that people hated so much. It’s nothing new that they’re standing apart from the pack though - that’s kind of the sites selling point at this point to have a very niche viewpoint. I mean their interpretation of the ending to Ori is err well very specific.

@therealturk@humanity Yeah this is totally what I was thinking, too. I have a lot of respect for those peeps, especially Austin and Rob, but I've learned not to go solely to them for reviews because a. my tastes just don't line up with any of them too often and b. sometimes their reviews, though necessary and important in this space, tend to kinda wet blanket games that I just don't have the energy to think that hard about or look at closely enough to care.

But, because I do take them seriously, when they give something a less than stellar review, I do get kinda bummed because their criticisms are usually pretty spot on even if I don't agree.

I really wish they'd give Hitman 2 a hefty discount on consoles as well, because I'm not paying 70€ for that thing to play it in 3, let alone 100€ for the Gold Edition. Oh well, I suppose they will eventually.

Edit: I guess it *was* on sale, but isn’t anymore. You’d think they would’ve kept it going for longer or just permanently decreased the price of 1 and 2 to make buying them more appealing for new players.

So... I impulse bought Hitman 3 because of this tweet: https://twitter.com/DanRyckert/status/1352100908801421313?s=20

Similarly, I have bought Hitman 1 and 2 in the past (all on Xbox), but I have never played more than the tutorial mission of Hitman 1. So, I have a question:

I know I can import all Hitman 1 & 2 levels into Hitman 3. Is that a good way to experience the story? Or does that import _just_ the levels and I'd be missing out on cutscenes or something? If I want to experience the entire story, can I do that in Hitman 3, or should I start with the actual Hitman 1 game?

@warpr: Can't say for sure just yet about Hitman 2 (playing on Epic so will have to wait), but the Hitman 1 cutscenes seem to be baked into the completion of a level. Aside from some great environmental storytelling scattered about the level and the odd comment from your handler you could easily catch up with the state of the story from YouTube.

On of the complaints people had in the transition from Hitman 1 to 2 was the ending of the episodic delivery format as it really got you to focus on a map at a time. If you end up with all three in one package and it's your first time playing you might get burn out pretty fast, not enough to play through the whole trilogy. I'd maybe recommend sticking with 3 at first and then going back to the picks of the bunch in the first two games for unlocks. Once you have a hefty toolset, and have got the whole mass murder thing down pat, breezing through the levels for the 'story' playthrough is pretty speedy.

But the great thing about this Hitman series is just play how you find fun - it's much more a toybox than a narrative heavy thing (as good as the story is). This is partly why I want to see where IOI goes with the Bond franchise.

Are they doing a quick look of Hitman 3 or are the GOTY podcasts treated like a full days work?

@warpr said:

I just started over since I couldn't get the carryover tool to work. I would echo what @stantongrouse said about burnout - you can blow through the story pretty quick but if you want to dig into the levels putting all three titles back to back to back is going to take a pretty long time.

Having said that, if you play the first two games via Hitman 3, the old levels also get some of the various game play tweaks that come with the most recent game, and some of them have a surprisingly substantial effect on how you play the game. For example, enemies now very definitely see you if you come up behind them in a mirror now, which makes the reliable "hide in this box until the target uses the bathroom" technique a lot harder. Agent 47 also climbs up pipes and ladders way faster now - I never used to use a lot of them because the slow climbing exposed you for so long, but now you just kind of shoot up, which makes some routes much more viable.

Given how much time they gave the other games once GOTY is done I'm sure there's going to be coverage. Whether that is a quick look or some extended playthroughs I'm sure they'll get to it. I'll miss Dan's chaotic input but Vinny more than makes up for that.

So progression carry over does NOT carry over any of your escalation progress from 2. And I had completed every escalation in 2, so that kinda sucks.

I didn't play any of the pre-2016 hitman games, but I've played through this trilogy. I've played through the first four missions once at this point, and I'm really liking it. This might my favorite of the 3. They are pulling the story threads from the first couple games together in a very satisfying way, and the level design seems great so far. Obviously my opinion might change as I go back and replay the levels, but it still seems like there is plenty of sandbox to mess around with. Also, some of the best ambient dialogue of the series so far.

I'm wondering how odd it is for new players who are jumping into the trilogy now (also possibly being completely unaware of the whole "SE boots IO, WB publishes the next game, IO become independent for three" debacle) and are playing it from the very start, to see the clear drop of budget in the cutscenes. All nice and shiny CG in the first, then those kinda terrible motion comics in two and now a slight improvement in three with actual cutscenes, though they still feel like something from the PS3/360 era at best.

Very glad that it doesn't show in the actual gameplay though, as it has only become more and more pretty with each part. I hope MGM gives them some needed funds to take care of the cutscenes too for the James Bond game.

Just a note for newbies to Hitman. You don't have to play the previous two games to enjoy this. The game gives you a quick summary of the story before you start the first mission.

First off, loved hitman 3, I think as a whole especially if you have 1 & ² it's a great purchase with the new graphics (reflections, lighting & the amount of people on screen and still a stable framerate is impressive. (Im playing this on a Playstation 5 also btw)

For PSVR heads up, even if you're on the PS5 you need to be using a DS4 Controller from the PS4 in order to play with the old camera and the adapter for it for PS5. No move support which is probably the most disappointing thing about it. They do find a neat way to do it, but it just isn't as immersive. Being able to play through 1-3 in VR is still really crazy to look at, but just a shame on the control front. I feel like a hybrid of moving like NMS in VR mixed with Gorn weapon controllers would've been perfect for this game. All in all if you liked the last two id say get it especially if you still have saves. The transfer process is weird, was busted first two days but fixed now, it'll override all you've done though if you start playing before doing it so heads up if you care. See ya on the contracts field!

I really enjoy how IO tries to change up the formula just enough in some of these maps post 2016's reboot. Not gonna spoil anything here, but it's also for the most part, not anything wildly different from what they attempted in the Gen 1 Hitman days. All of these levels are sendups to various Hitman missions and maps of old so there's only so much leverage they have in moving outside of the prescribed formula that works so well for this franchise.

@bacongames: Given that the man has once written a piece to defend 2016's Batman V Superman, I always took Mr. Kunzelman's words with a grain of salt. And since third map in Hitman 3 is the most free foaming thing I played in the whole trilogy, I would respectfully disagree with his review for Vice.

Been playing it a lot this weekend, started over from scratch mostly just because I knew I'd want to play all of 1 and 2 again, and honestly I don't mind the chance to do all of the opportunities again.

Absolutely no opinion on 3 yet, put 10 hours into the game and I literally just moved on from the Hitman 1 content. By that metric Hitman 3 is the greatest video game of all time

@infantpipoc: He liked the third level. It's the final level he despised.

I guess while I'm here I might as well add that I've finished Hitman 3 and think Kunzelman's review at Vice describes my experience exactly, except that I liked the final level a bit more than he did. I guess I also had less of an issue with the Story Missions this time out than he did, but that may be because I turned off the assistance and just integrated the story mission bits into my normal run -- in part or, if there was a clear enough path, in full. But the sentiment that the clockwork onion of 2016-era Hitman has been compromised here by unwieldly narrative demands is spot-on. Once I can finally reconnect to the servers for this SINGLE PLAYER GAME I look forward to seeing if the game breathes a little easier without the story context.

Dan has released a sort of impressions/review video after finishing a run through all the missions and a lot of his criticism mirror the Vice review so there’s something to it. I haven’t played it myself but I can see how they might have ended up encroaching on the freedom of gameplay they pioneered by trying to construct increasingly more elaborate setups for the unique assassinations. Also that last level just seems like a bad idea, especially since the game just is 6 maps from what I understand? A big ol’ train doesn’t sound great.

@humanity: last level is by far the worst, if you stealth the whole train it makes it only slightly better. But there's zero deviating from the path. First 3 levels are the standouts for sure

Actually the thing I need to know is whether there are semi-special objectives in the completion list like "put on chef's outfit and do these 6 objectives to unlock the special chef knife" or whatever. Those were easily my favorite to do when I would revisit the levels after I completed the story missions.

@peezmachine: Well, that last map did make me went "what's this Uncharted bullshit doing in a Hitman game?". I just meant I respectfully disagree with Kunzelman being down on the game as a whole. The second mission containing a point and click adventure is something he disliked as well but I found it to be nice change of pace.

Still, I am all for reviewer pointing out flaws in games. Wish someone did that for me before I fell into the MGS2 rabbit hole 15 years ago...

All reviews are valid, but take waypoint with a few grains of salt. Honestly feels misleading, as if they didn't try to engage with the content they were lamenting a lack kf.There have always been mission stories, separate from the freeform nature of the levels. These are all good levels,with the final map being a linear bonus rather than a full scene. Nothing will ever tip paris and sapienza, but the entire roster here is amazing. Getting through their "story" only takes a couple hours, then the freedom and opportunities that present themselves are more numerous than ever

I've found Hitman 3 to be absolutely fantastic. I have played every Hitman game so I'm a long tenured fan, but Hitman 3, plus the original 2 seasons of this format, are all fantastic games.

I think the major criticism of 3 feeling more streamlined is because the first run of missions are largely more direct, some of them forcing you to go in a less free-form way to achieve anything, and while I understand the frustration of that for an individual who may not have time to re-play levels a lot, this is a game where the new levels are made to be re-played outside of the final train level, which I'll type something on shortly.

Once you complete levels and unlock new starting locations and learn the levels as is standard in a Hitman game, it's hugely open, not as much as the best of the first season's levels of course, but they are really rewarding on replays.

I am not so sure I am fond of the narrative story, however, it feels a little too much like closure in a game where that is very uninteresting. That is understandable but a little bit odd compared to the Brian DePalma Hitchcockian inspired ridiculousness-with-ties of Season 1 & 2, but at least the awareness and sense of humour in long standing conspiracies remains as it has for 20 something years in the series.

I think Absolution did the story thing better than this game by miles, and better than Season 1 & 2 by a decent bit. That's understandable as that's one of the greatest games on the Xbox 360/PS3 and got a bad wrap at the time. Absolution is worth a revisit to see how much of the new Season games are in there, but with a more direct Michal Mann/DePalma style plot if you get the style tied into it all. Was it streamlined and less about discovery than the previous games? Yes, but it is a far better game than most Hitman fans gave it credit for at the time (bar Alex on this site, which is interesting given he's much more of an informed film/media literacy person than the vast majority in video games writing).

In terms of gameplay Hitman Season 3 has some cool additions but without the ability to play in VR (no great loss to me) the only major additions are the phone, where it's cool to have a little bit of the Batman Arkham detective vision to encourage you to read about the evidence you pick up, and number pad locks on safes and doors which means studying levels/environments is extra worthwhile.

It plays almost as well as Hitman Season 2 but has a few issues with certain bugs and glitches at this point in time. I am playing on an Xbox One S so unsure if that's a factor. With that being said, outside of bugs like very slow responses to emetic poison at random intervals, the game looks/feels *perfect* on the older consoles.

The train level is fine but not great. It's a ludicrous and fitting finish to the story which I'm not a great fan of despite liking most of the source materials they cribbed from, and it feels like the Goldeneye 64 train mission in many ways. Was it an intentional nod to their next game? That'd be cool, but it fits something else that Season 3 does more than 1 or 2, it tries to vary up the styles between levels in much more distinct ways. Does this make levels feel more restrictive at first as mentioned prior? Yep, but it gives a flow if you do play it through in sequence.

Having now had a chance to go back and replay the levels a great many times, I can say that the issues caused by the narrative the first time through all but evaporate on repeat playings. In fact, the biggest offender (some big railroading at the end of the 4th level) is made completely optional on subsequent runs. I can heartily endorse this event or product.