The reviews are in and Hitman 3 looks like a worthy successor to the last two entries in the rebooted trilogy. With the game offering up plenty of new ways to eliminate targets and some beautiful destinations to explore, one of 2021 first big games is showing a lot of promise. However, 2016's Hitman was episodic, which left a sour taste in some fans' mouths. Now, many fans are wondering whether or not Hitman 3 is episodic.
Luckily, Hitman 3 takes the same route as Hitman 2, releasing the game's core content and story all at once. Hitman 3 is not an episodic game, so fans won't have to worry about playing through the first destination and then having to wait months for the next one to release. All six of Hitman 3's destinations are available with the base game, so players can rip through it as fast as they want.
However, that doesn't mean that Hitman 3 will be showing all of its content off right at launch. If it's anything like the last game in the series, fans can expect more new destinations in the future, plus additional assassination contracts over time to add to the replay value. Replaying missions to find different solutions and earn faster times is a big part of Hitman 3's appeal, so its six launch destinations are nothing to scoff at.
Another thing for players to look forward to is community contracts, challenges created by other players within each destination. With community contracts, any NPC in the game can be a target, from unique characters down to general ones like an area's staff or partygoers. Those challenges will extend the life of the game for as long as there's a community, as they'll have unique modifiers for players to challenge each other with, like eliminating a target with a specific weapon or in a specific disguise.
So far, Hitman 3 reviews have been positive, with critics citing the open-ended levels as one of the biggest draws to the game. With any luck, developer IO Interactive will have more content in store for Hitman 3, but at least fans don't have to worry about Hitman 3 being an episodic entry in the franchise. The episodic nature seems to have negatively affected the first entry in the franchise, so it's understandable why IO Interactive abandoned it.
IO Interactive is working on a James Bond game now, so fans have more to look forward to from the developer. In the meantime, fans can work their way through all the content that Hitman 3 has to offer.
Hitman 3 releases January 20, 2021, for PC, PS4, PS5, Stadia, Switch, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X.