Agent 47's next mission is going portable as IO Interactive is bringing Hitman 3 to the Nintendo Switch in one of the many surprise announcements made at today's Nintendo Direct Mini.
While Hitman 3 was already announced at the PlayStation 5 reveal event back in June, the game was only announced for the PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X, Xbox One and of course the PC. News of the game being brought to the Nintendo Switch seemed unlikely given the Switch being less powerful than its Sony and Microsoft counterparts, but as with the reveal of Control also coming to the Switch, Hitman 3 is a cloud-based version of the game.
This means that in order to play the Switch version of Hitman 3, players will need a strong WIFI connection. While this isn't a major issue given that the past Hitman games have had a significant online aspect, this does mean that players won't be able to collect contracts on the go.
Hitman 3 looks to continue the story of Agent 47 with 6 new locations loaded with story mission and side contracts. Hitman 3 will give players the ability to carry over maps and missions from both Hitman 1 and Hitman 2 to the new game. While not much is known about the game currently, it is known that Hitman 3 will not have any multiplayer modes, instead focusing on a single player experience.
One major focus IO Interactive has for Hitman 3 is a return of a more serious tone for the franchise. While both Hitman 1 and Hitman 2 threaded a line between serious and goofy, Hitman 3 looks to have more of a mature story coupled with the compelling gameplay from the first two games greatly expanded upon. This doesn't mean the game will lack funny moments but rather they will be less frequent.
Although the game won't focus on multiplayer with this entry, Hitman 3 will see the return of some classic series modes. Aside from the campaign, which tells the story of Agent 47 on the run, players will be able to play Elusive Targets, Escalations, and Contracts Mode. Elusive Targets makes a welcome return to the series with weekly targets that players will only have one shot to kill, while Escalations focuses on a progressively difficult challenge as each mission gets harder than the last. Contracts Mode allows players to create their own mission, picking the target, method of kill, and location of the mission.
Hitman 3 is releasing in January 2021 for Nintendo Switch, PC, PS4, PS5, Stadia, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X.