Hitman will launch digitally this year in ‘episodic’ form

IO Interactive announced that it was working on a brand new Hitman game some time ago and we finally saw a bit more of it last month at E3. However, it has a somewhat weird release schedule, with part of the game launching digitally in December, with the rest of it to be added in over the course of 2016. Then once it is finally done, the disc version will launch in 2016.

This is not to be confused with Early Access, where games launch in a pre-alpha state. This is more of an ‘episodic' format, just not to the same extent as the TellTale games. In a Q&A released today, IO noted that a sizeable portion of the game will launch on the 8th of December this year, with more missions and locations set to be added in over the months that follow, although there are no details on the planned release schedule for the rest of the game just yet.

[yframe url='http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LVqxMCZ3u6k']

Those plans are currently being finalized and will be revealed at some point in the future. IO stressed that this would be “a polished Hitman experience” and now an Early Access like affair with poor optimization and a lack of gameplay features.

Unfortunately there is no discount for those who buy the game before it is in its finished state, it will still cost $60 at launch but that will guarantee you all of the content. There is no word on additional DLCs following the game's completion, however, for those that play the game online, there will be “live events” happening in the game world alongside other bits of content that aren't necessarily story related.

You can see the full Q&A, HERE. 

Discuss on our Facebook page, HERE.

KitGuru Says: This is a new concept for triple A titles, which I imagine will garner mixed reactions from gamers. Honestly, I'm not even entirely sure how I feel about it myself. What do you guys think of the release plan for Hitman? Should a game launch at full price if it is mixing chunks of the story? Does the fact that the game will be updated over time negate that? 

Become a Patron!