Is Hitman 3 Worth Playing in 2022? An In-Depth Review

The verdict: Yes, Hitman 3 is absolutely worth playing for both loyal series fans and newcomers to the stealth action genre. IO Interactive delivers their best Hitman yet – a refined sandbox of intricate missions, absurd assassinations and emergent gameplay possibilities.

As a long-time Hitman aficionado myself, I was eagerly anticipating this globe-trotting conclusion to the recent World of Assassination trilogy. Now having spent 50+ hours fully completing every challenge and unlocking mastery levels, I can decisively say Hitman 3 lives up to expectations for those willing to invest the time to truly master Agent 47‘s craft.

While not radically different from prior entries, Hitman 3 represents IOI‘s continued iterative improvements on both presentation and gameplay. Let‘s delve into the key factors that make it a must-play for players craving creative stealth challenges.

Hitman 3 Perfects the Stealth Sandbox Formula

At its core, Hitman 3 continues the franchise‘s compelling stealth gameplay loop: Players are set loose in expansive, intricately detailed levels to accomplish objectives through creative problem-solving. Using observation, disguises, distractions and environmental advantages, you systematically eliminate high-profile targets in inventive ways.

IOI knows not to mess with success – the satisfactions of prowling environments undetected, finding murderous opportunities through emergent gameplay, and choreographing absurdly complex kills remain fully intact.

Here are the key pillars of Hitman‘s stealth gameplay perfected over 20 years:

• Observation – Understanding patrol routes, enemy lines of sight, hiding spots. Information is power.
• Disguises – Assume identities to infiltrate new areas. Balance blending in with not attracting suspicion.
• Improvisation – Turn everyday items into deadly tools for distraction or assassination. Exercise creativity.
• Social Stealth – Blend into crowds and conversations to gain intel and access. But don‘t blow your cover!
• Mastery – Meticulously learn level layouts through repetition to pull off perfect silent assassin runs.

IOI masters the interplay between these mechanics – observation informs disguises for infiltration to improvise kills. Experimentation leads to mastery which enables almost supernatural stealth.

This gratifying loop gives players agency to decide their playstyle between panther-like stealth or reckless aggression. You forge your own tales of assassination.

And Hitman 3‘s six new locations provide eye-popping backdrops to exercise your deadly creativity.

Exotic Locations Offer Visual Splendor and Gameplay Variety

While the gameplay remains familiar, Hitman 3 introduces six new exotic locations, each with unique atmospheres, environmental challenges and assassination opportunities.

Here‘s a high-level overview of each new sandbox:

Location	Description	Targets	Challenges
Dubai	Opulent Burj Al-Ghazali skyscraper hosting a tech unveiling	1 main target + opportunity targets	Verticality, crowds, lavish amenities to sabotage
Dartmoor	Sprawling English manor estate rife with family intrigue	3 main targets + detectives to evade	Murder mystery to solve, dense interiors, grand exterior
Berlin	Underground rave in repurposed WW2 bunker	5 core targets across 2 missions	Infiltrating through crowds, tense armed guards
Chongqing	Chinese skyscraper under construction	2 targets across day and night missions	Vertical construction site, rain, blending into protests
Mendoza	Argentine vineyard running high-stakes wine tasting	3 targets across lush exterior and interior	Poisoning, sabotage, isolating targets
Romania	Gritty building site in Carpathian mountains	2 former partners turned final targets	Dim stressful atmosphere, sheer drops, industrial design

With sunny exotic escapes like Dubai contrasted against dimly-lit construction site tension in Romania, the visual variety and gameplay diversity on offer is impressive.

Each mission has a unique flavor – from orchestrating elaborate murder mysteries in Dartmoor to triggering urban chaos amidst Chongqing protests. But common threads run through all: observation, stealth, improvisation and execution.

After 50+ hours infiltrating these environments I‘m still discovering new paths, assassination methods and ways to puppeteer chaos. This speaks to IOI‘s excellence in multi-layered mission design.

Now let‘s dig into gameplay innovations and improvements…

Refinements & New Features Enhance the Core Formula

While the addictive core remains consistent, IOI introduces tweaks and new features in Hitman 3 to keep things fresh:

• Hacking – New camera and keycard hacker gadgets add options to infiltrate secure areas. I often use cameras to silently scout ahead.
• Short-range silencer – Muffles shots at close range to enable quieter kills when cover is blown. Handy backup weapon.
• Deluxe escalations – Special complication missions with unique conditions. I welcome the challenge of mastering levels under tighter restrictions.
• Untouchable mode – Permadeath mode where being spotted once fails the entire mission. The ultimate test of skill once you‘ve mastered levels.
• Streamlined UI – Cleaned up menus, waypoints and loadout systems for a smoother experience compared to Hitman 2.
• Accessibility options – Customizable options to fine-tune difficulty for different players are welcome inclusions.

While not game-changers, these new additions provide welcome variety when replaying locations to discover new strategies. They demonstrate IOI‘s continued efforts to incrementally build on past titles.

Other more general improvements include:

• Optimized visuals – The Glacier engine powers the series‘ best graphics yet while running smooth on modern hardware. Lighting, textures and physics are excellent.
• Refined level design – Levels strike an ideal balance of open sandbox areas and intricate interiors. They‘re dense with details without being overwhelming.
• Intuitive controls – The simple, responsive controls foster improvisation. Inventory system makes swapping loadouts and gear smooth.
• Dynamic audio – Soundtrack dynamically responds to gameplay moments to build tension. NPC dialogue brings characters to life.

This polish shows IOI leveraging past Hitman titles as learning experiences to refine both world design and moment-to-moment gameplay.

The result? Hitman 3 represents the pinnacle of the franchise so far in both presentation and mechanical depth.

Satisfying Amount of Content & Replay Value

With six core campaign missions plus remastered maps from previous games, Hitman 3 packs in a meaty amount of stealth content:

• 6 large main missions – Dubai, Dartmoor, Berlin x2, Chongqing x2, Mendoza x3, Romania x2. Each location has at least 2 hours of content per playthrough.
• 6 remastered maps – Hitman 1 and 2 maps revamped in Hitman 3 engine. Includes favorites like Miami, Isle of Sgail and Hokkaido.
• 100+ challenges per level – Complete mission stories, unique kills, disguises, achievements etc. to unlock mastery rewards.
• 20+ escalation missions – Special assignments with complications that remix levels.
• Elusive Targets – Time-limited assassinations that offer rewards for one-chance completion.
• Contracts Mode – Players can create and complete custom assassination missions. Constant stream of new user-created hits.

With six core campaign missions taking at least 10 hours to fully complete plus remastered favorites, the base content is robust for a single player experience.

But the real value comes from replaying missions to uncover new strategies, assassination methods, non-target kills, challenges and other emergent opportunities. With 100+ distinct challenges per location, you can easily spend 5-10 hours perfecting a level to mastery.

This focus on replayability over pure scale demonstrates IOI excelling at dense, compact mission design. There‘s almost endless gameplay to be mined from the complex systems interacting.

Add in live events, escalations and player-created contracts and Hitman 3 can easily provide 50+ hours of replayable stealth action – terrific value for the price.

Price and Editions – How to Get the Full Experience

With various editions available, it can get confusing sorting out what content is included with Hitman 3‘s initial purchase:

• Standard Edition – Includes 6 story missions, Deluxe Escalations, Untouchable mode ($60 base price)
• Deluxe Edition – Adds Deluxe Pack with in-game items and suits. Typically $10 extra.
• Hitman Trilogy – Includes remastered Hitman 1 & 2 content. Provides the full World of Assassination experience.

I recommend the Hitman Trilogy bundle to get the complete storyline and remastered maps from previous games. It‘s usually priced around $90 total and goes on sale for ~$60.

That provides amazing value – over 60+ sandbox missions plus hundreds of challenges and gameplay modes. At ~$1 per hour of game time, you can‘t go wrong!

Post-launch, IOI offers seasonal roadmaps with new missions, targets, items etc. These are optional purchases rather than necessary. I suggest trying the base game first before spending on add-ons.

Finally, Game Pass subscribers can access the full Hitman Trilogy at no added cost, which is an incredible deal for Xbox and PC players!

Multiplatform Performance and Platform Comparison

I tested Hitman 3 across PC, PS5 and Switch to examine how the experience holds up across various hardware:

PC

• Visuals maxed at 1440p/60FPS on an i7/RTX 3070 machine. Scalable graphics let you customize performance.
• Keyboard and mouse offers precise aim and movement. Gamepad works great too.
• No loading times with games installed on an SSD.
• Wide suite of graphics options to customize framerate, resolution etc.

PlayStation 5

• Visuals look superb at 4K resolution and 60 FPS. Loading times are lightning quick thanks to SSD.
• Excellent use of DualSense‘s haptic feedback and triggers to deepen immersion.
  -PS4 disc versions get free next-gen upgrade to PS5 version.

Nintendo Switch

• Cloud streaming version made playable through consistent internet. Visuals scaled down.
• Portable handheld play on the go is a unique way to enjoy Hitman‘s sandbox. Fun to chip away at challenges in short bursts.
• Requires reliable low-latency network connection for smooth performance.

Across all platforms, Hitman 3 is highly optimized to provide an excellent experience tailored to each system‘s capabilities.

PC offers the ultimate flexibility for high resolutions and framerates. PS5 showcases excellence in 4K/60FPS console optimization. Even Switch‘s novel cloud version impresses despite limitations.

Areas for Improvement in Future Titles

Despite all my praise, Hitman 3 is not without some flaws worth addressing in future installments:

• Always online requirement – Many expressed valid complaints about the need for persistent internet connectivity. Should move to an offline-first model with online for co-op features.
• No mods support – Mods helped past games‘ longevity. Supporting an API for user-generated content like costumes and missions could extend the fun.
• Reused animations – Some dated character animations remain unchanged since 2016‘s Hitman. Updating these to match the new visual fidelity would further immersion.
• Lite storytelling – The sparse narrative takes a backseat to open-ended gameplay. Evolving the storytelling to match the strong level design would create a richer experience.

These gripes aside, IOI does an admirable job listening to fan feedback and continuously improving the series. I hope they double down on Hitman‘s strengths while addressing lingering weaknesses in future installments.

The template for excellence in emergent stealth sandbox design already exists – it just needs refinement and evolution.

Final Verdict – Hitman 3 is a Must-Play for Stealth Fans

In closing, Hitman 3 absolutely warrants a whole-hearted recommendation, especially for fans of immersive sims and stealth games.

For those already invested in IOI‘s recent Hitman trilogy, it‘s a must-play finale that provides incredibly refined sandbox stealth gameplay. Visually and mechanically, it represents the pinnacle of the franchise so far.

The dense, living levels offer almost endless gameplay possibilities to discover through observation, improvisation and experimentation. This freedom in approaching objectives fosters creativity and no two playthroughs feel the same.

While the familiar core formula doesn‘t deviate radically, IOI polishes every facet – presentation, visuals, controls, level design – to a fine sheen. Hitman 3 executes focused, compact stealth excellence.

Some limitations around always-online requirements and lack of mods do negatively impact the experience. But at its core, Hitman 3 delivers utterly satisfying player-driven stealth sandboxes.

For longtime Hitman devotees or players new to Agent 47‘s world, Hitman 3 belongs in your collection of stealth masterpieces. The sheer fun of immersing yourself in IOI‘s intricately crafted levels and choreographing creative kills remains unmatched.

If you‘re a fan of stealth gameplay, Hitman 3 is absolutely worth the investment to experience IO Interactive‘s deadly sandbox craft perfected.