Sales of IO Interactive's Hitman 3 have already recouped the game's development costs, according to CEO Hakan Abrak. The stealth espionage title, which acts as the conclusion to IO's World of Assassination trilogy, launched only last week. Hitman 3 was also the first game that IO Interactive has independently published after performing a management buyout and becoming an independent studio in 2017.
Hitman 3 has been performing exceedingly well in the week since launch, with the game topping sales charts in the United Kingdom during its launch week. The game acts as a conclusion to the entire World of Assassination trilogy, wrapping up plot points and creating deeply personal stakes for the illusive Agent 47. Hitman 3 can even encompass the entire trilogy by transferring progress from the previous two games into the latest installment. Fans who have played Hitman and Hitman 2 can import maps and progression from those games into Hitman 3, and brand new players can purchase maps from the previous two games to effectively triple the size of the third game.
In an interview with GamesIndustry, IO Interactive CEO Hakan Abrak revealed that Hitman 3's sales have already fully covered the development costs of the game. This means that all future sales will be a net profit for the studio, which bodes extremely well given the game has only been out for a single week. This exciting news is made even more impressive by the fact that IO Interactive independently developed and published Hitman 3, effectively making the game a hugely successful indie title. Abrak explained to GamesIndustry that the huge success of this latest release will help fund ambitious future projects.
Despite the end of Hitman's World of Assassination trilogy, IO Interactive has even bigger plans for its next game. The studio will be crafting a James Bond video game, the first such project since 2012's poorly-received 007 Legends. Details from the developers indicate that the game will tell a wholly original Bond story, and the game may extend into an entire trilogy should the first title be a success. There is quite a bit of overlap between the Hitman and James Bond properties, making the project a no-brainer.
Hitman 3, and the entire World of Assassination trilogy, have been lauded by gamers as a return to the franchise's sandbox stealth roots. Players are given the freedom to eliminate their targets in countless different ways, granting them a sense of agency. Developer IO Interactive should be commended for its commitment to the Hitman series, and the newest game's success will hopefully help create even more spectacular games down the road.
Hitman 3 is available now on PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S and PC.
Source: GamesIndustry