History VideoGame / WorldOfAssassinationTrilogy

''Hitman 3'''s Freelancer mode, set after that campaigns events and released at the start of 2023, [[Hitman3/Hitman3Freelancer has its own subpage]] due to it twisting the Hitman gameplay formula from a semi-hardcore StealthBasedGame to a RogueLike with stealth elements within it; so much that it's functionally a separate game in its own right. Note that the tropes below are written '''without''' this mode in mind.

''Hitman 3'''s Freelancer mode, set after that campaigns events, [[Hitman3/Hitman3Freelancer has its own subpage]] due to it twisting the Hitman gameplay formula from a semi-hardcore StealthBasedGame to a RogueLike with stealth elements within it; so much that it's functionally a separate game in its own right. Note that the tropes below are written without this mode in mind, several of which certainly do not apply to the mode.

Level-specific tropes can be found on [[VideoGame/Hitman2016 each]] [[VideoGame/Hitman2 games']] [[VideoGame/Hitman3 page]], which are divided up by campaign and then by level and location. Tropes specific to the game mode "Freelancer" found within ''3'' can be seen [[Hitman3/Hitman3Freelancer on its own subpage]].

[[https://finans.dk/erhverv/ECE10824890/hitmanskaberne-skyder-papegoejen-tidobler-bundlinjen-et-aar-efter-faretruende-konkurs/?ctxref=ext With four months of resources and money saved up left before the studio had to shutdown]], even after mass layoffs, the company [[SavedByTheNetwork was then saved by]] Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment, who signed a chance publishing deal with them to get the developers back on their feet. They allowed IOI to complete the rest of the game for free in exchange for distribution rights and a revenue cut, a deal which IOI director Hakan Abrak stated saved the entire company from bankruptcy. Subsequently, ''VideoGame/Hitman2'' released in late-2018 and fared quite a lot better after ditching the episodic release model. Warner Bros ''itself'' suffered unrelated issues of their own, and so cut ties with them after Hitman 2's life was up. IO Interactive then released the third game; ''VideoGame/Hitman3'', as an independent studio in early 2021, now that they had the funds to do so, again, to critical and commercial success. The studio itself still has to pay money to both prior publishers for various reasons (largely to keep each games' servers up and running, and to Square Enix as the Hitman IP is on an exclusive permanent loan that essentially means IOI have the rights to use the Hitman IP without Square Enixs' involvement). The most interesting part is that throughout all of this kerfuffle, the developers made sure to make [[EmbeddedPrecursor each previous game available in each new instalment]], meaning every level from ''2016'' can be played in ''Hitman 3'', and were also upgraded with better lighting, newer features, and other updates to gameplay, essentially making ''Hitman 2'' and ''Hitman 3'' [[MissionPackSequel Mission Pack Sequels]] to the ''2016'' game. For the 2022 Steam and Xbox Game Pass release, the game was bundled up with the [[VideoGame/{{Hitman2016}} Previous]] [[VideoGame/Hitman2 two]] entries to ''literally'' make this an all-in-one game that contained everything.

A mobile game; ''VideoGame/HitmanSniperTheShadows'', was also available (sadly offline and delisted now); while it's set in something of an AmbiguousTimePeriod in this trilogy's storyline, it featured the return of Agents Knight and Stone from ''Hitman 2'' as playable snipers, as part of an elite sniping unit named "Initiative 426".

There was also a mobile game; VideoGame/HitmanSniperTheShadows, which while it's set in something of an AmbiguousTimePeriod in this trilogy's storyline, it's notable in that it has the return of Agents Knight and Stone from ''Hitman 2'' as playable snipers, as part of an elite sniping unit named "Initiative 426".

There's also a mobile game; VideoGame/HitmanSniperTheShadows, which while it's set in something of an AmbiguousTimePeriod in this trilogy's storyline, it's notable in that it has the return of Agents Knight and Stone from ''Hitman 2'' as playable snipers, as part of an elite sniping unit named "Initiative 426".

As for the cast of characters, the enigmatic Agent 47 is once again portrayed by Creator/DavidBateson, with Diana Burnwood now being voiced by Creator/JanePerry (a continuation of her role in the ''VideoGame/HitmanSniper'' mobile game), taking over from Creator/MarshaThomason. Most of the notable allies and enemies keep their voice actors throughout the trilogy; Phillip Rosch as The Constant, as well as John Hopkins as The Shadow Client/ Lucas Grey. The exception is Olivia Hall, who is voiced by Michelle Asante for the first two games, then by Isaura Barbé-Brown in ''Hitman 3''. The music for the trilogy was largely composed by ''Music/NielsByeNielson''.

Level-specific tropes can be found on [[VideoGame/Hitman2016 each]] [[VideoGame/Hitman2 games']] [[VideoGame/Hitman3 page]], which are divided up by campaign and then by level and location.

* GameplayAndStorySegregation: It's reasonable to assume that 47 wears some kind of discreet bodycam and wears and earpiece, despite 47 not having such equipment visible on any suit he wears. Diana does mention being able to see some of Alma Reynards' "grisly handiwork" in Hawkes Bay, and 47 in the same mission also speaks to her as if he's wearing an earpiece, essentially confirming this.

* StopPokingMe: Much of the dialog for doing weird things in front of civilians and guards (such as bumping into them, knocking them out, or pointing a gun at them) is quite varied, to the point that it avoids falling into the WelcomeToCorneria trap most of the time. Impressive, as there are multiple spoken languages in the trilogy, with varying British English, American English, Rioplatense-Spanish, Indian, and Chinese voice actors with different accents and dialects, their own colloquialisms, and lines specific to the language. Notably, in "The Undying/ Returns", which features Creator/SeanBean, the developers went out of their way to record this kind of extra dialog so they wouldn't replace it with generic dialog.

** These missions are only available for a certain period of time and you only get one chance to complete them. Once you complete an objective, you can't restart the mission, and once you complete the mission or get killed, you can't replay them. In ''Hitman 3'', the developers introduced Elusive Target Arcade, an escalation-esque format which lets players replay the targets pretty much whenever, and a "Year 2" designation was given to previously released targets so if players failed the first time, they can try again.

* TapOnTheHead: As with the previous game, 47 can bludgeon an NPC with any blunt object (or throw nearly all[[labelnote:*]] the exceptions generally being potentially squishy food items[[/labelnote]] of said objects at an [=NPC's=] head) for an instant knockout - faster than the Choke Hold, but at least marginally louder depending on the exact object used. Unconscious characters will remain so permanently unless awakened by another NPC, but will display no ill effects if revived.

* TemporaryOnlineContent: Elusive Target missions are only available for a certain period of time and you only get one chance to complete them. Once you complete an objective, you can't restart the mission, and once you complete the mission or get killed, you can't replay them.

** The Fiber Wire has this baggage among players. It's still fairly useful, which is why it's your default "tool" in your loadout for when you start a level, but the problem is, most players replace it with a ''more useful'' tool, such as a lockpick (which unlocks conventionally locked doors, and most maps have them so it's a no-brainer to take it) or the Disposable Scrambler/ Keycard Hacker (which unlocks doors with keycards, albeit on three separate doors, with the same reasoning as above). The only thing the Fiber Wire does is that it lets you take down a target silently when they have their back to you, and allows you to drag them out of sight without having to manually press the "drag body" prompt, which is just BoringButPractical by comparison. So unless you're speedrunning a level, require precise timing so people don't see you, or are specifically gunning for the "Piano Man" challenge (and, by extension, "Versatile Assassin"), pretty much any other tool or small item is more useful to bring along. And that's not going into the fact the reskins of the fiber wire are much more commonplace than the other tools, and can be found in the levels proper.
** The various Remote Explosives. While they can be useful for setting up accident kills, they are otherwise "fun" items that don't have much use in a Silent Assassin Run. Using these will give you the "Bomber" rating though.

** The "Opportunities" system introduced in ''2016'' is replaced by "Missions Stories" in ''2'' and ''3,'' though the systems are identical in all but name.

* EarlyInstallmentWeirdness: Compared to the rest of the trilogy, ''2016'' is very jarring to play, and going back to that game becomes a case of DamnYouMuscleMemory because of all the changes and balance decisions ''2'' and ''3'' made to the formula. Any location-specific changes mentioned below do not apply to their reappearances in ''Hitman 2'' or ''3'':

** Sedative Poison was among the worst items in the game as it had no use in any type of run as it broke Silent Assassin. Lethal Poison was a straight upgrade (kills any one target lethally without breaking Silent Assassin) and Emetic Poison was a side-grade (it served as a way to split the target up from their bodyguard, as well as complete challenges like "Hold My Hair"), so Sedative Poison's effect of putting someone to sleep wasn't all that beneficial when it was no better than throwing a crowbar at a persons' head. ''2'' and ''3'' rebalanced Sedatives to not count towards losing Silent Assassin, and added vents and items that utilised sedating [=NPC's=] more, making it far more useful in later games, serving as an alternative to melee.
** Corner takedowns in ''2016'' were '''really''' untrustworthy, as it was equally likely 47 would either stealthy pull the NPC into a choke hold, or he'd punch them in the face, with no real indicator of what he's do. ''2'' fixed this by changing the timings slightly to be more generous, so 47 will no longer out himself this way unless you have horrible timing.
** The Gas Canisters' lethal radius was made ''much'' smaller in later games in comparison to ''(2016)'', and later levels in the trilogy have fewer of them on the map.
** The Remote Breaching Charge has a capacity of two in ''(2016)'', but was nerfed in ''2'' and ''3'' to only have one, and the later revisions of the weapon also only came with one.

** Tall grass and hiding in crowds are not part of this game, but do reappear in all of the legacy locations (Marrakesh being the exception).

* EarlyInstallmentWeirdness: Compared to the rest of the trilogy, ''2016'' is saddled with this baggage, and going back to this game becomes a case of DamnYouMuscleMemory because of all the changes ''2'' and ''3'' made. Any location-specific changes mentioned below do not apply to their reappearances in ''Hitman 2'' or ''3'':

** The in-game inventory covers the entire screen and the items are displayed with large icons, similar to the earlier games. The sequels use a menu where all items are displayed on the bottom of the screen with small icons, and with detailed FlavorText weapon information relegated to the Intel menu, leaving most of the screen unobstructed. In the case of ''3'', this was actually a holdover from Ghost Mode in ''2'', as it was a necessary change for the sakes of seeing what the other player was doing.

* EverybodySmokes: In ''2016'', most NPC's and targets who engage in smoking behaviour uses cigarettes. However, in ''Hitman 2'' onward, everyone has noticeably switched to e-cigarettes.

** The "Opportunities" system introduced ''2016'' is replaced by "Missions Stories" in ''2'' and ''3,'' though the systems are identical in all but name.

** As with the previous game, "Mission Stories" are the exact same system as "Opportunities" introduced in ''2016.''

** Blake Dexter is revealed here to be a well-known person worldwide, even in a place like Hokkaido, where the staff really shouldn't know who he is as he's a weapons manufacturer and [[Eagleland fiercely American]] (the level has a SuspiciouslySimilarSubstitute in the form of Amos Dexter, prompting the comparison staff make to him). Whether or not he's still ''alive'' too is also up in the air too, as the games never say either way, and in Mendoza, a [[BreakingTheFourthWall meta joke]] is even made [[spoiler:by Diana]] about him being killed off in a "Parallel Universe", which is less than helpful, to say the least.

** The main plot of ''Absolution'' has basically been discarded here. The writers have essentially written out the original plot, and left it deliberately ambiguous as to what events from the game are canon or not for this trilogy. The only things that remain is that Blake Dexter is a well-known person worldwide, even in a place like Hokkaido (which has a SuspiciouslySimilarSubstitute in the form of Amos Dexter, prompting the comparison staff make). Whether or not he's still ''alive'' is up in the air, however.
** Dominic Osmand from the Vixens club is the only officially canon target from ''Absolution'' to have been shown to be killed by 47, who shoots him through the one-way mirror in his nightclub, albeit with an unsilenced Silverballer (which 47 doesn't have for that mission as they'd already been stolen from him).

** The ICA [[spoiler:being dismantled and reformed]] just doesn't happen, as ''Hitman 3'' makes clear in its news footage and conversations that you can overhear in Mendoza that this is the first time such a thing has happened, and nobody comments on anything similar happening in the past.

** Both silver and golden Krugermeier pistols are unlocks (the former being a reskin of the latter for ''2''). They are unique in that the bullet sound is heard by [=NPC's=] form wherever the shot ''lands'', not where you shoot ''from''.

** There are a lot of overt references to the ''ComicBook/Agent47BirthOfTheHitman'' comic series. In ''Hitman 2'' it was more vague and less obvious, and a great deal more than ''Hitman (2016)'' (which sets up comic events). Grey repeatedly references parts of the comic to 47 and the audience, and a Mission Story in Mendoza even has 47 give a cliffnotes description of the comic itself.

* ArtEvolution: Compared to games before it, the maps are bright and simply ''[[SceneryPorn gorgeous]]'' to look at. The models of most of the characters are the highest they've ever been, and while 47's face keeps changing, his akward look in 2016 is no longer present, and in Hitman 2 and 3, 47 looks a lot more human as a result.

* ArtificialBrilliance: For this trilogy, IO Iinteractive have improved the notoriously bad AI that plagued the older games:

** Fire extinguishers are lethal here, ''on top'' of counting as an accident. This made them so overpowered that they were made non-lethal in the sequels.
** Sedative Poison was among the worst items in the game as it had no use in any type of run as it broke Silent Assassin. Lethal Poison was a straight upgrade (kills any one target lethally without breaking Silent Assassin) and Emetic Poison was a side-grade (it served as a way to split the target up from their bodyguard, as well as complete challenges like "Hold My Hair"), so Sedative Poison's effect of putting someone to sleep wasn't all that beneficial when it was no better than throwing a crowbar at a persons' head. ''2'' and ''3'' rebalanced Sedatives to not count towards losing Silent Assassin, meaning it now serves as an alternative to melee.

** Certain weapons received a BalanceBuff between ''2016'' and ''2'':
*** The Fire Extinguisher went from an accident kill in ''2016'' to only knocking people out when it exploded near anyone in ''2''.
*** The Gas Canisters' lethal radius was made ''much'' smaller, and later levels in the trilogy have fewer of them on the map.
*** Sedative poison in ''2016'' voided Silent Assassin, and is overall less useful than Emetic or Lethal poison that can be used to isolate or kill a target respectively. ''2'' would make sedating people not break Silent Assassin conduct, and added vents and items that utilised sedating [=NPC's=] more, making it far more useful in later games.
*** The Remote Breaching Charge has a capacity of two in ''2016'', but was nerfed in ''2'' and ''3'' to only have one.
*** Later levels in the trilogy rely more on doors that require keycards to open, rather that use doors a player can lockpick open, essentially nerfing Lockpicks because it made getting into areas far too easy.

* CrazyPrepared: UpToEleven. It seems that 47 takes every possible scenario into account, and thus shows off unexpected, but nonetheless impressive, knowledge and skills that many wouldn't expect [[YouDidntAsk a bald assassin to know]]. For a few examples, he knows enough about yoga to teach Yuki Yamazaki, can pull off an impressive drum solo, one so good that surprises Jordan Cross, ''a well-know indie musician!'', can operate almost any and all vehicles when exiting the level, can fix a tattoo of someone, pretend to be an estate agent (albeit in a very dry way), and fix any and all machinery required by circumstance. While some of these moments are obviously made to maintain the RuleOfFunny, the intel ICA digs up for 47 is also pretty detailed, justifying many of these moments.

* EarlyInstallmentWeirdness: Compared to the rest of the trilogy, ''2016'' has a lot of this, and going back to this game becomes a case of DamnYouMuscleMemory with all the later changes. Any location-specific changes mentioned below do not apply to their reappearances in ''Hitman 2'' or ''3'':

*** The civilian voice cast is also different fairly, with most of them returning from ''Absolution''. Only six of the voices[[note]]Elsie Bennett, Oliver Cotton, Ben Crowe, Matthew Gravelle, Derek Hagen, and Royce Pierreson[[/note]] returned in later games.

* SoftReboot: This trilogy is the start of a soft reboot of the [[Franchise/{{Hitman}} the entire franchise]], going out of its way to avoid mentioning the more gonzo sci-fi elements found in past entries, while retaining most of the narrative elements from the past games. As a whole, the game was primarily designed to give the series a consistent continuity, and does tie in every game, [[Literature/{{Hitman}} novel]] and [[ComicBook/Agent47BirthOfTheHitman comic book]] related to the series in some capacity. ''VideoGame/Hitman2016'' describes the other games in ways that don't strictly contradict ''[[VideoGame/HitmanCodename47 Codename 47]]'' and the later references to it, while the tie-in prequel ''ComicBook/Agent47BirthOfTheHitman'' comic goes out of its way to fix various plotholes in the first four games, as well as establish a consistent backstory for 47, Ort-Meyer, [[spoiler:Subject 6]], and Diana). As such, the trilogy mentions a few of the missions' targets from the previous games (Beldingford from ''[[VideoGame/HitmanContracts Contracts]]'', D'alvade from ''[[VideoGame/HitmanBloodMoney Blood Money]]'', and Hayamoto from ''[[VideoGame/Hitman2SilentAssassin Silent Assassin]]'' to name a few), and the "Legacy" cinematic shows off the canonical kills for one target from each of the earlier games, implying they all happened even if the storylines around them didn't.

* KillThemAll: [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sIMJrVe0_8w&t=17s Still possible]], albeit takes a lot longer than older games, as there are easily around 800 [=NPC's=] in each level. Many consider it a SelfImposedChallenge.

* ''VideoGame/Hitman3'' - (Independently Published by Creator/IOInteractive, 2021 - Present) [[labelnote:Locations and Missions]]Contains UsefulNotes/{{Dubai}} ("On Top of the World"), [[UsefulNotes/{{England}} Dartmoor]] ("Death in the Family", "Dartmoor Garden Show"), UsefulNotes/{{Berlin}} ("Apex Predator"), UsefulNotes/{{China}} ("End of an Era"), UsefulNotes/{{Argentina}} ("The Farewell"), Carpathian Mountains ("Untouchable"), and Ambrose Island[[/labelnote]]

* "Elusive Targets": For a limited amount of real world time, the player is tasked with killing a person and escaping the map. However, saving is not possible, the contract cannot be restarted after the target has been killed, and dying permanently ends the ability to restart the contract.
* Opportunities (later renamed to "Mission Stories" from ''Hitman 2'' onward), which allows for more scripted kills for those who have either never played stealth games before, or to show off a particularly gruesome way to end a targets' life. These are often hidden in the game world via in-game [=NPC=] dialog, or by finding intel in the level itself.