Hitman Goes Fully Episodic, Releasing First Content In March
Pricing changes inbound for Hitman, which will be dedicating itself to the episodic format.
Remember there was a bit of confusion surrounding the status of Hitman on PS4, as digital pre-orders were being cancelled? There’s an explanation for that now from Square Enix via press release, thankfully coming forth with their announcement just a day later. The game, which had planned to be episodic for a bit of its content, is now dedicated towards a fully episodic gameplay experience. Prices for content, as such, have been adjusted.
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Now, it appears as though Hitman will start off with less content at the outset, but is committed to a full year of dedicated updates for both substantial content and weekly events. The Prologue and Paris missions, both more expanded than one might expect from a game like Hitman: Absolution, will be released on March 11th. April’s update will see Italy’s mission updated into the game, while Morocco will release in May.
From there, monthly content updates will expand the depth of Hitman play, including three additional maps. One from Thailand and another from the United States will lead up to the season conclusion in Japan later in 2016. Between big monthly content updates, live weekly events and bonus content is planned.
The price changes are substantial, and all in USD (plan accordingly, Europe/Asia/Canada). The first step Intro Pack, releasing at launch, will come in at just $15. Every additional location will come in at an extra $10, while the full Hitman experience will cost a traditional $60. Players that want to try out the Intro Pack first and then fully commit to the rest of the upcoming content can buy into a full Upgrade Pack at $50, for a total of $65.
It’s interesting to see Square Enix adopt the episodic release structure with Hitman. I’m sure it’s a lesson learned from a more traditional episodic release with the graphic adventure game Life Is Strange, but with Final Fantasy VII Remake planning to use it in the future and Hitman using the model in 2016, it will be interesting to see if the model is adopted in a larger scale throughout the industry.