With no release date yet for Hitman’s planned co-op mode, it may be a long time until IO Interactive announces Hitman 4.
IO Interactive is keeping itself very busy at the moment. While its main priority is getting its James Bond game, 007: First Light, ready for launch on March 27, it’s still making updates for Hitman: World Of Assassination.
Considering the game has continued to see support since 2021, even getting a VR version and a Nintendo Switch 2 port earlier this year, you have to wonder if IO will ever move onto a full sequel or if World Of Assassination will remain a platform for all future Hitman content.
Fortunately, for any of you eager for a Hitman 4, IO has stated that it has every intention of continuing the series, but it won’t be for a while yet.
This comes from a recent Variety interview with IO Interactive CEO Hakan Abrak, who has promised that World Of Assassination won’t be the last Hitman game.
As a reminder, World Of Assassination was originally just Hitman 3, the third entry in IO’s modern Hitman trilogy. However, it was rebranded and updated to include all the content from the first two games and has seen subsequent additions like a roguelike mode.
‘So of course there will be more Hitman. But right now, I think we need to get to the other side of this year,’ explained Abrak, adding that next year will see more news on a planned co-op mode for Hitman.
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We’re not entirely sure a game like Hitman would benefit from co-op, as it’s always been a solitary affair, with you trying to stealthily kill targets in all manner of creative ways within confined sandboxes.
Abrak would beg to differ, though, saying, ‘I think co-op is a really, really good extension to the universe, and will introduce very interesting mechanics and combinations in World Of Assassination.’
He added: ‘We will, after that, be talking about the next Hitman — because, of course, there’s going to be a next Hitman.’
Hitman’s co-op mode was announced this past June, but there’s little indication of when it’ll arrive. While news is promised for 2026, that doesn’t guarantee it will be out that year.
Even assuming the mode launches before the end of 2026, Hitman 4 may not necessarily be IO’s next priority. Aside from Bond, it’s also working on a multiplayer game titled Project Fantasy, which the studio has only described as ‘extremely ambitious and really cool and is something else than a gun in a suit.’
As for World Of Assassination, it’s currently running another of its limited time missions that involve a celebrity guest star. In this case, it’s rapper Eminem, who hires Agent 47 to assassinate… himself, or rather his alter ego Slim Shady. The mission is only available until the end of December.
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