During the PlayStation Experience Event this weekend, Square Enix has revealed some new details regarding the upcoming launch of Hitman on March 16, 2016.
First up, the beta phase will begin on February 12, 2016, with details of its contents shown in the video below. Players will be able to partake in a unique mission set in an ICA recruitment and training facility, and will show the moment when Agent 47 met his handler, Diana Burnwood, for the first time.
Exclusive content for PS4 players has also been confirmed in the form of six exclusive contracts, dubbed “The Sarajevo Six”. During these missions, players will be in pursuit of six members of a paramilitary unit called CICADA, and will visit locations such as Italy, Morocco and Japan in search of their targets.
Three of the six PS4 exclusive contracts will launch on March 11, 2016, with the other three released at a later date.
Hitman features a more open game design than Hitman: Absolution, allowing players to explore a sandbox-like environment and get creative with their kills. IO has said that each stage packs around 300 NPCs into the mix, with levels themselves around six or seven times larger than those in Absolution.
Unlike the last instalment in the series, Hitman does not feature a checkpoint system. Instead, gamers can opt to save their progress at any point during their mission. Contracts mode also makes a return as previously mentioned, alongside a more simplified version of Absolution’s Instinct mode.