Hitman 3 for Windows

A terrific stealth game with a thrilling finale

Hitman 3 is a stealth video game developed by IO Interactive. It’s the eighth game to be released in the Hitman series and the third and final game in the World of Assassination trilogy. Like the previous Hitman games, you play as Agent 47 - a genetically engineered assassin. But this time, you’re hunting down the leaders of Providence, a secretive organization that manipulates the world to its own advantage.

There are 6 brand new locations to explore, and you can import maps and levels from Hitman 1 and 2. Other new features include a useful camera gadget and persistent shortcuts. Scattered throughout each level are unique doors and access points like ladders. Once found and unlocked, they let you bypass chunks of the level during each replay.

If you haven’t touched Hitman 1 and Hitman 2, it may be worth playing or reading up on the story first so you can follow the plot. 

Hitman 3 gameplay

You control Agent 47 from a third-person perspective, which is ideal for stealth games as it gives you greater awareness of your surroundings.

In Hitman 3 the six new maps are spread all over the globe: Dubai, Dartmoor, Berlin, Chongqing, Mendoza, and the Carpathian Mountains in Romania.

Each map has its own open-world approach, a set of challenges, and is meticulously detailed. The result is that each level is filled with creative opportunities for you to take advantage of and complete objectives how you best see fit.

The levels are designed in such a way that you can replay them over and over again, exploring each of their moving parts. It’s highly unlikely you’ll discover everything each level has to offer on your first playthrough.

Unlike other action games, the Hitman series rewards you for completing objectives as covertly as possible, instead of relying on direct attacks to take out your target. Taking out your target quietly and escaping without being noticed will yield a much higher score than going in guns blazing. You’ll be actively awarded at the end of each level based on how few non-targets you took out and how stealthy you were.

The same mechanics from previous Hitman games are present, such as knocking out people on the level, hiding their bodies, and taking their clothes to disguise yourself. Doing so lets you blend in and access specific areas which require the right uniform, but not everyone will be fooled by your outfit alone.

Agent 47’s Instinct mode highlights interactive objects and lets him see through walls to sense where people are. Only by using stealth will you be able to quietly explore each level, find your target, and assassinate them. One of the more interesting campaigns takes place in Dartmoor Mansion where you can disguise yourself as a private investigator, hired by your target. You can also import previous progress, maps, and levels from Hitman 1 and 2.

A new feature available in the Hitman 3 is the persistent shortcuts. It’s a similar mechanic found in other games like Dark Souls 3. Unlocking certain locked doors from the other side or dropping ladders to create shortcuts remain usable on all your future playthroughs. It allows you to quickly reach closed locations more quickly.

For the very first time in the Hitman series, you can now experience the game with a VR headset. You’ll set into the shoes of Hitman 47 and play the game from a first-person perspective as you sneak around levels and perform assassinations. The bulk of the gameplay will be the same, but there are some VR-only actions you can perform such as shooting around corners. Although this feature is not currently available on PC.

Can my PC run Hitman?

On the technical side of things, you will need a decent graphics card if you want to enjoy playing with medium-high graphic settings without experiencing horrible frame rates.

Hitman 3 minimum system requirements

• OS: OS 64-bit Windows 10
• Processor: Intel CPU Core i5-2500K 3.3GHz / AMD CPU Phenom II X4 940
• Graphics Card: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 660 / Radeon HD 7870
• RAM: 8 GB
• Storage: 80 GB
• Windows Direct X: 12

Hitman 3 recommended system requirements

• OS: OS 64-bit Windows 10
• Processor: Intel CPU Core i7 4790 4 GHz
• Graphics Card: Nvidia GPU GeForce GTX 1070 / AMD GPU Radeon RX Vega 56 8GB
• RAM: 16 GB
• Storage: 80 GB
• Windows Direct X: 12

Other requirements: You’ll need an active Epic Games account to play on PC.

All Hitman 3 editions and addons

There are two editions available for purchase. The Regular Edition and the Deluxe Edition. The Deluxe Edition includes extra content like exclusive escalation contracts, suits and items, and directory commentary. There are also a number of addons you can purchase which provide extra content like new levels, contracts, suits, and items. 

Is Hitman 3 worth buying? 

If you’ve played Hitman 1 and 2, you’ll want to dive into Hitman 3 to experience the final game in the trilogy. It also comes with the added benefit of being able to import all your data and levels from the previous games and play them with Hitman 3’s improvements and new weaponry.

If you enjoy stealth games and open-world environments then you should also consider buying Hitman 3. Each of its 6 levels has received incredible care and attention to detail. The level of design and creativity, together with the exploration and experimentation aspect of the game is guaranteed to keep you entertained for a very long time. 

It’s a shame that multiplayer was removed, but it seems that was to enable the developers IOI to focus on creating the best single-player experience possible.