Hitman 3, or any entry from the long-running Hitman series for that matter, is not really something people would associate with the theme of piracy. For a more pirate based video game, fans tend to think of the likes of Assassin's Creed: Black Flag, Sea of Thieves, or The Secret of Monkey Island. However, it looks as though a little bit of buccaneering has been inserted into IO Interactive's latest installment, with a new update rolling out that comes with a free map and general improvements.
A post on the developer website details the patch notes for version 3.120 of Hitman 3, which was released yesterday. While things like bug fixes and tweaks to the game are par for the course when it comes to updates, one of the most intriguing things that has been implemented is a free level called "Ambrose Island," which is located in the Andaman Sea. The opening cinematic gives some background into what Agent 47 can expect in this new locale, and it mainly seems that someone has absconded to the island, which harbors a ruthless gang of pirate-like criminals.
The free level is not quite Black Flag, but it is something a little different. However, it will still be a classic Hitman map. As well as this, there's also been an update to the latest version of Nvidia's DLSS upscaling tech. Hitman 3 received ray tracing a while back, so this latest update seems keen to improve visual acuity even more. There's also been a change to the back end of the Elusive Target Arcade, some stability improvements, as well as some resolved issues in general. As of July 26, the patch has been rolling out on all platforms.
Despite how popular the game is, with a current Metacritic rating of 87 on PC, there was some controversy at the start of the year. Hitman 3 users began review bombing the game on Steam, with fans criticizing Epic Games Store's exclusivity deal, which prevented the game from being available on other digital storefronts like Steam for a year.
That all seems to be in the past now, at least. With a current "very positive" review score on Steam, the latest antics of Agent 47 have gone down as one of the best Hitman games ever. The new patch also looks like it will be interesting, serving up something slightly different for the iconic bald assassin.
Hitman 3 is available now on PC, PS4, PS5, Stadia, Switch, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
Source: IO Interactive, Eurogamer
