The Best Levels in the Hitman Trilogy after Hitman 3 | Game Rant
Hitman 3 is out now, and players are diving into both new and old levels from the "World of Assassination" trilogy that IO Interactive has weaved together. Owners of 2016's Hitman and Hitman 2 can play any level from the previous games within the latest installment (or players can buy access if they do not own those titles).
Throughout all of these games, IO has crafted some masterpiece levels that are truly a delight to explore and unravel the secrets of throughout countless runs. Agent 47's journey took him all over the globe as he worked to unravel Providence, and these are the five best levels Agent 47 visited in the entire World of Assassination trilogy. NOTE: SPOILERS ahead for Hitman 3.
Dartmoor is one of the new levels added in Hitman 3 and features a smaller map than most fans would expect. However, the Thornbridge Estate holds more secrets than the eye would let on. Not only that, but Dartmoor also features one of the most unique and fun story missions in the entire Hitman series. Players can assume the role of a private investigator and solve the murder of Zachary Carlisle while also planning the murder of Alexa Carlisle. The writing and planning of the murder-mystery is straight out of a whodunit novel or film, and players can easily lose themselves and forget they are actually playing a Hitman game.
Dubai is the opening level of Hitman 3, and it certainly leaves a lasting impression. Players start the level by skydiving from a plane onto a walkway well-above the clouds. The view alone is breathtaking and is worth appreciating before getting into the real part of Agent 47's work. Once 47 infiltrates The Scepter, the map opens up into a beautiful, luxurious lobby where Omar Al-Ghazali is announcing the grand opening of the world's tallest building. From there, Agent 47 is free to explore The Scepter and discover unique and interesting ways to take down the two targets, including a blindingly fast speedrun strategy fans have uncovered.
The beauty of Mumbai comes not only from its breathtaking scenery, but the depth and creativity it brings out in the player. The layout of The Scepter encourages thorough exploration along the path to mastery, and the more players explore this enormous skyscraper, more unique and interesting opportunities make themselves present. Want to make a man kill himself with an exploding golf ball? Want to drop a very expensive-looking chandelier on both targets while they are locked in a secret meeting room, killing them simultaneously? Hitman 3's Dubai level has all of that covered.
Miami is one of Hitman 2's most diverse levels thanks to the sprawling map that IO throws at the players. The level can be simplified down to two main areas: the racetrack and the Kronstadt Industries facility. Both areas are complex and full of opportunities to eliminate the two targets: Sierra and Robert Knox. The racetrack section of the map absolutely massive and densely packed with civilians and employees of the arena. At the start of the mission, Sierra Knox is participating in the race, which opens up many opportunities for 47 to eliminate her.
Navigating the track can be tedious the first few times, but as players immerse themselves in Miami more, the more the level opens up and becomes a beautiful instrument of destruction in its own right. There are so many opportunities for mayhem around the track that it's almost hard to make a decision at times. Soon enough, PC players will be able to revisit Miami in Hitman 3 when IOI has finalized the data import system on PC,
The chaos continues when Agent 47 directs his attention to Kronstadt Industries. This facility is the home of a myriad of scientific projects, ranging from race car innovation to militaristic security technology. There are so many ways to approach the murder of Robert Knox in his own facility, including tricking his security robots into killing him as part of a tech demo. The two areas of the map are so unique, but they also have several areas where the two connect, making it feel almost like two independent levels in one. With Hitman 3's DLC focusing on re-imagining existing locations, some fans are desperately hoping that Miami gets more attention and some new missions whenever Hitman 3's DLC rolls out.
New York is one of the new levels introduced in Hitman 2's DLC, and yet again surprised fans with an intricate and dense level. This mission is set in the Milton-Fitzpatrick Bank, and in addition to taking down the head of the bank, Athena Savalas, Agent 47 is tasked with breaking into the bank's vault and stealing a hard drive with critical information about Providence and its partners. If Dartmoor was the Hitman version of a whodunit, then New York is the Hitman take on a classic heist film. Despite being contained in one singular building, there is so much to do in the Milton-Fitzpatrick Bank that no two runs will likely go the same way for some time. The Story Opportunities are all interesting, and there are plenty of big set pieces for 47 to use to take out the target.
Sapienza is by far one of the most beloved levels in the World of Assassination trilogy. While Paris was a nice opener for Hitman and it set the tone for what to expect with murder opportunities, Sapienza really introduced players to the large maps and sprawling opportunities that would come to be synonymous with the trilogy. Agent 47 is dropped at the town's border, and the world is open to him. There are two targets, Silvio Caruso and Francesca De Santis, as well as an additional objective to destroy a DNA-specific virus held somewhere on the island.
Sapienza manages to both be a wide and a tall level. At street-level, Sapienza stretches wide and allows 47 to gain intel from a number of locations while exploring the beautiful town, which looks great on next-gen consoles. When infiltrating the mansion and the secret underground bunker, the level turns very vertical, and 47 must work his way deeper and deeper underground to find the secret location of the virus.
Players in Hitman 3 will soon have a good reason to revisit Sapienza as one of the Elusive Target missions is beginning this month according to the Hitman 3 February Roadmap. Agent 47 will take down The Deceivers, but as with all Elusive Targets, 47 has a lot of stipulations and restrictions when it comes to executing the mission. Sapienza is a complex level at times, so taking these two down may not be as easy as it sounds. While taking down the two primary targets in the main mission is fun and humorous at times, the Elusive Targets must be taken down carefully, as once a target is killed, the level cannot be restarted, and if the player fails then they cannot attempt the mission again until the next time that mission is in the Elusive Target rotation.
The World of Assassination Trilogy was a whole new approach to level design in the Hitman franchsie. Every nearly every level in the entire trilogy was massive, allowing for plenty of exploration and opportunities to cause some mayhem. While not every single level was a smash-hit, there were some from every game that really stood above the rest as a masterclass in level design. While we don't know when IOI will return to Agent 47's narrative as they are beginning to work on the studio's new 007 James Bond project, perhaps some of the work IOI did for Hitman will rub off on Bond's story, wherever IOI decides to take him.
Hitman 3 is available now for PC, PS4, PS5, Stadia, Switch, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
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