IO Interactive’s plans to recruit computer players from Hitman 3 the “seamless” import of Hitman and Hitman 2 in the new game hit a blow.
Hitman 2 unavailable in the Epic Game Store, where Hitman 3 is offered exclusively for the year following its launch on January 20th. The game is only available on Steam. “Due to various circumstances beyond our control,” says IO, it’s impossible for computer owners of both games to connect and bring in their locations. Hitman 3 as intended.
But IO Interactive has offered some sort of solution for the next two weeks Hitman 3‘s launch.
- First the Hitman 1 GOTY Access Pass available, free of charge, to all who own Hitman 3 on Epic Games Store. This pass will be made available to those who buy (or pre-order) the first ten days after launch Hitman 3.
- Next, owners of Hitman at Epic Games Store – including those who recorded the game for free when it was available in August – get a free Hitman 1 GOTY Access Pass at the sale Hitman 3.
- Then the Hitman 2 Standard and gold access passes are offered for the 14 days thereafter at 80 percent off Hitman 3‘s launch on Epic Games Store, “and will be constantly discounted.” IO Interactive has yet to price the access passes, which deliver Hitman and Hitman 2‘s content in the third game.
In August, when IDE set the exclusive time for Epic Games Store for Hitman 3, the studio said computer players would be able to “enter locations from the previous two games Hitman 3 on Epic Games Store. This was ultimately true on all platforms – but the import is free on consoles and costs money on a computer.
This is because players have to enter their levels of Hitman 1 in Hitman 2 first. On PlayStation 4 (and 5) and Xbox One (and Series X), Hitman 3 will automatically detect whether the user owns all the previous games on the platform, enabling them to download their levels from Hitman 3‘s in-game store. Because Hitman 2 is not in Epic Games Store, but the process does not work for computer players.
What is the progress of their progress from Hitman and Hitman 2, which is accessed by an IO Interactive website, and is not influenced by Hitman 2‘s unavailability on EGS.
On ResetEra, upset customers and fans said they would either file for refunds or wait the year until they Hitman 3 start on Steam.
“I just weighed whether I would bite the bullet or not, and go buy it on Epic,” one wrote. ‘I think I’ll wait until it’s on Steam next year. It’s a shame because it looked really good, but I’m not rebuilding all the stuff I already own. ”
Polygon contacted an IO representative for more insight on how much it was going to cost, and additional comments on the snafu. As it stands now, players who already own Hitman and Hitman 2 on Steam still has to pay Hitman 2‘s levels to unlock everything Hitman 3 on Epic Games Store.