I still think a female partner that utilizes female disguises on maps would be worth exploring. Not as something you need to do to do the missions but to get more out of the maps and more out of the story.
I think we don’t need an expansion of WoA, Amborse Island was already the post-launch goodie in my book. They should do their experiments with 007 and project fantasy and then get a new fresh approach on Hitman. I just hope they stick to sandbox levels because that is what makes me like Hitman.
I could see a story driven tiny level where for whatever reason Diana has to sneak into X place and eliminate Y person or steal Z item. Maybe 47s flight was delayed haha. Anyway he’s in her ear sorta walking her through it. I don’t want to continually play as anyone other than 47 though.
I answered that with the next part of the sentence.
The world itself doesn’t have to be interesting enough for that, just the core concept of a hired killer stealthily trying to kill specific targets in different ways in a sandbox map. Considering that has worked for 25 years with just (essentially) 6 games, I think a confirmed market for that exists. The only reason we would want to use the same world is just to keep ties to the series thus-far, confirming that, yes, despite not staring the original character, this is in fact still a Hitman game and all the same rules apply, with perhaps a slight bit more difficulty in disguises working and setting up accidents (making it as easy for another character as for 47 would rob 47 of his special status as the best at it).
You answered that yourself in two different ways in that very sentence. It was Kane and Lynch, not Hitman, and the gameplay was different. That’s why it didn’t work.
Perhaps you don’t, but I’m willing to bet that there are many others who do, and I know I’m not even the only one on this forum alone to dabble with the idea, never mind the wider fanbase, and never further mind the greater gaming community that may not have even touched the franchise yet, who might become interested through the discovering of a spinoff that then leads them to the mainline series.
Well remember IOI did remove 47’s barcode numbers to make him a timeless character, so we’ve got plenty of more years with his bald head showing up yet. I do agree with @Norseman though, most fans, including me, are attached and follow the franchise for 47 and without him, it just wouldn’t be the same for me. It’s like doing a Tomb Raider game without Lara Croft. On the subject of his voice, like you said either David Bateson lets IOI use his voice though AI, or they get an entirely new voice actor. I’m sure there is some very good voice impersonations out there to replicate Bateson though. I mean for example, look at Toy Story? Who would ever thought that Potato Head and Slinky had new voice actors in the latest films? You’d never even tell, so it can be done.
We won’t know until we try, will we? The thing is, with spinoffs staring other characters, we can actually widen out the gameplay even in terms of story. 47 would never settle for anything less than perfection, so it seems wrong to play him any other way. “Lesser” hitmen sent on similar missions can actually have more collateral damage without affecting scoring or the lore of the new character as being a perfectionist. Spinoffs releasing along with new mainline games would allow for some exploration of kill methods that some might not be comfortable with when playing as 47.
You could play the artificial child of 47 that was created by him on his search for his missing human nature. You are an assassin like 47. But you are not as cold and free of emotion, which brings in the struggle of the plot and drags 47 himself into danger as well where he needs to prove he is able to behave like a protective parent, even if it endangers him.
I think it does, if we are going to play as another hired killer.
The market for stealth games is a niche market, hitmans approach to stealth/ social stealth is a niche within the genre itself. It didn’t really work well for the Death to Spies series. Again who knows, it all comes down to the right idea and execution. Death to spies lacked in execution.
And it’s here I would say the world itself isn’t interesting enough for spin offs. I rather see a Hitman clone like Death to spies done well, playing around in Cold War era.
A Eric Soders game could maybe be interesting to explore, set in the same world. Yet removed enough from the overall timeline.
You assume that my point is proof too why Kane & Lynch didn’t succeed. So no, I didn’t answer it myself. my point is that it would be the strength of a spinoff game to play differently. Setting itself apart from the main game. If the spinoff plays the same, then one might as well just swap the protagonist out and replace them with 47. If it’s just the gameplay and levels that are the selling point.
Making the hole spinoff a mute point too begin with. That is how I at least see it.
It’s all guesswork, just like me. The forum can’t really be used as a indication for what would be a measure of success. We are a very small and vocal community within a larger audience that plays Hitman.
But who knows, only time will tell. Another thing I doubt that a spinoff is even on the table if ever. As of now it will stay a hypothetical scenario.
I rather see the franchise crash and burn than having AI replicate Bateson. Always recast, it’s the most respectful thing to honour both character and actor.
Aside from getting expressed permission from the actor to do so, as was the case with James Earl Jones, I cannot disagree more with this view. It’s one thing to recast when it’s a character that attained renown before ever being portrayed by an actor, such as The Joker for instance. It’s another when the character has always been associated with, and even achieved their status because of, the original actor, and most especially when it is primarily a vocal one. That association should be preserved as long as possible and by any legally acceptable means necessary, including past the point in time when the actor themselves are no longer available to physically supply their voice. Again, assuming the actor’s cooperation and permission have been secured.
Actors ages and dies. AI voice “acting” will make it harder for new talent to enter the industry. I’m also against the AI use of James Earl Jones voice.
Just take Carrie Fisher and Chadwick Boseman, I know in this instance it’s not AI. However in both cases both characters should have been recast, I don’t disagree with the intention of the route they took. However neither served the character nor the story. Characters we love deserves more then AI, they deserve real talent. Not just a pale imitation.
But this is another topic. I rather see the franchise end then, AI taking the place of 47.
Didn’t James Earl Jones grant permission? If actors grant permission, I’m not against it. If David Bateson allowed it, I’d be on board with it as well.
The industry needs original concepts I think. If there wasn’t sequel after sequel but actually new experiments, ideas and characters, voice artists might have a better chance to find roles. IO does good to do something not-Hitman, I wish more studios got the chance.
He did, yeah I think what Norseman is saying is they’re more against keeping that role for one particular actor, and limiting the roles for future ones in an industry that is already very exclusive
Yes he did, I’m still against it in principle. I don’t hold it against him. Yet there are multiple voice actors who have played Vader very well and I find it a damn shame that this will lock out real people.
A computer generated voice doesn’t hold a candle to a real person. Doesn’t matter if it’s a computer generated voice of Bateson or James Earl Jones, it will simply lack human depth or creativity. It can only simulate, it cannot create art. Recast, if Bond has taught us anything, recasting can work if it’s done well. A actor might be synonymous with a role, doesn’t mean others can’t embody it just as well or better.
AI will be and is already being used in games and movies. It’s a tool, it will replace people. Just like CGI artists replace practical effects people. It comes down to how the tool is used, like anything else.
The next Hitman game will be the Hitman Codename 47 - Rewired, expanding upon the original, exploring its full glory and adding intricacies never before shown, all the way staying true to the lore and original maps and targets.
I don’t know if this will be a very popular idea, given the general reaction to the Nightcall mission, but what I really found refreshing about 47’s outing in New Zealand was the lack of loops. Alma would drink the tea only once, she would go through the bedtime routine only once, she would go out for a smoke and a phone call only once. Granted if you restart the mission you can turn all that into a loop, and the routine in itself is pretty short because of the sleeping aspect putting an end to it at some point, but I really liked the feeling of there not being a second chance to poison that sugar or honey. It really gave the vibe of having to think on your feet as an assassin, making it feel more realistic.
I don’t think a future game should abandon the idea of fixed loops in main missions as we know them as they are integral to the puzzle element we all love, but I would like some kind of seperate mode, maybe set in some kind of an open world (we’re talking about a future game where technology will make everything possible after all), where you get a target you have to follow around but who is very unlikely to repeat his actions (not excluding it completely because in some instances it can be realistic). Following and stalking a target, waiting/creating the right opportunity for a discreet kill. There would also be a rogue aspect to it since if you restart the mode, the routine will change entirely. I would say Freelancer did take a step into that direction, but the loop-element remains so I would consider this a step forward for the series. As a seperate mode, mind you, not as the main bulk of the game which should remain puzzle-oriented.
It would be interesting if the next Hitman game starts in the Freelancer safehouse, with 47 being ambushed, introducing you to the post-providence threat of the series.
I think the writers actually did a pretty good job making the loops in the game narratively plausible, at least. Dahlia Margolis would actually be doing a loop around the auction. Stromberg would actually be pacing the consulate. While I get the point you’re making and I agree with the principle, I do think that it was handled fairly well in the game as it is. Less loops in the next one would be a nice change though.
I think what Norseman is saying is they’re more against keeping that role for one particular actor, and limiting the roles for future ones in an industry that is already very exclusive