Hitman World of Assassination Switch 2 Review
Summary: An Impressive looking port with disappointing performance on the Switch 2 and an always online requirement, which takes away from what otherwise would have been a must recommend.
3.5
Mixed
From the moment you start playing Hitman World of Assassination, it’s clear that this is a graphically and visually impressive port of the recent IO Hitman trilogy. Cutscenes look great, and the environments range from moody night time events to bright tropical islands. The package of this Switch 2 port includes missions from across all three Hitman games, along with some bonus missions and an ‘Arcade Mode’ that disables saving for a more challenging experience.
Gameplay
At its core, Hitman is a stealth strategy puzzle game. Agent 47, the lead character is a ‘Hitman’ given a series of contract kills to work through. The setup to each mission is quite simple but how you approach each mission is entirely up to you. At the beginning of each mission, there is a cutscene with a mission briefing. You then choose your gear and starting location and are set loose to approach it however you like. Whether you want to go in loud or stay low and quiet in the shadows for a sneakier approach to your ‘hits’, the choice is entirely yours to make. In a way it feels like playing a game of chess where each move can be carefully planned, and each mistake can be learned from in subsequent playthroughs or your next mission.
What works well on the Switch is thankfully autosaves are frequent, so when you fail, you’re not punished too harshly. You can load a previous save, tweak your strategy, and try again. This is exactly what you want from a stealth, strategy game. You can also manually save and load at any time on the lower difficulty, so you can try different approaches and styles to work out what is best for you and your play style.
There is a high level of replayability here. After each mission, you earn a list of ‘feats’ which are optional challenges, like using a specific disguise or discovering hidden locations in the map. There are dozens per mission, but you’ll likely only tick off a few each time which will encourage you to come back for multiple playthroughs with different strategies and approaches. That being said, though, it doesn’t have that “just one more mission” addictiveness that I would have expected. It’s more like a play one mission, take a break, come back later.
Each mission is self-contained and can be picked up and played in short bursts. This makes it ideal for playing in handheld mode. A baffling limitation is that playing offline means you can’t complete challenges or earn mission scores. This really impacts your sense of progression, especially when playing in handheld when on the go without an internet connection. Even worse, if you start a mission offline and later reconnect, you are only able to continue in offline mode, so you miss out on making any progression entirely.
Graphics & Performance
Cutscenes look great and are visually impressive on the Switch in both handheld and when docked. The lighting, shadows, and environmental detail all look great and the overall aesthetic and feel definitely channels a ‘James Bond’ kind of vibe. However, the experience is immediately undercut by inconsistent performance. It doesn’t consistently hit 60fps, and camera movement in particular feels noticeably choppy, especially in open areas with lots of NPCs.
Performance is a recurring issue. In tight indoor spaces with few NPCs, the frame rate feels solid, even approaching 60fps. But step into a crowded outdoor area and it tanks hard. Sometimes dipping into what feels like frames in the 20s, which is really quite jarring.
It’s frustrating that there is no ‘performance’ or ‘graphics mode’ options in the settings, which is a real missed opportunity. For example, a locked 30 or 40fps mode with slightly reduced visuals would’ve been a great option. As it stands, the lack of optimisation on this port really holds the game back from being fully enjoyed.
Audio Design
The audio design and how it plays into the gameplay really adds to the experience. The music and synth soundtrack shifts depending on what’s happening, building tension when things get intense and giving off that slick, spy movie sort of vibe. Missions make smart use of voice lines and audio cues too. For example, you can eavesdrop on NPCs to pick up useful intel or hints about different ways to tackle your ‘hits’ and objectives. This overall adds to that feeling of freedom and creativity that makes the game fun.
Final Thoughts?
Hitman World of Assassination on Switch 2 is an ambitious and somewhat successful port. It looks great, plays well in short bursts, and offers a ton of replay value. But frequent performance issues and frustrating online limitations bring down the overall experience. If you can look past the constant framerate stutters and plan to play mostly online, then there is some fun to be had for fans of the stealth and strategy genre.
About the Author
Simon James Simon is a tech savvy gamer with a passion for shooters, platformers, and story-driven action adventures. When he's not playing games, he's jamming on his guitar.
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