After several sites reported Amazon's listing for a Hitman collection, Square Enix has come forward to formally announce Hitman: HD Trilogy.
According to a press release issued earlier today, "IO Interactive A/S, a Square Enix studio today announced HITMAN: HD TRILOGY. Experience for the first time ever the classic and critically acclaimed games: HITMAN 2: SILENT ASSASSIN, HITMAN: CONTRACTS and HITMAN: BLOOD MONEY, unified in one deadly HD-Collection for PlayStation®3 and Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system from Microsoft.
For the very first time experience over forty incredible missions across three classic Hitman Games, all presented in glorious HD. Whether you're a long-time fan or new to the franchise, this is the opportunity to take on the contracts that defined the series and fully established Agent 47 not only as a pop culture icon, but also as the World's Ultimate Assassin."
Apart from the revised graphics in HD and an art book, no new features have been announced, so fans familiar with 47's legacy should pass. But for gamers who've somehow manage to miss playing as the barcoded baldy, it's a worthy investment, especially with a $40 price tag.
The latest game in the series, Absolution, is out now for Windows PC, PlayStation 3, and Xbox 360. It features new game play mechanics like "instinct mode" which allow 47 to predict enemy patrol routes, much like the 'sonar vision' that was featured in Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell: Conviction and "detective mode" in Batman: Arkham Asylum.
After gamers complete the story, there's still the game's new CONTRACTS" mode. As IO puts it, "CONTRACTS is a new online mode which allows gamers to create and share their own custom hit challenges within Hitman: Absolution. Choose a level, targets, weapons and then set the rules for completing your contract as you play to create. Hitman: Absolution will also ship with many pre-set CONTRACTS, each designed by the very best assassins at IO Interactive."
Players who successfully comple contracts will be rewarded in contract dollars. The amount earned depends on player performance. In order to create more elaborate and creative setups, the player can choose from a vast arsenal of weapons, disguises, upgrades, and techniques; all of which can be unlocked by either playing through Absolution's story mode, or by spending those hard-earned contract dollars.
Hitman: HD Trilogy is scheduled for release in Europe Feb. 1, and in North America on Jan. 29 PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360.