Hitman Franchise Not Necessarily Ending: Square Enix

It was confirmed earlier this month that new Hitman games had been placed on hold because Square Enix had decided to withdraw its investment from Hitman developer IO Interactive. The future of the much-loved Hitman franchise remains in limbo as Square Enix attends to the business matters. The company says that the sale of Hitman studio IO Interactive doesn’t necessarily mean that this franchise is going to end.

A new report claimed recently that Hitman Season 2 was being planned as IO Interactive had retained the rights to Hitman. So no matter where it ends up after Square Enix divests its interest in the developer, it will be able to continue working on Hitman.

Square Enix President Yosuke Matsuda revealed to investors that just because the company is getting rid of IO Interactive it doesn’t mean that the Hitman franchise will end. He added that Square Enix is “negotiating with prospective external investors capable of ensuring that these titles carry on.”

When asked by an analyst about Square Enix’s reason for doing away with IO Interactive, Matsuda said that one of the reasons was “the nature of the competitive landscape in the Western markets.”

He added that Square Enix had decided that it needed to concentrate its development resources, and that “the decision to withdraw from that business was the result of a review of our Group’s allocation of both financial and human resources.”

Adnan Farooqui
Categories: Gaming
Tags: hitman, io interactive, Square Enix