IO Interactive is developing a new online fantasy RPG

Authored by ioi.dk and submitted by Hard2DaC0re
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It has now been a decade since we first imagined creating a new “World of Assassination” for our HITMAN games. Seven years ago, we launched that world in its infancy and nurtured it to grow to comprise three full games, exciting new game modes, many additional locations, and extra targets. And more importantly, it has allowed us to build a bond with our community that has supported us ever since. We have gone from a strong vision, through a lot of unforeseen events, to the ever-expanding world with freedom of approach in its core that we have today.

Now we are sharing with all of you, that we are embarking on a new adventure! One that expands our creativity, our capabilities, and in some sense our identity. We are building a new world, a new IP – an online fantasy RPG. A world and a game built from the core to entertain players and expand for many years to come. It feels familiar, yet at the same time IOI is going on a journey unlike any we have been on before.

For many, this journey is also a deeply personal one that began long before we started making games for a living – and it started with the fantasy genre. From the “Fighting Fantasy” books compelling you to choose your path, alone, against wizards, lizards, and thief kings. To the togetherness, camaraderie, agony, and delight found around the tabletop. For some it meant taking the role of a game master: Part storyteller, part AI opponent, part guide, part villain. For everyone around that table it meant creativity, imagination, building a world together, and a shared goal in creating a great game experience.

This idea – that a diverse group of individuals with different skills and strengths can work together and become more than the sum of their parts – is what inspires us. It inspires the fantasy world we are building – and it inspires how we build it. IOI now spans multiple distinct studios, from Copenhagen and Malmö in the north to warm Barcelona in the south. All studios take part in making all our games, including this new endeavor. People from all over the world with diverse personalities and skillsets are coming together to forge a new beginning.

This is just the start of our journey into this new world we are making. We hope you sense the warmth, the danger, the togetherness, and the heart we put into it… And if you do, we would be honored if you join us.

GALACTUS_gaming on March 1st, 2023 at 02:43 UTC »

I mean they did a good job with hitman 3 making it always online. So i see them succeeding in this

TJ_McWeaksauce on February 28th, 2023 at 23:08 UTC »

I am not aware of any AAA game that's similar to Hitman: World of Assassination. IOI is going from years of working on a unique franchise to working on a genre that's saturated.

It's an interesting choice, and it will be years from now when we find out if it works out for them.

PartyOnAlec on February 28th, 2023 at 18:44 UTC »

IOI is an underrated dev/pub in my book. They've done awesome stuff with Hitman and continue evolving, I think they're close to the only studio that can make the 007 game I've wanted to play all my life (something that's not just a shooter), and I'd trust them with this over most other live service RPGs at this point (looking at you WOW)