HITMAN World of Assassination – Signature Edition | Switch 2 Review

The Hitman series has been one of my favorites since I was a kid, with my first one being Hitman: Blood Money. So, when given the opportunity to play Hitman: World of Assassination on my new Switch 2, I wasn’t going to turn it down. Now, having already played several hundred hours on other platforms, I feel my goal is to report on performance and playability rather than the game itself. For those of you who don’t know. Hitman: World of Assassination is developed and published by IO Interactive and contains Hitman, Hitman 2, Hitman 3, and bonus content. 

The Numbers Mason

To start this off, the other reviews I’ve read seem to be a mixed bag of pros and cons but, everyone is saying the same thing though. “It seems to run here like this and there like that.” After seeing it in a few places, I started doing some research and after a few days of looking around the internet I feel no closer to an actual answer or what I really want to know. What the internet can’t give me I’ll try and find myself. 

Numbers are great when it comes to measurements. Along with that, the more Information you have the better your numbers can be. So, when I put numbers to numbers why doesn’t it make sense to me? The big question for me is resolution. The Switch 2 has the ability to have 1080p even while being handheld. but so many places are saying that the game is only showing in 720p. Why wouldn’t the developers want a game as stunning as Hitman to be in 1080p? 

My first thought was performance, maybe they knew it would be too taxing on the Switch 2 and so, for playability’s sake, took a hit to resolution. My second was “I’m playing Hitman on an 8 inch screen.” Either way, if it is running at 720p or 1080p, it looks and runs great on a handheld Switch 2, with only the more graphically intensive maps really doing any noticeable change to frame rate. I also put it in the dock and tested it out at 4k resolution on my everyday tv and my gaming monitor at 1080p. All three setups show the game in a great way with frame rates hovering between 40 and 60 with 4k being on the lower end.

Problems

There are a few minor issues that I feel need addressing. Not everything works as it should: some NPCs don’t show up in Instinct view, the game can crash without warning, there is a game breaking glitch that makes you invisible to NPCs and allows you to walk through doors, and 90% of this game requires an internet connection.

The Instinct issue, in my opinion, isn’t even a bother, but the crashing and the game breaking glitch could ruin your day. Although I haven’t been able to recreate a crash or the glitch, but the fear of both looms in the background. The big issue is not being connected to the internet. You can still play the game, but the game won’t record your progress. This is a huge oversight when it comes to having it be on the Switch 2, which won’t be connected to an internet source if you are out and about.

Even with all of that said, Hitman: World of Assassination is still a great game with so much to experience and be a part of. Speaking of being a part of things, their 007 Season of High-Stakes is happening for the summer of 2025 and brings back some fan favorites.

Secret Agent Man

Until July 6th, you can hunt down Le Chiffre from Casino Royale for free. The Paris map “The Show Stopper” is redesigned into a casino with a high stakes poker game to decide Le Chiffre’s fate. One thing you can always count on in Hitman is the mission is never as straightforward as it seems. With so many moving parts how could it be, and this elusive target is no different. Great characters and obstacles make this target one to remember. Win your way to the top or do what you do best. This might be a villain from 007, but you are still 47.

 

Final Thoughts

It feels like a lot of reviews that I read about Hitman: World of Assassination were more about the Switch 2 than the actual game itself. I even saw a few that were upset that the game doesn’t have in-game display options which are rarely, if ever, seen on console games. I think part of the problem is that the Switch 2 is labeled a console rather than a handheld and so people expect things from it, even though a lot of people enjoy it for its mobility. The other part of the problem is games today are coming out with crazy expectations on them. We need 180 Frames with 8k graphics or it’s not good. Also with this being one of the first releases on the Switch 2, it fell under a microscope and sadly enough people are looking for flaws.

If you have a Switch 2 and like Hitman: World of Assassination and want to take it on the go, it should be an easy sell. It looks good, it plays good, and with very few hiccups.

To hear me talk more about HITMAN World of Assassination – Signature Edition, be sure to listen to the June 25th episode of The Gaming Outsider Podcast around the 13:06 time stamp.

This review is based on a Nintendo Switch 2 copy of Hitman World of Assassination – Signature Edition provided by fortyseven for coverage purposes. As of this writing, this edition of the game is exclusive to that platform.