IO Is Giving Hitman 3 VR a big revamp for Meta Quest 3

No more noodle arms

IO Interactive/XR Games

Hitman 3 VR launched with more than a few little issues on Meta Quest 2, but IO Interactive and XR Games are giving the stealth game a big makeover for Meta Quest 3. It’s called Hitman 3 VR Reloaded, and it overhauls almost every aspect of the game, including its art style and even how you approach each mission.

Hitman 3 VR Reload introduces dual-wielding, a first for the series in VR or flatscreen. Agent 47 can hold two weapons or items at once, which, in theory, opens all kinds of opportunities for new strategies. I’m less keen on the idea of wielding a pistol and a knife at the same time, since combat in Hitman is intentionally messy. The prospects for distractions and silently knocking out guards seem much more promising, though. Why stop at hitting one guard in the face with a banana when you can hit two?

Hitman 3’s UI is “completely overhauled” to better suit VR and make navigation feel more natural, and speaking of natural, Reloaded includes “natural” and “fluid” movement options to help you get around.

IO and XR also fixed several bugs and other issues that plagued the original VR release. Presumably, that includes the bug where 47’s arms turned into twisty, boneless noodles – not great when you’re trying to remain inconspicuous – and the one where enemies inflated and flew away. Fun as those instances were, Diana, unfortunately, thought differently and didn’t count those as proper takedowns.

Finally is the art style. XR Games swapped the more realistic look of Hitman 3 VR’s original release for a cel-shaded style. The duo didn’t release any in-game screenshots with the announcement, but if the cel-shaded version of the Hitman 3 cover art is anything to go by, it’ll look pretty slick.

There's no word on whether Hitman 3 Freelancer, the roguelike mode inspired by Hades, will turn up in Reloaded, so don't get your hopes up.

Hitman 3 VR Reloaded launches sometime in summer 2024 exclusively for Meta Quest 3, and it’ll cost $29.99. You can pre-order it now on the Quest store and get it at a slight discount, $26.99.