Hitman prototype reveals unused NPC smuggling mechanic, character select screen in 2016 game

An early build of 2016’s soft Hitman reboot — now bundled with its two sequels as the Hitman: World of Assassination trilogy — was shared online by preservationist community Obscure Gamers on April 19, providing us with a look at how the game was shaping up a little more than a year out from launch.

The prototype, which refers to the game by the name “Silent War” in the uploaded files, appears to include Hitman’s first two, non-tutorial missions “The Showstopper” and “World of Tomorrow,” set in Paris, France and Sapienza, Italy respectively. Much of the gameplay footage provided by debuggers exploring the build’s contents is from Sapienza, showcasing a level that looks much as it does in the final release, only with copious placeholder assets.

One big difference, however, is the presence of an NPC who moves boxes back and forth from the van at the mansion’s side entrance and onto the estate grounds. A prompt allowed Agent 47 to hide illicit items in these boxes, which then would have presumably acted as moving stashes, allowing Agent 47 to successfully pass a frisking by the guards and then retrieve his weapon once inside the compound.

None of the available prototype footage shows players making use of this mechanic, unfortunately, but you can see the unfolding scenario in question around the 8:32 mark in the video below. Why this didn’t make it into the final game is unknown, but it’s possible the developers considered the feature redundant after including the ability to choose a stashed item during the mission briefing and begin with it already waiting for you in the level.

The talented folks sorting through these files were also able to recreate an unused main menu depicting Hitman protagonist Agent 47 killing time in an airport, presumably en route to his next target. This menu includes a character select screen allowing the player to choose between Agent 47 and another character simply known as The Asset, which is odd, because the final game only allows you to play as the former.

It’s possible The Asset is an early version of Lucas Grey, an enemy-turned-ally throughout the trilogy’s storyline, and may have featured different missions and abilities than those taken and used by Agent 47.

As I’ve said before, it’s great to see this kind of work-in-progress find its way online, especially as AAA studios grow more and more secretive about the process of making intricate games like Hitman. A perfect world would see these companies share this stuff willingly after a game’s release or at least provide early builds to a proper archive of some kind, just so we don’t lose the valuable history of an artform we all love to the steady march of time.

If you want to try this prototype for yourself and don’t mind some finagling to make the build functional, all the files you’ll need are available on Hidden Palace.