PSVR2 has slowly been evolving thanks to third party creators and they keep unlocking new features that simply make playing in VR extra fun. Hitman follows this trend and honestly makes an experience that is unparalleled by any other game.
Let’s preface this by saying Hitman World Of Assassination is already an incredible experience as a flat screen game. The developers behind the series have created something truly incredible, with an open style approach to levels, and a multitude of ways to find your way through open based levels. The content you get with the collection is enough by itself to warrant the purchase.
Hitman World Of Assassination (PSVR2)
Release Date: March 27th 2025
Developer: IO Interactive
Platforms: PS5, PSVR2
That being said, this is a game where having a PSVR2 elevates everything to entire new heights. Hitman in VR is not just an incredible VR experience, but it honestly changes the dynamics of the core game so much that you might never want to take the headset off. All the stealth mechanics, the movements, the outright assassination’s are so incredibly done with very few, if any, drawbacks to gameplay when putting on the headset.
And it’s most likely due to the fact that this isn’t the first attempt at VR in the series. Several previous generations of headsets have ventured here before, and I must say that if any of those versions turned you off then you need to give it a try again. The PSVR2 version, not to be mixed up with the original PSVR edition, is a truly incredible experience.
It felt like I stepped into the shoes of an assassin and the entire world was my playground. I was having fun finding ways to move about the levels, spy on enemies, and was constantly blown away when new mechanics were introduced to me.
It honestly didn’t take long for Hitman to absolutely blow my mind in VR. Early on in the game you are handed a sniper rifle and you have to not only hold the gun up properly, you need to turn your head and use one eye to look through the scope, which zooms in beautifully to locate targets way down range. This experience alone made me absolutely fall in love with the game, but it didn’t end there.
Everything you get to do while in flat screen mode is way more fun in VR. Not only is it more fun, but the game overall functions better. Instead of pressing a button to hide behind a wall and peak, you can physically look around corners or duck down out of sight. This is especially fun when there are crowds or small hiding spots that you can duck out of sight lines with. Characters walking around have proper eye contact with you, which adds to immersion as well. Then there is the fact that your vision is impaired to what you physically are looking at, so room awareness is more focused.
More importantly, other core mechanics like throwing objects and picking things up work way more fluently while in VR. Again instead of button presses, you can quickly look at objects and pick them up with ease. And throwing has a little bit of an assist attached to it, so flinging objects quickly and accurately is extremely swift. This can quickly bail you out of situations, or even cause a stir. Being able to nail enemies across the room has created many chaotic and hilarious moments for me, but it also made me feel like a sniper with a fire extinguisher.
Again, returning to gun play, the game simply nails it down better than basically every other VR game I’ve played. Not only are snipers insanely thrilling to use, but hand guns will make you feel like a true Agent in every way. Aiming is near flawless. Reloading has just enough interaction to be fun, while grabbing inventory and new mags are painless. Even gameplay dynamics like being able to accurately toss a coin with pinpoint accuracy all works really well. (Note, I play the game while standing. When sitting, things can become a little cluttered).
One of the coolest aspects when playing in VR is the intuitive controls used to choke people out, or poison them if that’s more your style. Grabbing enemies, holding them in a choke hold, then laying them down will make you feel like a real assassin. Then dragging the bodies while looking behind you to open doors or closets to hide them is an incredibly authentic feeling. The game even slows down the action of dragging bodies to make it all the more intense.
The only real drawback I have with the game might not even be the games fault. Gameplay wise the game looks incredible, plays really fluently and clarity is pretty clean. However some drawbacks happen with more in-depth aspects of the game. For example there are no reflections and the red dot seems to disappear when aimed at enemies. When putting enemies into storage areas it also has weird cut and jump, instead of a fluid animation of making it happen. Could these be technical constraints of the PSVR2? I couldn’t tell you myself.
I also seem to be playing the lottery with crashes at the moment as well. I’ve gone several hours with no problems, while other sessions I couldn’t make it too long into my session before the game crashed multiple times.
Another major drawback that I was upset with is that cutscenes cut to big screen mode, instead of maintaining the VR experience. So basically you are stuck watching scenes play out on a VR screen before being pulled back into the world. It would have been a lot better if the VR aspects were maintained in the scenes to some degree.
Lastly, and my only major problem with the VR edition entirely, is the fact it was a hassle to actually jump into the VR game. If you start Hitman with your controller, the game boots into flat screen mode, and as far as I could tell there is no way to switch back and forth. You need to boot the game up while wearing your headset, and if you want to go flat you need to quit entirely and switch. There are also several modes, (sniper missions, Contracts, and the roguelite Freelancer mode) that aren’t available in VR. While the game boasts a ton of content for new users, it would be reasonable to at least showcase what content is available in VR, and have an easy way to access it.
Overall Hitman in PSVR2 adds new tools to an already well made game. This is the first flat screen game I played that I legitimately had more fun in VR. To me that says a lot because anyone that has played Hitman on a flat screen already knows it’s an incredible game. The open world approach has been fine tuned over the layers of content you get with the collection, but it also makes VR the perfect way to play. After several attempts at VR it seems the team finally nailed the right formula.
