Hitman 3: Freelancer Closed Test is Now Live

Among everything revealed for the second year of Hitman 3 content, the Freelancer mode has been one of the most anticipated. High replay value is already something the series is beloved for and adding a new mode inspired by roguelikes is certainly an interesting combination. As great as it sounds on paper, fans have been left wanting a chance to play it or at least see a proper gameplay demonstration video.

A blog post that went up last week on the IO Interactive website delivered both. They showed off a ten-minute gameplay video and revealed the start date for a Closed Technical Test of the mode on Steam. If you weren’t aware of it, that test began yesterday and you can join if you were lucky enough to have received an email or signed up in time.

To better prepare for the public release and focus solely on player feedback, the test is a toned-down version of the mode. Only nine locations from the World of Assassination trilogy will be available and only 25 mastery levels can be reached in comparison to the 100 planned for the full release.

There are some other differences as well, but the core gameplay should remain the same. Players will be able to go through different campaigns and carefully strategize at their safehouse in-between missions. Unique NPCs such as couriers and suppliers can also be interacted with on-site along with a new Mercers currency.

The test lasts until November 7th, 4 pm UTC, and will be available as a separate product from Hitman 3 in the Steam library. It’s a 60GB download that’s accessible through a beta branch. Even if progression won’t be carrying over, this should drum up a lot of interest for the mode’s expected January 26th release.