47 kills a budgie… now, admittedly, it’s to protect his arse so that he can hear some nefarious types infiltrating his hideout, thus giving him the opportunity to deal out some deserved violence on those who oppose him. But even so: a budgie. Even the most hardcore animal lovers may be scoffing at that fact, but it’s one of many sights that have stuck with us throughout the franchise. What developer IO Interactive is trying to say here is pretty damn obvious: this is a world that isn’t very nice. It’s not pretty. It’s dark and even the budgies should be watching their backs. We won’t tell you which game the budgie appears in, leaving that instead for you to find out.

And with publisher Eidos releasing all three games in one package at a bloody excellent price, there’s little reason for you not to. Though it’s obviously lacking the original PC game, the pack, containing Hitman 2: Silent Assassin, Hitman: Contracts and the recent Hitman: Blood Money, clearly demonstrates how IO Interactive has grown as a developer throughout the past five years or so, climbing that vast ladder to become one of the most promising studios around.

Silent Assassin is the oldest of the three, and despite its problems – the obviously dated graphics, sometimes unforgiving and temperamental enemy AI, as well as an overdependency on sniping – it surprisingly feels like the most ambitious. That’s because the leap from the original PC game to this console sequel was unquestionably greater than any subsequent follow-ups, despite how much IO may have changed the formula. Not just that, Hitman 2 has the best, most cinematic story to appear in a Hitman game to date. After denouncing his role as a Hitman, 47 lives a life in Sicily as a man of faith. But when a priest friend of his is kidnapped he finds himself working for The Agency once more, executing objectives as he builds information on those responsible for padre’s abduction.

Contracts is a much darker beast. The narrative is less epic or strong, despite the incredibly cinematic way it’s presented. 47 finds himself hanging onto the last threads of his life while he lies in a hotel room, bleeding to death. He constantly moves in and out of consciousness, revisiting old jobs he did in the past, waiting for The Agency to send someone to patch him up. With 47 in such a state, the game’s tone and atmosphere is affected by it: levels are set either at night, in the pouring rain, snowstorms or very seedy places.

After the fairly light and Hollywood actionmovie nature of the previous game, it’s a little jarring to find Contracts as twisted as it is. But it absolutely works. 47 just lends himself brilliantly to the horror permeating the game. It’s a definite step up, not just in terms of game design, which is far more forgiving than Silent Assassin and by virtue of that, fun, but in presentation. For a three year-old PS2 game it still looks great. The problem with Contracts, however, is the way it lifts wholesale several missions from the original PC game. Sure, revisiting these locations makes sense within the context of the story. But it’s still a cheap way to pad out an otherwise brilliant sequel. Blood Money is clearly riffing the Silent Assassin vibe, dropkicking the darker tone of Contracts in favour of something lighter, more epic. It lacks the focus on narrative present in Silent Assassin but, as ever, tells its story in an extremely cinematic and entertaining fashion. The level design is the best this franchise has offered yet. Everybody loves the twisted comedy of the middle-American suburbia level, but we preferred the porno king’s snowy penthouse, the still amazing-to-behold Mardi Gras, and, last but not least, a heaven and hell nightclub level that appears later in the game.

Blood Money not only looks gorgeous, it also has an overhauled menu system that makes interaction with the game world all the more organic. Now, rather than holding X every time you stood near a body, door, and so on, the possible options will appear in the top left, mapped to the Triangle, Circle and X face buttons. When standing over a dead body, Triangle takes his weapon, Circle changes into his clothes, while X will drag the body. 47 is also far more nimble in Blood Money – scaling walls, climbing drainpipes, jumping from one balcony or ledge to another, making his way through open windows… you will feel much closer to the environment, which is key in a game like this, easily the best Hitman game to date – despite not changing the formula too much.

Like IO Interactive, the Hitman franchise has grown considerably better with each subsequent release. With this trilogy, gamers get to witness that evolution clear as day. Three brilliant games… one pack… excellent price. Take the hit.

Craig Gilmore