Thread by @WritNelson

So, I understand the frustration around Hitman 3 server weirdness--I'm dealing with a lot too--but I want to very quickly list the factors going into what's being done here, because I've been in games nearly a decade, and I have literally not seen a single thing on this scale.
1/

In the five years since HITMAN (2016) we've got:
1) Publisher change
2) A mix of episodic and non-episodic releases
3) Customized DLC scenarios (pre-orders, retailer bonuses, etc.)
4) 2 console generations
5) Physical releases in several territories

2/

6) ...Digital launches in several territories
7) Multiple physical and digital SKUs with overlapping content
8) Universal profile progression
9) Cross-level progression
10) Customized server architecture across 3 platforms
11) User-generated content across 3 platforms

3/

12) A fully-fledged VR version spanning every level in the series
13) A cloud-based launch for Stadia
14) A cloud-based launch for the Nintendo Switch
15) PC platform split and integration [Epic]
16) Console deals that released individual segments of content for free

4/

17) A synchronous multiplayer competitive assassination mode
18) A synchronous co-op sniper-based assassination mode

And finally, my personal favorite: Elusive Targets.

Limited-time missions that can never be tried again, with unique targets, and unique, bespoke rewards.

5/

...The Elusive Targets were occasionally connected to external IP, so we have to account for that.

Oh, and HITMAN (2016) can transfer content to H2 but not *progress*, which presumably means maintaining separate servers, and yet another bugbear in this chain of Holy Shit.

6/

Warn people that Hitman 3 is having server issues, sure.

However, please also acknowledge that what IOI did here has *never* been attempted in games, and likely will never be done again, because even thinking about TWO of these factors makes me want to light myself on fire.

7/

Hitman 3 is the quadruple axel jump of legal, technical, architectural, and ethical problems associated with making and *maintaining* video games--which is still incredibly new compared to the rest of our medium.

This shouldn't be possible.

I don't know HOW they did this.
8/

Again, I *get* it. We want our games to work smoothly, at launch.

But the fact that after you download Hitman 3, it doesn't immediately self-immolate with a scream destined to end the world, is nothing short of a FUCKING miracle on every level imaginable.
9/

This is the closest thing game devs have to eldritch fiction. It is a growing blackness that pulls tears from our uncomprehending eyes. It drinks the soulrage of a terrified populace. It beckons you to look closer, and to fear.

Fear and tremble.

10/

The best/worst part is that... they didn't have to do this.

It would suck to lose hundreds of hours of progress. It would've been awful to have to repurchase hundreds of dollars of content, regardless of the touch-ups.

We have endured worse for less.

And they still did it.
11/

I don't want to smother this with hyperbole. Hyperbole is fun, because HOW/WHY THE FUCK DID THEY DO THIS, but I don't want to lose the greater point.

The more I learn about game development, the greater an achievement I see, here.

I just...
12/

This is one of the most exciting, terrifying games I've ever seen. It's genuinely thrilling to see Hitman 3 work *at all*, let alone be quickly on the road to stability.

And it might all get washed under the label of a 'catastrophic' launch.

...It would be a damn shame.
13/13

In conclusion:

A GAME DEVELOPER, TRYING TO COMPREHEND LITERALLY ONE FRACTION OF HITMAN 3's DEVELOPMENT AND ARCHITECTURE

THEY MADE THE GAME *SMALLER* IN THE PROCESS

THE ENTIRE GAME IN ONE TRILOGY

*S M A L L E R*

HOW

Okay, I'm done now. I'm really done.