19th September 2010 - In our 12th developer profile, we look at the Hitman and Kane and Lynch series developer IO Interactive.
Developer Name: IO Interactive
Subsidiary Of: Square Enix
Founded: 1998
About: The company was founded in 1998 and remained an independent force until 2004, with the release of Hitman: Contracts and the buyout by Eidos Interactive, who had previously published their independently developed Hitman titles.
Fun Fact: Freedom Fighters is IO’s only game not to published by Eidos - it was handled by EA.
In 2009, gaming behemoth Square Enix purchased Eidos and its subsidiaries, resulting in IO now belonging to the Final Fantasy developers. One thing IO-developed games have becoming known for is tongue-in-cheek references to their own past games, and the constant dividing of audiences, resulting in some father positive reviews as well as some rather citified efforts. I personally enjoy everything these Danish developers bring out, but ill leave the judging up to the individual.
Notable Feats:
The Hitman Series
With the first game being released way back in 2000, The Hitman series has gathered a cult following, as despite its heavily glitches missions and gameplay, many gamers love the plethora of choice given to complete objectives. Each instalment is released to the same arguments, too; lots of choice, but not a lot of polish. So its become expected that if you’re not already a Hitman fan, you probably wont like whatever is next. Speaking of which, what is next? For years the fans have been demanding a new Hitman game, and since the late release of Kane and Lynch 2, IO have been rumoured to secretly be working on a little something-something. Only time will reveal if this is the Hitman sequel we’ve been waiting for, so stay tuned.
The Kane and Lynch series
In a similar bid to the Hitman series of games, Kane and Lynch games are also released to divided audiences. Some love ‘em, some hate ‘em. The two games have some of great third-person action and character study to die for, but inarguably have some major flaws in the game design. I’ll leave the decision to you, but why not check out my review of the recent Kane and Lynch 2: Dog Days here?
Past Games:
Hitman: Codename 47 (PC, 2000)
Hitman 2: Silent Assassin (PS2/PC/Xbox/Gamecube, 2002)
Freedom Fighters (PS2/PC/Xbox/Gamecube, 2003)
Hitman: Contracts (PS2/PC/Xbox, 2004)
Hitman: Blood Money (PS2/PC/Xbox/Xbox 360, 2006)
Kane and Lynch: Dead Men (PS3/PC/Xbox 360, 2007)
Mini Ninjas (PS3/PC/Xbox 360/Wii, 2009)
Kane and Lynch 2: Dog Days (PS3/Xbox 360, 2010)
Upcomnig Games:
TBA
Article By John Elliott