The Hitman franchise is centered on finding creative and unique approaches to eliminating Agent 47's targets. IO Interactive has created a strong gameplay foundation between Hitman (2016) and Hitman 2, which feature some of the most creative and entertaining levels in the Hitman franchise.
With the direction that IO is taking the narrative, there is a great avenue to make the next Hitman game feature co-op gameplay - and it definitely should. There are tons of ways that true co-op gameplay would revitalize and improve the Hitman series as a whole.
On the Topic of Narratives
To first explain how co-op would work, a quick story breakdown is in order. As one would expect, this section will contain spoilers for Hitman and Hitman 2, so skip on over this section if need be. 2016's Hitman game sets up a narrative that has Agent 47 and Diana Burnwood working to ultimately track down and stop a mysterious Shadow Client that has been tailing Agent 47 throughout his life as a hired gun. As 47 carries out his contracts, the Shadow Client uncovers more information about the secret organization known as Providence,and slowly ropes 47 and Diana into the bigger plot. The contracts that 47 carried out were secretly orchestrated by the Shadow Client to take down high ranking Providence members.
By the end of Hitman, it is revealed that the Shadow Client actually knows 47, and in Hitman 2, it is revealed that the Shadow Client is actually the final surviving member of Dr. Ort-Meyer's experiments: Agent 6. Under the alias of Lucas Grey, Agent 6 uncovered that Providence was responsible for funding and heading Ort-Meyer's cloning experiments, and Grey enlists 47 to help put an end to Providence once and for all - setting the stage for the next Hitman game. Thanks to Grey's similar skillset to 47's, and their natural bond growing up, it would make perfect sense for 47 and Grey to work on contracts together to bring down Providence, so co-op in Hitman 3 is certainly justified through the narrative.
Larger Levels, More Challenges
Hitman and Hitman 2 had some of the best levels in the Hitman series by far, giving players a large amount of freedom when it comes to taking down the targets. The levels were, for the most part, very large and featured many avenues and opportunities for players to utilize to their advantage. The jump from Hitman to Hitman 2 also featured a noticeable jump in map quality and freedom, so in theory Hitman 3 may feature even more intricate and sandbox-style levels for players to orchestrate the hits in. If the developers factor co-op into the design of the next game's levels, it may mean the levels will be much larger to allow for multiple opportunities to be followed at the same time.
In a similar vein, there could be a whole subset of challenges introduced with the new levels that would cater to co-op players. For those unfamiliar, Hitman is known for having special challenges on each level in the game that act as self-imposed difficulty, like killing the target(s) without being spotted or having any bodies found (typically referred to as Silent Assassin). IO could easily modify some of the classic challenges to make them co-op focused, or they could design brand new twists that players would need to plan around for some added difficulty.
Revisiting the Classics With a Twist
One of the biggest surprises in Hitman 2 was the introduction of the Legacy Pack DLC, which added every single level from Hitman (2016) into Hitman 2. All of the levels were updated to work around the new features and items that were introduced in Hitman 2, but the layouts and targets remained the same. In a perfect world, Hitman 3 will have a similar feature that will allow players to revisit levels from the two previous titles, and if co-op is an option it will allow players to explore these classic levels in new and inventive ways. Those who have played Hitman and played Hitman's levels in Hitman 2 thanks to the DLC will be intimately familiar with the original levels, but adding co-op means that they can approach the levels with fresh eyes for chaos.
Hitman 2's levels are already quite large and well-suited for having two players roaming around in them. There are a lot of opportunities in each level that players can orchestrate simultaneously so it would not be a stretch to have co-op added there. Levels like Columbia and Miami feel immense when playing solo, which makes them perfect for two players to run around in. Hopefully Hitman 3 will bring back the previous Hitman levels (perhaps even for free for players who owned the first two games, like Hitman 2 did).
Brilliant Synergy or Beautiful Chaos
There is one reason that stands out above the others as to why Hitman 3 needs co-op: players will be able to pull of stunning contracts (or fail beautifully trying). Hitman is all about pulling off elaborate and intricate assassinations without being detected, but some of the best moments in the series come from when a plan fails spectacularly. What starts off as a beautifully orchestrated hit quickly turns into utter chaos, especially during limited-time missions like the Elusive Targets. When players embrace the chaos, it is some of the most fun the game can offer.
Now imagine that with two people. One person could be setting up an opportunity to take down a target when all of a sudden their partner accidentally alerts the guards. The plan falls apart, the target is going into lock-down, and the guards are after the second player. The players have to adapt to the rising tension and come up with an entirely new plan - and that is where Hitman truly shines. With co-op, the possibilities are endless.
Hitman 3 needs to have co-op for a multitude of reasons. From a narrative perspective, it would absolutely make sense for Agent 6 to join up with Agent 47 to exact revenge on Providence and those who orchestrated their creation. From a gameplay perspective, Hitman and Hitman 2 already have great level design that could easily be adapted to accommodate a second player, and many elements of the game would be incredibly entertaining with someone else working toward completing the contract. Hitman 2 was very well-received, and IO has mentioned in the past that the current games are meant to be a trilogy, so it would be the perfect time to introduce co-op into the mix to give the next leg of Agent 47's story a spectacular conclusion.
The next Hitman game is currently in development for unspecified platforms.