Hitman developer reportedly working on new triple-A fantasy IP for Xbox

Hitman developer IO Interactive is reportedly working on a new triple-A fantasy IP for Xbox.

The report—which broke at Windows Central and was later corroborated by Eurogamer—states that the game is still very early in development and is only one of several third-party games that Xbox Game Studios is planning on publishing.

As for the game itself, not much is known at the time, though it will feature a medieval fantasy setting and dragons. If true, this makes for the fourth triple-A fantasy game that Xbox Game Studios has in development, next to Obsidian’s Avowed and Playground Games’ Fable. That’s not to mention Elder Scrolls 6, which the now Xbox-owned Bethesda has confirmed is in development. All three games will come to Game Pass when they launch.

It’s unclear whether this project from IO has anything to do with Scalebound, the dragon-based action game that Bayonetta developer Platinum Games was working on for Xbox until its cancelation in 2017. Xbox boss Phil Spencer denied in 2020 that the publisher had any plans for Scalebound. That being said, Xbox still owns the IP and can hire another developer to make the game if it wants.

IO Interactive already has a lot on its plate. It’s currently developing and releasing its 7 Deadly Sins post-launch content for Hitman 3, and it’s working on an original James Bond game, currently codenamed Project 007. That’s a ton of work for the 200-person studio, though Eurogamer states that IO is expected to double in size by the end of Project 007‘s development cycle.