Hitman 2 PSA; which DLC packs Plus owners should buy for 100%

[Golem25 2,490]

The modern Hitman games have some of the most confusing DLC schemes known to man, so I wanted to put this out there for everyone to read before deciding to jump in. I'm a veteran of Hitman 2, being the first player to earn Featured Contract status (Aeon of Strife in Miami) and having completed it twice over on Steam and Playstation (recently). I have had to deal with developer IOI's needlessly complicated releases by twisting myself into a pretzel re-buying stuff physically - hopefully you won't have to by following this handy guide.

 

If you are on the fence about trying Hitman 2 out, there is a general FAQ included at the end of this post which ponders the question whether Hitman 2 is worth your time (and money - you will need to spend for 100%). The initial part and, indeed, bulk of the following concerns itself with what DLC you need for 100%, and how you can best go about getting it.

 

 

 

For Hitman 2, there are 146 Trophies to unlock; these are spread across two separate lists as the (former) maximum limit for a single list was 125, hence a base list with 125 and an expansion list with 21 - you will see me refer to them frequently as they are tied to different bits of DLC. To be able to unlock everything, you will need to own the entire previous game and buy DLC to reach 100% across both lists. We can group the Trophies in three rough groups based on their availability on the PS Story - you'll need all three to get 100% on the base list, while the Expansion Pass accounts for the full expansion list;

 

1. Hitman 2; 66 Trophies (included with Plus)
2. Hitman [2016]; 52 Trophies (not included with Plus)
3. Hitman 2 Expansion pass DLC; 28 Trophies (not included with Plus; 7 on the base list, while the other 21 of these make up the entire Expansion list)

 

 

I will now part things out based on whether you own the first Hitman [2016] or not. It was given out with Playstation Plus in February 2019, so if you were subscribed at the time then chances are that you've saved yourself a headache and a half for Hitman 2. If you don't own the first game at all, be prepared to spend quite a bit or accept a game sitting around 60% completion on your main or throwaway profile.

 

 

 

If you own Hitman [2016] via PS Plus (February 2019), or have the disc or digital version of The Complete First Season;

 

• The PS Plus version of Hitman 2 gives you access to 66 of the 125 Trophies on the game's base list
• Because of your ownership of the previous game, you can play the six maps from the first game and get their 52 Trophies for a total of 118
• You do not get access to the 7 'HITMAN™ 2 Singapore' Trophies on the base list*
• You do not get access to any of the 21 Trophies on the expansion list; simply delete it from your profile.*

 

To play the maps from the first game, install it, then go to the in-game store and follow the prompts to redeem and install the 'Legacy pack'. This will make Paris through to Hokkaido playable in Hitman 2, including quality of life improvements such as added foilage and graphical tweaks.

 

*To get 100% on the base list plus the entire expansion list, you must buy the pricey Hitman 2 Expansion Pass on the PS Store (see bottom of this post) or salvage a code from a physical 'Gold Edition' Steelbook.

 

 

If you do not own Hitman [2016] via PS Plus (Feb 2019), physical disc, or digital edition;

 

• The PS Plus version of Hitman 2 gives you access to 66 of the 125 Trophies on the game's base list
• You do not get access to the 52 Trophies associated with the First Season
• You do not get access to any of the 21 Trophies on the expansion list; simply delete it from your profile.
• You do not get access to the 7 'HITMAN™ 2 Singapore' Trophies on the base list

 

To be able to access that glob of 52 Trophies, you need to buy Hitman; GOTY Edition on the PS Store. If you want to buy physical, you must buy a new, sealed copy; the discs came with a DLC code for the Bonus missions which relate to 10 out of the 52 Trophies; no code, no 100%. You must also buy the pricey Hitman 2 Expansion Pass on the PS Store (see bottom of this post) or salvage a code from a physical 'Gold Edition' Steelbook.

 

Once you have bought the first season, install it, then go to the in-game store and follow the prompts to redeem and install the 'Legacy pack'. This will make Paris through to Hokkaido playable in Hitman 2, including quality of life improvements such as added foilage and graphical tweaks.

 

 

 

What's the cheapest route to 100%? a.k.a how many coins am I throwing?

 

The answer is as clear-cut as it is unsatisfactory; if you aren't willing to spend more than you would for a full new release, you have to wait for sales. Seriously. If you don't own any previous Hitman content, you unironically need to spend 100 Dollars in the US PS Store outside of sales to be able to get 100%, and the same goes for other countries and their local currencies. If you wait for sales, you're looking at about 25 Dollars (and foreign equivalents), check the links below for proof. Thankfully, there is currently a sale going on that drops the Expansion pass down to a very generous ten Dollars (and foreign equivalents).

 

Thankully, most players will only need the Expansion Pass, but it is not currently on sale. It has, however, seen its price slashed by 80% previously, which represents a good deal seeing as it includes the excellent Haven Island map - one of Hitman 2's highlights - but at its regular price it just isn't worth it. This content was never available physically, coming either through the PS Store or as a one-time download code included with the physical Gold Edition of Hitman 2. These codes are as rare as hen's teeth now (most everyone who bought Gold used their download code, obviously) and will be quite expensive to purchase, especially now that other Plus members will flood the market with demand. As such, I recommend resorting to the PS Store.

 

Below are the links to the PS Store and PSPrices' price history for the biggest regions - I suggest you wishlist the Pass on both platforms and to set up email notifications on the latter to make sure you don't miss the next sale once the current one ends;

 

• United States; PS Store / PSPrices
• United Kingdom; PS Store / PSPrices
• Canada; PS Store / PSPrices
• Germany; PS Store / PSPrices

 

If you don't own the First Season already, expect your costs to almost double. On the PS Store, you can choose between the full game that was given away with Plus (which gives you access to its own list of 69 Trophies) and the GOTY Legacy Pack. I suggest you wait for a sale on the full game, because it is cheaper than the Legacy Pack (which has never been on sale) and obviously lets you get more Trophies via a separate list).

 

You can go Physical instead, but it is risky; as mentioned above, you need a sealed copy due to the one-time download code that grants access to the Bonus missions and their 10 Trophies. Additionally, IOI put out editions of the game that did not include the code, so if you are going to go physical, make sure you A. buy the version with the subtitle 'The Complete First Season' and B. it is unopened or comes from a seller who explicitly states that the code has not been used.

 

Below are the links to the PS Store and PSPrices' price history for the biggest regions - I suggest you wishlist the game on both platforms and to set up email notifications on the latter to make sure you don't miss the next sale;

 

• United States; PS Store / PSPrices
• United Kingdom; PS Store / PSPrices
• Canada; PS Store / PSPrices
• Germany; PS Store / PSPrices

 

 

General FAQ

Is Hitman 2 worth playing?

In my opinion, yes; it is often seen as a stealth game but actually occupies a niche of its own as being social stealth. You rely on disguises and clever manipulation of the AI, and in doing so you won't find an experience quite like it anywhere else on Playstation. I enjoyed the game so much, I've 100%ed it twice, first on Steam and later on Playstation. Included with Plus are 5 full-fledged sandbox locations for you to go ham in, plus three smaller tutorial levels. And since it is free with Plus, why not give it a go?

 

Is Hitman 2 difficult to 100%, Trophy-wise?

You can start save-scumming from the very first second you gain control, which remains in effect for 139 of its 146 Trophies. The other seven are tied to a mode that does not allow for saves, but there are myriad tutorials available for them - altogether you'll need an hour or two to get all seven, and if you save them for the end of your playthrough, you really won't face more than a 2/10 in terms of difficulty. I would seriously consider LEGO games harder than Hitman, you can quote me on that.

 

For the First game, can I buy the GOTY Legacy Pack instead of the full game? And is it a good idea to do so?

Yes, you can. However, I personally would not buy it over the full game, and have not included it in this guide for two reasons; first, because it does not grant you access to the separate first game and its list of Trophies, and second, because it never goes on sale. The full game does and ended up being cheaper than the Legacy Pack every single time in the past two years. As such, I thought it fair to write this guide based on buying the full game. What Trophy hunter is going to pass up a cheaper option that comes with an extra 69 Trophies, right?

 

Is the DLC worth the price?

As someone who played all of it to 100% completion (in-game, so surpassing Trophy requirements) twice, neither the DLC expansion pass nor the first game is worth the full price IOI is asking right now. The former is too light on content, and the latter is five years old by this point. If you can get both for their sale prices, however, they become absolute steals; you'll easily get your 10 Dollars/Quid/Euro worth out of the Expansion, and the first game is literally 150+ hours of content if you care to play it all.

 

Can I buy Expansion levels separately one by one?

You cannot; @Quink666 raised the topic by asking whether he could buy the Singapore sniper map separately from the other Expansion content, as that would let him get 100% completion on the base list. Unfortunately, this is not possible. All four levels (Singapore/Hantu - New York - Siberia - Maldives/Haven Island) are listed individually on the PS Store, but they are not for sale and only 'unlock' once you buy the Expansion pass.

 

Are there multiplayer Trophies? Are they still achievable?

There is one Trophy for playing user-generated content which is 1/10 in difficulty and can be knocked out in 20 minutes if you're good at the game, plus three Trophies for playing each of the Sniper maps in co-op. Matchmaking is still online (despite the developer claiming months ago that it would be shut down - @themindisacity) and quite active, you'll need about half an hour to pop them which includes waiting for a partner to be matched with you. Again, 1/10 difficulty. I would focus on the Sniper stuff first so you can get it out of the way.

 

Can I get some serious auto-pop action going right away?

Nothing in this game auto-pops, sorry. If you played Season 1, your progess won't transfer as the developers changed the publisher inbetween H1 and H2. However, if you 100% Hitman 2 now and play Hitman 3 in the future, you can transfer your progress and auto-pop 31 Trophies. Twice, as Hitman 3 has a PS4 and PS5 version (which also autopop between them). 31 times 2 is 62 last I checked, which is nothing to scoff at. Playing Hitman 2 now will thus net you a nice bonus if Hitman 3 ever comes to Plus.

 

Don't want to wait? IOI offers a free starter pack for Hitman 3 that lets you play the tutorial missions which unlock 12 of H3's base Trophies. The other maps are rotated in and out of the pack (you'll get access to one at a time) so you can unlock more Trophies still if you're patient. If you 100%ed Hitman 2, transfer your saves via IOI's website (you can only do this once!!!) and you'll unlock all 31 DLC Trophies in Hitman 3. If you did not buy the First Season and Expansion pass, you only unlock 12 Trophies. 100%ing the Expansion Pass in Hitman 2 unlocks 6 Trophies in 3, and 100%ing Season 1 in Hitman 2 unlocks another 13. Adding up Hitman 2 + First Season + Expansion means you get 12 + 13 + 6 = the full 31. ( @HusKy posed this question further down the thread).

 

The time investment and cost of getting 100% doesn't sit right with me, should I consider playing on a dummy/throwaway account?

If 100% completion is important to you (I won't judge you, because it is to me) but you still want to give Hitman 2 a try, then definitely turn to a secondary account. If you ignore all the Trophies you can breeze through the story - rather than invest between 80 and 120 hours of your time - and pull off some insane(ly funny) kills in various gorgeous locales. I can almost guarantee you'll have fun with it, but if it turns out not be your cup of tea, then your main profile won't have 100+ unearned Trophies added to it.

 

 

 

I will continue to edit this post for clarity and with more links, but for now this will hopefully catch out most questions. If you still have a query, post it below so we can catch everything in one single thread.

Edited September 16, 2021 by Golem25
Quink's question added to FAQ + cleanup

[cbh114 115]

7 minutes ago, Golem25 said:

The modern Hitman games have some of the most confusing DLC schemes known to man, so I wanted to put this out there for everyone to read before deciding to jump in. I'm a veteran of the game, having completed it twice over on Steam and Playstation (recently) and have had to deal with IOI's complicated releases by re-buying stuff physically - hopefully you won't have to with this handy guide.

 

For Hitman 2, there are 146 Trophies across two separate lists to unlock but you will need to own previous game and buy DLC to reach 100% on both individual lists. The 146 are split up as follows across two lists;

 

1. Hitman 2; 66 Trophies (included with Plus)
2. Hitman [2016]; 52 Trophies (not included with Plus)
3. Hitman 2 Expansion pass DLC; 28 Trophies (7 on the base list, while the other 21 of these make up the entire Expansion list)

 

 

I will now part things out based on whether you own the first Hitman [2016] or not.

 

 

 

If you own Hitman [2016] via PS Plus (February 2019), or have the disc or digital version of The Complete First Season;

 

• The PS Plus version of Hitman 2 gives you access to 66 of the 125 Trophies on the game's base list
• Because of your ownership of the previous game, you can play the six maps from the first game and get their 52 Trophies for a total of 118
• You do not get access to the 7 'HITMAN 2 Singapore' Trophies on the base list*
• You do not get access to any of the 21 Trophies on the expansion list; simply delete it from your profile.

 

*To get 100% on the base list plus the entire expansion list, you must buy the pricey Hitman 2 Expansion Pass on the PS Store or salvage a code from a physical 'Gold Edition' Steelbook.

 

 

If you do not own Hitman [2016] via PS Plus (Feb 2019), physical disc, or digital edition;

 

• The PS Plus version of Hitman 2 gives you access to 66 of the 125 Trophies on the game's base list
• You do not get access to the 52 Trophies associated with the First Season
• You do not get access to any of the 21 Trophies on the expansion list; simply delete it from your profile.
• You do not get access to the 7 'HITMAN 2 Singapore' Trophies on the base list

 

To be able to access that glob of 52 Trophies, you need to buy Hitman; GOTY Edition on the PS Store. If you want to buy physical, you must buy a new, sealed copy; the discs came with a DLC code for the Bonus missions which relate to 10 out of the 52 Trophies; no code, no 100%. You must also buy the pricey Hitman 2 Expansion Pass on the PS Store or salvage a code from a physical 'Gold Edition' Steelbook.

 

 

 

I will continue to edit this post for clarity and with more links, but for now this will hopefully catch out most questions. If you still have a query, post it below so we can catch everything in one single thread.

Amazing post thank you so much

[Infernopommes 347]

Thanks man, that is an awesome post that clears up all the confusion I (and probably many others) had.

[themindisacity 636]

52 minutes ago, Golem25 said:

(snip)

Excellent write-up!

 

But 100% isn't possible anymore, right?  Weren't the MP servers turned off, meaning you can't get two of the Additional Expansions trophies and one of the DLC trophies on the main list?

[DaScorpio_ 218]

20 minutes ago, themindisacity said:

Excellent write-up!

 

But 100% isn't possible anymore, right?  Weren't the MP servers turned off, meaning you can't get two of the Additional Expansions trophies and one of the DLC trophies on the main list?

 

Its mentioned in the OP post:

 

Are there multiplayer Trophies? Are they still achievable?

There is one Trophy for playing user-generated content which is 1/10 in difficulty and can be knocked out in 20 minutes if you're good at the game, plus three Trophies for playing each of the Sniper maps in co-op. Matchmaking is still online (despite the developer claiming months ago that it would be shut down - @themindisacity) and quite active, you'll need about half an hour to pop them which includes waiting for a partner to be matched with you. Again, 1/10 difficulty. I would focus on the Sniper stuff first so you can get it out of the way.

[Craggle95 7]

Thanks for the info it helps a lot. I was going to start with Hitman 2016 but seems like starting with Hitman 2 is the better option as it essentially has the first game built in and i really doubt i'd feel like doing those same missions to 100% twice.

[zizimonster 4,858]

3 hours ago, Golem25 said:

If you own Hitman [2016] via PS Plus (February 2019), or have the disc or digital version of The Complete First Season;

 

• The PS Plus version of Hitman 2 gives you access to 66 of the 125 Trophies on the game's base list
• Because of your ownership of the previous game, you can play the six maps from the first game and get their 52 Trophies for a total of 118
• You do not get access to the 7 'HITMAN 2 Singapore' Trophies on the base list*
• You do not get access to any of the 21 Trophies on the expansion list; simply delete it from your profile.*

In other words, I still can't 100% Hitman 2, unless I buy the H2 expansion pass on PlayStation Store.

 

But, thank you for explaining this.

[Stevieboy 6,675]

7 hours ago, themindisacity said:

But 100% isn't possible anymore, right?  Weren't the MP servers turned off, meaning you can't get two of the Additional Expansions trophies and one of the DLC trophies on the main list?

 

They said they were only shutting down the MP matchmaking, but were keeping the co-op matchmaking (for the sniper maps) up for the time being. The MP didn't have any trophies attached to it.

Edited September 8, 2021 by Stevieboy

[themindisacity 636]

7 hours ago, DaScorpio_ said:

 

Its mentioned in the OP post:

 

Are there multiplayer Trophies? Are they still achievable?

There is one Trophy for playing user-generated content which is 1/10 in difficulty and can be knocked out in 20 minutes if you're good at the game, plus three Trophies for playing each of the Sniper maps in co-op. Matchmaking is still online (despite the developer claiming months ago that it would be shut down - @themindisacity) and quite active, you'll need about half an hour to pop them which includes waiting for a partner to be matched with you. Again, 1/10 difficulty. I would focus on the Sniper stuff first so you can get it out of the way.

 

How did I miss that?   

 

[NERVergoproxy 6,026]

Thank you so much for the clear explanation, I always thought Final Fantasy XV was confusing and tried to take all my money, turns out Hitman is just as confusing here. Why do companies do this!!? Oh wait, it's the same company, Square Enix.

[The_Last_DJ 15]

Thank you for saving me the headache of trying to work out what is needed if I want the 100%.

[HusKy 7,297]

3 hours ago, themindisacity said:

 

How did I miss that? 

 

It wasn't there when you asked. The post has been edited multiple times with new info.

 

----

 

I'm wondering how many trophies are now unlockable in Hitman 3 with H1 and H2 from PS+? If I get the H3 Starter Pack.

Edited September 8, 2021 by HusKy

[wajbsb 126]

Thank you for this post, I was trying to bend my mind around it when they announced Hitman 2 as being part of Plus, but I couldn't figure it out and kind of gave up thinking that clearly the Hitman games just weren't for me! This post has clarified things a lot, so now I'm thinking maybe the games are worth a go after all!

[Spike_Hostile17 148]

That's what I was saying before on Man Eater forum. The Games with Gold and PS+ free games are most of the times a sneaky way to sell DLCs rather than actually giving content. They give away Hitman 2 which was probably not selling well anymore since Hitman 3 is already out BUT they know if you want the full experience (not even mentioning trophies here) then you got to buy at least the pricey Expansion pack, if not Hitman 1. Before the Karens start dropping the usual "you don't like it you don't play it"/"no one is forcing you to buy the dlc"/"at least it's free", it reminds me of these Marketing strategies used on kids when trading cards companies like Panini give away 1 pack of cards with the official album to schoolboys "for free" because they expect the kids to buy much more packs later to try to complete their album. I admit you can still have fun with this vanilla version of Hitman 2 but I don't like the intentions hidden behind it, which is simply to milk more customers. I am very thankful this month for Overcooked DEFINITIVE editions but this Hitman 2 feels like a poisoned chalice.

Anyway thanks for the post that made it very clear about what you need to buy to get the 100%.

[MarcusPunisher 2,856]

Perhaps we can get some clearance on this as well.

 

So Ps Store has a sales event on add ons and a Hitman 2 expansion popped as one of the item for sale. But this one says Hitman III Access Pass Hitman 2 Expansion. So my confusion is that if I buy this, does it also unlock the expansion for the Hitman 2 game itself or do I need to purchase the item that only says Hitman 2 Expansion Pass that is not on sale? 

This is really confusing, I know. 

[MidnightDragon 27,156]

Thanks, though seems like a pain in the ass.

[TehUberCheezCatz 626]

14 hours ago, NERVergoproxy said:

Thank you so much for the clear explanation, I always thought Final Fantasy XV was confusing and tried to take all my money, turns out Hitman is just as confusing here. Why do companies do this!!? Oh wait, it's the same company, Square Enix.

ah, not quite, the first one was published by them (as were the old ones), but 2 was WB iirc, and 3 was self-published, which is probably why its such a mess.

 

26 minutes ago, MarcusPunisher said:

Perhaps we can get some clearance on this as well.

 

So Ps Store has a sales event on add ons and a Hitman 2 expansion popped as one of the item for sale. But this one says Hitman III Access Pass Hitman 2 Expansion. So my confusion is that if I buy this, does it also unlock the expansion for the Hitman 2 game itself or do I need to purchase the item that only says Hitman 2 Expansion Pass that is not on sale?

i highly doubt that the h3 dlc would unlock for h2, so i wouldnt risk it, unless you just want to play h3 and not h2

[TugaSonic 1,170]

15 minutes ago, MarcusPunisher said:

Perhaps we can get some clearance on this as well.

 

So Ps Store has a sales event on add ons and a Hitman 2 expansion popped as one of the item for sale. But this one says Hitman III Access Pass Hitman 2 Expansion. So my confusion is that if I buy this, does it also unlock the expansion for the Hitman 2 game itself or do I need to purchase the item that only says Hitman 2 Expansion Pass that is not on sale? 

This is really confusing, I know. 

That's just so you have access to the Expansion levels in HITMAN 3 and only for it (you would get that one for free if you own the expansion pass for HITMAN 2).
 

The one you want is just the HITMAN™ 2 Expansion Pass (which isn't on sale).

 

 

For those that don't own a version of HITMAN 1 will also need the "HITMAN™ - GOTY Legacy Pack" (but only if you don't own a complete version of HITMAN 1 like the one that was previously on Plus)

[MarcusPunisher 2,856]

4 minutes ago, TugaSonic said:

That's just so you have access to the Expansion levels in HITMAN 3 and only for it (you would get that one for free if you own the expansion pass for HITMAN 2).
 

The one you want is just the HITMAN™ 2 Expansion Pass (which isn't on sale).

 

 

For those that don't own a version of HITMAN 1 will also need the "HITMAN™ - GOTY Legacy Pack" (but only if you don't own a complete version of HITMAN 1 like the one that was previously on Plus)

Thank you for the clarification. I guess I'll wait until the expansion for Hitman 2 is on sale. 

[da-Noob123 1,074]

Excellent PSA, it took me a few hours researching this to learn all of it back when I got Hitman 2.

 

Tip to save money if you don't want to play Hitman 1 twice. I rented a copy of Hitman The Complete First Season from my library and followed the steps above to redeem/ claim the maps for play in Hitman 2. The game is excellent but doing all of that twice back to back would be too tedious for me. 

[DJ__Beatroot 909]

@Golem25  Fantastic post.  I wasn't planning on getting into Hitman but after reading this you have piqued my interest.

[Baker 5,348]

Great post. It had the answer I was looking for.

 

I was hoping to get all base game trophies since I own Hitman 1 GOTY, but apparently I need to pay €40 for Singapore. Hard pass for me.

Edited September 9, 2021 by Baker

[Deceptrox 2,166]

5 hours ago, MarcusPunisher said:

Perhaps we can get some clearance on this as well.

 

So Ps Store has a sales event on add ons and a Hitman 2 expansion popped as one of the item for sale. But this one says Hitman III Access Pass Hitman 2 Expansion. So my confusion is that if I buy this, does it also unlock the expansion for the Hitman 2 game itself or do I need to purchase the item that only says Hitman 2 Expansion Pass that is not on sale? 

This is really confusing, I know. 

 

Unless it's stated in the description, I don't think so. 

[GoldenShaka 2,162]

6 hours ago, TugaSonic said:

That's just so you have access to the Expansion levels in HITMAN 3 and only for it (you would get that one for free if you own the expansion pass for HITMAN 2).
 

The one you want is just the HITMAN 2 Expansion Pass (which isn't on sale).

 

 

For those that don't own a version of HITMAN 1 will also need the "HITMAN - GOTY Legacy Pack" (but only if you don't own a complete version of HITMAN 1 like the one that was previously on Plus)

In other words only complete editions allows you to play all levels from previous hitman games in Hitman 3, right?

I guess that's why after buying H2 gold edition some weeks ago The access to H3 was unlocked. 

I'm still trying to get a cheap physical copy of H1 goty and make it run with H3 starter pack.

[themindisacity 636]

17 hours ago, HusKy said:

 

It wasn't there when you asked. The post has been edited multiple times with new info.

 

----

 

I'm wondering how many trophies are now unlockable in Hitman 3 with H1 and H2 from PS+? If I get the H3 Starter Pack.

 

THANK YOU.  I was worried that I was losing my mind or something.