IO Interactive

IO Interactive

File:Io interactive.gif
Company type	Subsidiary of Square Enix
Industry	Computer and video games
Founded	1998
Headquarters	Copenhagen, Denmark
Products	Hitman series Freedom Fighters Kane & Lynch: Dead Men Kane & Lynch 2: Dog Days Mini Ninjas
Owner	Square Enix
Number of employees	200+
Parent	Independent (1998–2004) Eidos Interactive (2004–2009) Square Enix (2009–present)
Website	www.ioi.dk

IO Interactive (commonly abbreviated to IOI) is a Danish video game development company currently owned by Square Enix. The company was founded in September 1998 by the Reto-Moto development group. To date their most popular franchise is the critically acclaimed Hitman series. This team is also known for their references to their own games (such as 47 advertising clothes in Freedom Fighters or Kane & Lynch featuring several Hitman references such as a number 47 garage and 47 achievements).

History

IO Interactive were founded in 1998 in Copenhagen, Denmark. Initially an independent company, IO Interactive developed their debut title, Hitman: Codename 47, in 2000. The game was published through Eidos Interactive, and, upon release, received generally positive critical reception, being praised for it's wide range of weapons, the smart AI and the realism, while being criticized for it's lackluster camera, length and not living up to expectations. The game currently has a score of 73/100 on review aggregate site Metacritic, indicating "mixed or average reviews".

They followed this up in 2002 with Hitman 2: Silent Assassin, which was critically acclaimed upon released. IGN said "It's a phenomenal game in it's own right, and one that's sure to have broad appeal, particularly among those gamers who like to put a little more thought into their carnage". The game, on PC, currently holds a Metacritic average of 87/100, indicating "generally favorable reviews", and a GameRankings score of 85.02% on PC. This game was again published by Eidos Interactive.

They then followed this up with the 2003 video game Freedom Fighters, a tactical shooter. Published through Electronic Arts, Freedom Fighters received critical acclaim across the board, both on consoles and PC.

Shortly afterwards, they were purchased by Eidos Interactive, ending their six years of independence. Around the same time, they released Hitman: Contracts. Contracts was met with mixed reviews upon release. While the PS2 and Xbox versions of the game were released to generally positive reviews (80/100 and 78/100 respectively on Metacritic), the PC version has a 74/100, indicating mixed or average reviews.

Hitman: Blood Money soon followed in 2006, and marked the fourth game in the Hitman series. It became one of their most critically acclaimed games to date, and sold the most units out of any other entry to the series up to that point. This would be the last installment in the series for another six years, before the release of Hitman: Absolution in November 2012.

The developers took a six year hiatus from the development of Hitman, arguably their most popular franchise. Their next game was Kane & Lynch: Dead Men, which followed the ventures of criminals Kane and Lynch as they attempted to pull of a heist. Kane & Lynch: Dead Men wasn't popular upon release with critics, being criticized for it's length and lack of originality.

The next venture by the developer was Mini Ninjas, which departed from IO Interactive's usually violent, adult games. Mini Ninjas received generally mixed reception upon release, with only the Nintendo Wii version earning itself acclaim.

In 2009, they were made to work under Square Enix following their acquisition of their parent company, Eidos Interactive.

Their next game was the second installment of the Kane & Lynch,series, entitled Kane & Lynch 2: Dog Days. This game received generally mixed reviews, being criticized for it's extremely short length and lack of any real innovation.

They then made the first installment in the Hitman series, Hitman: Absolution. As with most other installments, the game received critical acclaim upon it's November 2012 release, though there was some anxiety about the game being dumbed down for the interests of modern audiences.

Recently, their parent company Square Enix ran into financial difficulties, and they had large numbers of employees cut to save money. In addition to this, it was confirmed that IO Interactive would be working solely on Hitman 6 and would no longer be developing any more additions to the Kane & Lynch, Mini Ninjas or Freedom Fighters series.

List of video games

Year	Title	Platform(s)
		NGC	PS2	PS3	Wii	Win	Xbox	X360	PS4	Xbox One
2000	Hitman: Codename 47	No	No	No	No	Yes	No	No	No	No
2002	Hitman 2: Silent Assassin	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	No
2003	Freedom Fighters	Yes	Yes	No	No	Yes	Yes	No	No	No
2004	Hitman: Contracts	No	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	No
2006	Hitman: Blood Money	No	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	No
2007	Kane & Lynch: Dead Men	No	No	Yes	No	Yes	No	Yes	No	No
2009	Mini Ninjas	No	No	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	No	No
2010	Kane & Lynch 2: Dog Days	No	No	Yes	No	Yes	No	Yes	No	No
2012	Hitman: Absolution	No	No	Yes	No	Yes	No	Yes	No	No
2015	Hitman 6	No	No	TBA	No	Yes	No	TBA	Yes	Yes

External links

• Official website
• IO Interactive profile on MobyGames
• "IO Interactive A/S". Det Centrale Virksomhedsregister. Central Business Register.