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Hitman Absolution to see David Bateson reprise role as 47
David Bateson will reprise the role of Agent 47 in Hitman Absolution, after it was revealed last year that IO Interactive dropped the long-serving voice actor. Square Enix confirmed the news yesterday, shortly after the above video of Bateson announcing his return found its way online. The video was on a USB key given to a fan by IO Interactive community manager Nick Price.Bateson's return was a struggle, with IO Interactive initially asking him to audition for a role he'd served since 2000 and Codename 47. Then, around this time last year, the developer confirmed Bateson's absence from Absolution. This sparked a number of online petitions pleading for him to be reinstated as 47, including one that received over 3,500 signatures.IO Interactive's brand director Jon Brooke revealed the developer brought back Bateson after a change of heart, saying that on reflection the developer was "just playing hard to get." That's certainly one way of putting it.Bateson will finally return as the dapper, bald assassin on November 20, when Absolution releases worldwide for PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, and PC.
Agent 47 voice actor pleads the 5th on Hitman 5
In an interview with The Liberty Gaming.com, David Bateson, the ice cold voice of Agent 47 in the Hitman games, was reluctant to say much about the mysterious next sequel in the series. "As recently as this year, I even had someone call me up from IO Interactive to ask me to remove the fact that I was set to record the next installment in the franchise," Bateson told the site, "which I had written up as upcoming news on my website. I respect that of course, a comment like that can create all sorts of headaches to people with development deadlines to meet." "I have to plead the 5th Amendment on this one," Bateson said, before admitting that the new project has undergone "delays" -- despite the process being "a well oiled machine on recording day." That's not to say he just waltzed into the gig. "It seems that with company buy outs and global power shifts in the world of computer gaming and the Hitman franchise, there is now an LA-based caster on board, who is responsible for voice casting, and I had to audition along with the rest of the planet for the right to play Agent 47," Bateson recounted. "However, I have been informed by IO Interactive that I still have the part. I won't even bother to describe how gutted I would have been if they went for a sound-a-like."
