IO Interactive, the studio behind the Hitman games, has cut all ties with famous Irish MMA fighter Conor McGregor in the wake of his civil assault case loss. McGregor was found liable for sexual assault last week based on an encounter in Dublin back in 2018. 35-year-old Nikita Hand claimed she was raped by McGregor and another man. The trial ended with Hand being awarded about $260 thousand. As this was a civil case, McGregor faces no time in prison. However, this situation is far from over, as the Hitman team has proven.
The Announcement
On November 25, IO Interactive made an official statement on social media regarding the decision to cut ties with McGregor. That statement read, “In light of the recent court ruling regarding Conor McGregor, IO Interactive has made the decision to cease its collaboration with the athlete, effective immediately. We take this matter very seriously and cannot ignore its implications. Consequently, we will begin removing all content featuring Mr. McGregor from our storefronts starting today.” The statement has since garnered a lot of response from fans both for and against the decision.
McGregor’s likeness and voice acting are featured in The Disruptor Pack, a DLC for Hitman World of Assassination. It was first released in July of this year. At the time of writing this article, the DLC is still featured on Steam. However, based on the announcement, it is likely that it will be pulled off quite soon. IO Interactive has not confirmed that the players who bought the pack will be getting refunds. That is one of the main concerns enjoyers of the stealth game have in the comments under the announcement. It is also unclear if the cosmetics that come with the pack would be taken from players as well.
The Potential For Further Fallout
As previously mentioned, there are fans of the Hitman series who are against the decision to remove Conor McGregor from the game. This isn’t likely to sway the studio’s decision because of how serious the situation involving the fighter is. It will not be surprising if other companies that have collaborated with McGregor cut ties with him as well. Electronic Arts (EA) has also collaborated with him. McGregor is a featured fighter in the EA UFC series, and it would not be a shock to see him removed entirely.
