Hitman’s fifth episode takes after the Oregon militia standoff

The fifth chapter of IO Interactive’s episodic Hitman game will be released Sept. 27, and it will head to Colorado for Agent 47’s toughest task yet: taking out four targets in a fortified farm compound, publisher Square Enix announced today.

"Freedom Fighters," the ripped-from-the-headlines story mission at the heart of Episode 5, focuses on a farm that a private militia has converted into its own training camp. Agent 47 will have to infiltrate the location and then assassinate some unsavory characters. Here are some details on the targets from IO Interactive:

The four targets are Sean Rose, Maya Parvati, Ezra Berg and Penelope Graves; four very different, very dangerous people with their own specialist skill-sets ranging from environmental terrorism to chemical interrogation.

If the premise of the mission sounds at all familiar to you, then you’ve been following the news this year. "Freedom Fighters" appears to be inspired by the real-life story of the occupation of Malheur National Wildlife Refuge in Oregon. A group of armed militants led by Ammon Bundy took control of the wildlife refuge’s headquarters in early January 2016, in protest of the federal government’s ownership of land. While law enforcement agents arrested many of the militia’s leaders a few weeks later, four individuals continued to occupy the grounds until mid-February, when they surrendered peacefully.

"This is one of the toughest episodes yet," said Hannes Seifert, studio head at IO Interactive, in a news release. "Not only do you have four targets, but from the moment you set foot in Colorado you’re on enemy ground."

The mission is meant to "add serious momentum to the story and set up an intriguing season finale for players," said Seifert. "Freedom Fighters" is the penultimate chapter in the six-episode first season of Hitman. It will offer 70 challenges that will unlock new gear, weapons and items.

Hitman’s season finale, which will take place in Japan, is set for release later this year. Square Enix will bundle all six episodes and three bonus missions into a retail disc version; that package is scheduled to be available Jan. 31, 2017.