The legendary Hitman franchise holds many secrets regarding Agent 47 himself. For example, what's the story behind the barcode tattoo on his head? Let's try to uncover it.

The Origin of Agent 47's Barcode

The main character, Agent 47, is the forty-seventh clone in a long list of assassins. If you've played attentively, you should have noticed the barcode on the back of his head, which may seem strange to newcomers of the franchise. Even people who have only played one or two parts of the Hitman series may be a bit confused because not every game retells the character's backstory. So, why does Agent 47 have a barcode on his head?

To put it briefly, Agent 47 and his title are merely a number, signifying that he is the forty-seventh clone in a long line of assassins. The barcode ends with the numbers 47, which further explains how he got his name. This tattoo is necessary to gain access to specific areas of the facility where he was cloned and trained.

The barcode tattoo, like all real barcodes, can be scanned to retrieve specific information. This intriguing detail sheds light on the creation of Agent 47 as a clone - that's the whole point. During the events of Hitman: Absolution, he even attempts to remove this barcode. To better understand the history of his origin, let's briefly touch upon the plot.

A Glimpse into 47's History

Agent 47 began his journey as a clone, specifically in a hospital in Romania (mentioned in the beta version), as a result of the brilliant work of Dr. Ort-Meyer. He created the 47th clone and trained him, turning him into a true killing machine.

However, soon the scientists decided to see the experiment through to the end. In other words, 47 found himself free as a test subject (they wanted to test his abilities in practice). That's when our anti-hero joins the ICA, as shown in the distant beta version of the game.

It's there that he meets Diana and begins collaborating with the ICA as an agent.