Last year’s episodic Hitman game turned out to be one of the best surprises of 2016, but despite its success, publisher Square Enix announced in May it was looking to sell IO Interactive, the studio that created the series and has been working on it since 2000. That news threw the fate of Hitman and its developers into question. IO later went through a round of layoffs to help it trim down for “future adventures,” and today, the studio’s CEO announced that it has successfully negotiated a management buyout with Square Enix, making it an independently owned and operated developer. IO has also been granted the Hitman property, so it appears the series will live on.