So I'm interested in the new Hitman, but I've never played one before and I'm not really interested in playing all 3 games. Blood Money was the most recent, so I figured I'd just play that one, but I was wondering if there was a lot of stuff carried over from previous games. Would I be missing out by skipping the first 2 Hitman games, or will Blood Money pretty much set me up on what the series is all about, and who the major players are?

just get blood money, that's the best

@Laketown said:

just get blood money, that's the best

Cool, it's on sale on Steam, I was just mulling over if I should get the collection or not.

The most story is in Hitman codename 47, you see how Hitman got his start and who made him, it eventually leads to a really bad ass ending. That being said, the game is really old, the AI wasn't that great even when it came out, the voice acting can be God awful and finally the graphics make my eyes bleed, but i still love it due to nostalgia. 
Hitman 2 is where Hitman really picked off, it shows another side of 47 as he tries to retire from the world of contract killing, the graphics aren't too bad, the AI is descent and its still a pretty good game.
Didn't play Contracts i heard most of the missions where recycled from the first two games  so I'd advise you to skip that one.
And Blood money is the most recent one, it follows the downfall of the agency and a secretive organization known as the Franchise that's trying to kill Hitman, gameplay and graphics wise its the best one to date, but i found the story to be lacking. 
So, you wouldn't miss out by not playing the first two, but if you really want the whole story you should play them. 
For more info click the links
Hitman Codename 47
Hitman 2
Hitman Blood Money

The general consensus is that Blood Money is the best. But I've always felt that 2 had much better missions, mind you I would only recommend it if you can put up with some at times unforgiving  AI and unfriendly shooting mechanics. Mind you that's all from my experience of the PS2 version, don't know how it is on PC.

Yeah, $7.48 for Blood Money, Silent Assassin, and Codename 47. I'm going to do some looking around the internet to see if there are any real technical problems with the PC version. If not, I'll be picking these up myself.

Blood Money is the best one. The game can be tough and random though, but the Hitman games are great.

At first I thought this thread was about the Giant Bomb user HitmanAgent47.

Just get Blood money and you'll be set.