HITMAN ABSOLUTION GAME REVIEW :
Hitman: Absolution follows Agent 47, a cold-blooded assassin, who takes on his most dangerous contract to date. Betrayed by those he once trusted – and now hunted by the police – he suddenly finds himself at the center of a dark conspiracy and must embark on a personal journey through a corrupt and twisted world.
Release Date: November 30, 2012
Publisher: Square Enix
Genre: Shooter
Developer: Io Interactive
No. Of Players: 1 player
ESRB: M – Mature (Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Partial Nudity, Sexual Themes, Strong Language, Use of Drugs)
HITS
- The best missions are open-ended and allow you to be stealthy or shooty
- Contracts forces you to approach the same locales from different perspectives
- One of the best-looking games of this generation
MISSES
- Limited field of view when hiding inside of containers
- Contracts would be stronger with more specific kill requirement possibilities
- Multiple linear, anticlimactic sequences
IO Interactive tapped into something unique in 2000 when Hitman: Codename 47 was released. It’s been over six years since Agent 47 faked his own death and now he’s back in Hitman Absolution. Traditionally a game that has prided itself on being a smart and stealthy puzzle game, Absolution continues that tradition, kill your target and don’t be seen.
Hitman: Absolution, the latest in the series from IO Interactive, is going to be a mixed bag for Hitman fans. It starts off strong, kicking off with a Chinatown mission after the prologue that certainly echoes previous Hitman titles, allowing you to don a variety of costumes, silently track your target, and find a number of ways to accomplish your kill.
The game has much more emphasis on pure stealth than previous iterations. Absolution introduces a cover system for the first time; taking cover behind walls 47 is able to roll from cover to cover to avoid being spotted by guards. Well timed button prompts give you the option to vault over cover or to perform takedowns on nearby enemies, gone is your magic coin used to distract guards; however there are other items that can be used to make noises or create various distractions.
Instinct is a game-changing feature, particularly on the lower difficulty settings. In addition to giving you a clearer view of the world around you, Instinct also has more direct uses. For stealthy play, you can “spend” Instinct (via a diminishing on screen meter) to blend in when you’re wearing a disguise. An enemy guard might realize you’re not part of the team when he sees you disguised as one of his fellow lackeys, but using Instinct as you walk past effectively keeps your cover from being blown, the possibilities for social stealth are greatly enhanced by this.
There are five difficulty levels from Easy to Purist, the main difference between them being the frequency of your instinct ability. In Purist instinct is out completely, leaving you a crosshair and a prayer to get the job done. Playing any difficulty above easy introduces a laundry list of challenges; giving the campaign some replay value. These challenges typically have you play the level in a way that would be different from normal play style. Challenges are great for adding depth to some of the shorter missions and give you incentive to play them over.
The game falls down with its disguise system; whilst it has a strong premise, being that if dressed as a cop you can be recognized by co-workers, it is inherently flawed. To get past anyone in the same disguise you will need to burn some of your instinct ability. The problem with the system is that guards can begin to detect you over too great a distance, making the system difficult to use effectively. This essentially makes a lot of the levels a full on stealth game as you evade patrols.
Another flaw is its approach to checkpoints. Unlike previous Hitman games, where you could manually save at any point in the level, Absolution has you going to a specific physical location on the map. This feels like you are being funneled down a developer designated path which goes against the Hitman mantra. The real issue with the check pointing though is that reloading a checkpoint causes AI routines to reset and even guards you have dealt with come back, making the system a bit redundant. The manual save system in previous Hitman games were mostly used to experiment with AI reactions. The new checkpoint system does not lend itself well to this approach.
Hitman’s brightest feature is contract kills where Absolution becomes a puzzle game. In contract kills you are dropped in a location and given free rein on how you dispose of your target. Some of these levels are filled with pretty thick crowds which actually feel like a crowd. What makes this specifically impressive is that it doesn’t appear to affect frame-rate. It really adds a certain atmosphere to in which way you dispose of your target in a public space. Making a plan and executing the perfect kill is extremely satisfying, it’s disappointing that there are only a few of these types of missions during the single player campaign.
There would be small complaints given how flexible and entertaining Contracts is in its current, finished form. You earn money for completing contracts that can then be spent on new disguises and upgrading a select assortment of Agency weapons, but the dangling carrots are secondary to the raw level of fun that you’ll just have taking on friends’ contracts and pitting them against your own.
Credit goes as well to the Glacier 2 engine that powers Absolution. Every one of the game’s 50+ discrete environments is brimming with life and personality, as well as any number of points of interaction. There are makeshift weapons to be found, shortcuts and secret access points accessible via ledges and air ducts, distraction opportunities… so much that it’s almost daunting. Replay value is at an all-time high in the campaign since you can approach any challenge in a ridiculous variety of ways.
After a six year hiatus Agent 47 is back in one of the strongest entries in the series to date. Whether you’re a cool and calculated contract killer or run ‘n gun newbie, Absolution has something for new and veteran fans alike. In a year that has already seen some of the best stealth games of this generation, veteran developer IO Interactive delivers an experience that still manages to stand out. This is an outstanding effort from the veteran developer, and an absolute must-play for anyone who embraces the thrill of striking from the shadows and slipping away unseen. Changes to the classic formula have been executed perfectly, brining everyone’s favorite assassin back to the forefront of the stealth genre. Hitman Absolution is nothing less than a must play for the 2012 holiday season.
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