Ever since the first time I played the original Hitman 2, entitled Silent Assassin on PS2 I was hooked. Anathema, the second level in the game completely blew my mind and I remember just playing it over and over trying to find new and more creative ways to complete it. I had first been introduced to the stealth genre back in 1998 with the excellent Tenchu and then that had evolved with Metal Gear Solid, but Hitman was what really brought all the different possibilities alive in my mind.
I know this genre doesn’t appeal to everyone. To some the thought of spending sometimes hours studying enemy behaviours and routes is mind-numbing, but it is just that, the puzzle-solving element to it that I love. The 2016 episodic reboot was to me, the best game in the series so far. So when I found out they were moving back to a single release I was a bit disheartened, but I felt confident that regardless of how the pieces were presented the game would deliver. Let’s break it down.
GRAPHICS
Graphically HITMAN 2 is beautiful. Environments are large and heavily detailed and the number of NPC’s the game manages to produce on the screen at the same time in some locations is very impressive. Textures, lighting and everything down to the detail you see when Agent 47 looks in a mirror are all a credit to the team over at IO Interactive. In my 25+ hours with the game so far I have noticed no clipping, no frame rate drop, nothing.
The only slight downside I would say is that occasionally characters movements can feel a little robotic. It would be nice if for the next iteration we could see move movement and transition movement animations for both 47 and NPC’s in the world.
GAMEPLAY
Gameplay remains almost unchanged from the 2016 reboot, which to be fair was almost unchanged from Absolution before that. This could be looked at as a lack of innovation by detractors, but to me, there is nothing I really wanted to be changed. The game mechanics are solid and are what fans of the series have come to know and love. Some say that the gameplay breaks down once you are spotted and it is then too difficult to go on a mass-murdering spree to complete a level. Good.
Hitman has and hopefully always will be about stealth. About completing your mission preferably without anyone ever knowing you were even there. The game encourages you to make regular saves and in my opinion is intentionally hard once you have been detected, because this is a stealth game, not a third-person shooter.
So all the regular mechanics and weapons are here and accounted for. Everything from the silenced pistol to the sniper rifle, to the kitchen knife, all the way to the explosive duck. There are even more environmental kills at your disposal as well including multiple accidental kill opportunities in each area.
A few new tweaks do add to the gameplay experience though. Things like NPC’s being able to spot you in mirrors and the introduction of suitcases to carry suspicious items may sound like small additions but they do have an impact on gameplay and these new features also extend to the revised maps from season one which is available separately or at no extra cost if you already owned the 2016 game.
STORY
I have heard a lot of people knocking the story and while I can’t say it was anything special I did like the conclusion. There is no denying though that this was not where the development focus went, neither should it have been. Cutscenes play out via still images and voice acting. It doesn’t give a AAA vibe but does enough to bridge the gap between missions. More could have been done on this front for sure, but if there is anyone that plays these game primarily for their story I have yet to meet them.
GAME MODES
The bread and butter of any Hitman game is the gameplay and sandbox nature of each location. In most games, you go through the story completing each level and then you are done with it. In Hitman though, every level has so many dimensions and possibilities to it that you could keep coming back to it for months trying to complete all opportunities and feats.
Escalation missions return from the 2016 game and offer certain objectives for you to complete which as the name suggests, escalate over the course of five stages. Elusive targets is another great mode that really raises the stakes. These targets are only available for a limited amount of time and you only get one single chance at the mission. The first of these targets launches in less than a week and stars Sean Bean. This and all future elusive targets will release as free live content updates.
Sniper Assassin also makes the jump from a free piece of pre-order content to the main game. At present, the mode only houses one map, but more have been promised in future DLC. It is a surprisingly deep experience given you are stationary throughout, allowing you to kill the targets in many unique ways and even offering opportunities to hide bodies with well-placed shots propelling the corpses into disguised areas.
At the time of writing ghost mode is not yet available, but while it doesn’t sound like my cup of tea I think it could be a big hit with the Hitman community. For those unaware ghost mode is a 1v1 online challenge where players race to five points. You earn a point by assassinating your target while remaining undetected. While you can see your opponent and what they are doing, they won’t be able to affect what is happening in your version of the world. Ghost mode will launch in beta mode and at first, will only be available in the Miami location with a larger rollout planned for a future update.
VALUE
In terms of value, I honestly cannot recommend this game enough. Not only do you get the six new maps that are part of the story this time around, but if you owned season one you also get these maps as well complete with new trophies/achievements and sporting the same enhancements that have been implemented in HITMAN 2. On top of that, you have Escalation missions, elusive targets, sniper assassination and even a new PvP mode (ghost). I normally delete games off my console when I complete them to conserve space but I can tell you that HITMAN 2 will remain front and centre on my PS4 for a long, long time.
VERDICT
The Hitman games have always felt like the ultimate stealth sandbox and this is the culmination of what the team has been working to achieve for years. I still feel the episodic approach suited the game best and I wish IO had stuck with that formula. Not necessarily for myself, but because I feel many gamers will play through a mission once and move on. This is a game where each location is designed to be explored with incredible detail and it is almost a disservice not to do that. When we had to wait a month between new locations it gave gamers move of an incentive to replay.
I, however, cannot put this game down and regardless of the release schedule and the fact that I have completed the main story I will be playing this game long into 2019 and beyond. This is a truly special experience and one that all Hitman fans and gamers who enjoy a more tactical approach should pick up immediately.
-VDZE 🧐
A review code was provided by the publisher. Reviewed on PS4 Pro.