These range from collecting new weapons, to acquiring all of the disguises.
Longevity is helped through each missions’ carefully-intertwined sub-challenges. Often killing the character who has sussed you out results in enemy suspicion and alertness to decrease or vanish. Indeed, there’s no sense of a mission being a failure if you’re forced to use your weapons – unlike its predecessor which often resulted in a bloodbath if a hit didn’t go to plan. Here, when multiple takedowns are needed, you can mark and execute targets – similar to in Splinter Cell: Conviction. It generally works well, and is put to brilliant use in the point shooting mechanic. Waiting in the shadows: Agent 47 can use disguises but sometimes stealth is the best approachĪgent 47 can also use his instinct to see through walls and identify targets. Although not uncommon to hear characters mutter the same phrases, as much care and attention has been put into the NPCs’ dialogue as it has the game’s key players. This is made all the more convincing by the voice acting. Only if you stand there staring blankly at someone will they get angry and try to arrest you. Here, you’ll be warned off and given time to walk away. In Blood Money, you were quickly shot in the head for going into an ‘out of bounds’ kitchen. They also react realistically to your actions.
Initially, early levels may consist primarily of trial and error, as you get used to the rather ruthless AI. Agent 47 can use his ‘instinct’ to camouflage himself slightly, but characters are very hard to trick. You are encouraged to steal other people’s clothes, but NPCs can often see through them. Fancy getting up close and stabbing him in the back? That's possible, too - although it's very difficult. You are still awarded points for creative kills but there is now much more choice. Gameplay has also had a significant overhaul. Indeed, this is perhaps the closest thing to playing Liam Neeson’s Taken that you’re going to get. The narrative is so strong (involving a kidnap), that there’s a reason for the variation, too – and loses that fragmented feel of its predecessor. Whether it's walking along the sun-kissed balcony of a beach-side villa, or exploring the dank, underground sewers below a nightclub, Absolution brings each world to life with remarkable aplomb. This serves as a wonderful contrast to the death and destruction – and, disturbingly, reinforces a sense that you are taking a ‘life’ rather than eliminating a lifeless ‘bot’.Įnvironments are sumptuous, too, the highly-saturated colour palette giving the entire game a Hollywood-style sheen. You’ll hear people talking about arguments with their wives, playing guitars in their hotel rooms, confiding in friends – this is a living, breathing world like no other. Hitman: Blood Money had a slightly cartoon-feel to it, with samey looking characters populating worlds that lacked soul and character.īut realism is paramount in Absolution, with levels inhabited with NPCs that have personality. Licence to kill: Missions are varied and are teeming with interesting and life-like characters.