(Reuploaded from https://archive.hitmanforum.com/t/fan-review-more-dear-hitman-developers-closed/22960)
Hello guys!!
It’s been so good to meet 47 back in the game for our own pleasure
After months of testing, having fun, and reading it is time for me to release my Hitman™ review!!
This is a review made after over 250 hours of gameplay and from different versions of the game (from beta and first release to latest GOTY/Definitive Edition update).
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- Introduction
I was so stressed to meet 47 back after the Absolution episode (i consider it as a spin-off - more details here: [Fan Review]Dear Hitman Absolution Developers...[CLOSED])
I remember watching the first trailers of the Hitman™ game…
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5yktoernWtw
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kA_Mx3-ZMGE
I was so hyped and thrilled!
47 going on different places, taking different targets, we’re finally back to the roots of the game!
I was thrilled but stressed at the same time, afraid that Hitman™ would take the same route as Absolution…
But hopefully that sequel has went beyond my expectations
We have FINALLY the feeling that 47 is ready for the modern era of Hitman franchise
Improved graphics, huge sandbox levels, exotic locations, tweaked menus, everything looks better and the freedom of approach is felt instantly.
However, some bugs left and right make the experience less better than expected, but in overall it looks very promising for the future of the franchise
Now please grab a coffee, sit back and take few minutes to enjoy my (very long) and detailed review of Hitman™
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- I) Back To The Roots
Playing Hitman™ was love at first sight after the emotional disaster that brought Hitman: Absolution.
Freedom of approach, social stealth, multiple killing possibilities, exotic and amazing locations, all ingredients were set up to bring the ultimate Hitman gaming experience.
Hitman™ is getting back to his roots and it’s good!
Too bad it’s still missing some great from previous games like The Briefcase, Human Shields, Plate Carrying or Metal Detectors
But the game has at least the basis of a good Hitman game: freedom of approach, sandbox levels, fun
We can finally say that we have a LEGIT SEQUEL to Hitman: Blood Money
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=01bYEelwwHc
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- II) A thrilling story
We follow 47 through his early years learning with Diana and the ICA, we discover that everything was linked from the start, 47 unveils his past through the mysterious Shadow Client, a concurrent Organisation offers his help…the story is really entertaining and a big part of the game
After constantly using the concept of flashbacks in previous games, we’re finally having a story that continues through multiple levels (and games)!
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- III) A new era of Music
Even if i miss Jesper Kyd’s touch by moments, the new Hitman music brings a new and interesting atmosphere to the game. It’s sometimes a little Bondish maybe, but definitely fits with the game and is a good add-on to the modern era of Hitman™
I wish we had more ambient music however while walking through the level and not only on dynamic events…
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zrruQ0FyQJE
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- IV) A Modern Hitman
Improved graphics, improved 47, HUGE levels and crowds, amazing lights, modern designs, smartphones, computers…Hitman™ is getting in the modern era and it feels good!
Modern weapons, modern clothing, modern IA, new interesting items (stun sticks, explosive phones, breaching charges) which makes the gameplay even better!
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- V) A World Of Assassination
Agent 47 travelling around the world, on different places, different ambiances, different targets and ways of approach…i can’t wait to see how it will look like when completed
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- VI) A Promising but Unfinished and Buggy Concept
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m_LB6HOXbxU
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rAPpt3R_vpI
Even if we feel like playing an unfinished game, currently being built, with lots of tweaks and features of previous games not (yet?) incorporated and some bugs that really need to be fixed, Hitman™ is closer of what core Hitman fans are expecting from this game compared to Absolution which was way too linear and restrictive to be appreciated despite all his other qualities and his more expensive production.
We are really feeling like a big step forward has been achieved and we’re going closer to a real next-gen Hitman, maybe evolving into the best Hitman game ever created. To be continued…
- Conclusion:
Hitman™ has been a refreshing and closer approach of what fans expected from a legitimate modern sequel to Blood Money and Hitman franchise in general: freedom of approach, beautiful and huge sandbox levels, multiple possibilities to kill the target.
2016 version of Hitman shown 47 is finally ready for the modern era of the franchise and possibilities are endless regarding of how can the game and it’s environment be improved and upgraded.
Like you said previously, and it was a brilliant idea, your idea was to make Hitman™ a platform for upcoming seasons.
I think that ALL upcoming Hitman™ seasons features should retroactively be put into season one (and compatible).
I think that the game then should be seen as a whole pack, a World Of Assassination where can you can play any level on any season and then, items and features (past and present) would remain active
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Anyway, my rating for Hitman™ is: 16/20
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oC-X9zOIgvw
Good Points:
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A World Of Assassination: Different places, different locations, different ambiances and maps, huge and beautiful sandbox levels…this is what we were waiting for <3
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Multiple Ways Of Approach: guns, items, phones…so much possibilities and so much fun
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New Explosive Devices (phone, remote breaching, ducks) and ability to stick them anywhere (on an object, on a door, etc)
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Amazing levels : each place is big and different, it’s a real pleasure to explore each meter of the levels, even discovering new things today
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Very impressive level of details: graphics, dialogs, scripts, all this makes each map a different and living place amazingly working!!
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Amazing graphics: even if it’s not the latest generation of graphics, it stills looks amazing and is good optimized in general (30 to 60 fps in high settings)
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A great tandem: Diana and 47 linked to each other from the beginning until the last level, for the best and the worst, and it works greatly!!
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A thrilling story: 47 is back to his roots and the story from his past looks interesting
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An evolving game: the Escalation Modes, the Bonus Episodes who completely revamp a map or switch it to night, Elusive Targets who makes us rethink the way we play the level, a game constantly updated with fans feedback, all these things makes the game replayable and still interesting 2 years after its releasing!!
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Great targets: they all have a background, sometimes linked to the main and previous stories, always high and interesting profiles to eliminate.
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Mastery is a good idea that gives levels much replayability. But maybe it is a bit too restrictive since we have to complete some chellenges we don’t want to just to unlock weapons or items: an XP/money system would make more sense.
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Enforcer system: a good compromise between Absolution system where everybody finds you suspect at first sight.
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New QTE/CQC system is a good compromise with what you did with Absolution. Not too much, not empty, just the good dose
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47 Blends In Like Never Before: A Social Stealth system greatly improved and incorporated to the next-gen Hitman™
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The best disguise system on any Hitman game ever coupled to the Enforcer system!
→ Also renews the gameplay -
Hitman Becoming A Platform: i think that is the future of the franchise.
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Interactions: blending in, sit on a bench, highlighted NPCs so it’s clear for us who we’re aiming at, speaking directly to targets or through another NPC that will guide us to him…
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Doors: ability to lockpick or break through with a crowbar, or even a bomb
—> Also doors remaining opened or closing automatically depending the situation
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Improved accidents: ability to put an accident on lots of places on a map, or make one happen right away through a fire extinguisher, a propane, or simply some (baril percé avec un tournevis)
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Dynamic Gameplay: attacking a guard with fists, taking his gun, shooting other guard, running at guard and punch, killing the other guard while breaking the neck of npc on your foot…this is really fun to sometimes combine shooting and CQC during missions, a little Jason Bourne or Bond feeling
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Poisons Improved: making targets sick, or dying with a syringe, lots of situations and opportunities that are a good add-on to the game (and a good improvement to the previous poisoning system)
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Animations: even if Hitman definitely needs more animations, the actual one are pretty great compared to previous games. Walking, fighting, stealth…even idling is sometimes fun to watch (47 being a guard, a waiter on duty, etc…)
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47 posture and animation: compared to absolution where the ambience and style of 47 was darker, his face was angry and stuff…here it feels like he’s mastering it, full of control and ready. i like hos he poses and holds his guns. even when changing disguises he takes some postures that are blending and amazing.
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Incredible level of details: beautiful levels, nice graphics, but also lots of details that makes the game even greater
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zwYRK2WHd04
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Smarter NPCs: looking through windows/glass, investigating multiple areas, enforcer system, …
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A Better And Organized IA than on previous games: the way npcs react to alerts, how they react to each other, how they react on ground zero (where a crime happened) and how they scan the whole perimeter looking at you…even if it’s not perfect yet, it looks very promising for the future of the franchise!!
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Tweakable UI (displaying/informations/etc. - each player can put his own set up)
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Extra Challenges (Find a code/Break a safe/etc…)
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One of the best Hitman tutorials ever made! At the center of the story and a really interesting way to introduce the game. Also, bringing a demo of the first level was a good idea
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Music: Even if i liked Jesper Kyd’s touch on previous games, the actual composer surprisingly did a pretty good job with the music!!
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The new menu: simple, intuitive, divided in categories, different tweaks and options so most of players can find their way…
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How restricted areas are handled : we get a warning instead of being attacking right away which is better
Bad Points:
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NPCs seeing through doors and walls
→ Ruined a lots of good runs -
Lack of weapons compared to previous games:
https://archive.hitmanforum.com/t/wow-no-revolvers-or-powerful-pistols/18089/13
→ New hitman weapons are great, especially the special items like ica phone, breaching charges. but compared to the previous games we’re missing something here (+ pics).
also, ability to take npc’s weapons back with us at end of mission so we keep them…
- Always online feature:
→ I understand that you wanted to change things, reduce hacks and maybe keep some money by using cloud servers. however for much reasons it shouldn’t be mandatory to be connected to be able to fully experience the game.
We know it helped you a lot to improve the game, but i think we should be able to have an offline version at least to be able to play on our own and anytime we want without requiring a constant internet connection
Also many people don’t have permanent access to internet and getting disconnected while playing the game is very annoying
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Lack of custom ratings: i (and lots of other players) really miss the good old rating system (Agent, Butcherer, Serial Killer, etc…)
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Superpowered NPCs: they can aimbot you from a mile away, they see through walls, they turn their head randomly with a wide vision of 300°…all these things definitely should be fixed, and improved
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Lack of usable disguises:
I know it makes sense for the new mechanics, but i’d be great to keep some NPC disguises and weapons while we exit the level…it’s still compatible with DLCs and stuff!
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Scripted Opportunities: Even if it’s a good idea the fact that we have to trigger events to make them activate is less immersive and breaking the gameplay. Most of them should be activated automatically just like on previous games.
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Being “forced” to XP mastery and unlocks through some specific challenges
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Here’s my level rating (overall) of Hitman™ levels:
1. Bangkok - Such a great and beautiful hotel level in an amazing exotic location <3
2. Paris - One of the greatest, maybe the biggest level with incredible details!!
3. Sapienza - Great Map In Italy!
4. Hokkaido - Amazing modern level! No guns was a great challenge
5. Colorado - The toughest mission in a middle of nowhere
6. Marrakech - Last but not least, had a great atmosphere
Top Hitman Games:
- Hitman: Blood Money
- Hitman™
- Hitman: Contracts
- Hitman: Silent Assassin
- Hitman: Absolution
- Hitman: Codename 47
SCROLL DOWN FOR PART 2 PLEASE