![]() I’m curious to see how the game evolves in the coming months, but as far as I’m concerned it’s already a pretty fantastic addition to Agent 47’s oeuvre. Every target and every assassination feels ripe with possibilities, and even the story-not normally a part of Hitman I care about-goes some interesting places by the end. ![]() IO’s done everything it could to make this a deserving follow-up to 2016’s Hitman. That’s not really a knock on Hitman 2 ($60 on Humble) though. Sure, IO encourages you to take your time and discover every nook and cranny, but will you? A single end-to-end campaign run takes maybe seven or eight hours (including save-scumming), and while the forthcoming dribble of Elusive Target missions and so forth will hold some people’s attention, I still feel like Hitman 2 might not get the same love and attention as the first did, if only because it won’t stay in people’s lives as long. Released as a complete package, you can one-and-done every level and simply move on to the next. I fear Hitman 2 won’t inspire the same devotion. Hitman is at its best when you learn the map, memorize the AI patterns and exploit them to pull off the perfect mission-and only releasing a single map every month or two gave fans plenty of reason to engage with Hitman on this level. It makes me mourn the loss of the episodic release model, honestly. ![]() Stuff I didn’t even think was possible, IO’s codified as tests for the creative assassin. Dig into the “Challenges” menu after finishing a mission and you’ll probably be amazed how many contingency plans the developers have predicted. ![]() That said, the guides are just the start. Scenes sometimes feel like elaborate stage plays, each cast member waiting for Agent 47 to step in and play his part. Blood Money sprinkled these in for the observant or creative player, but Hitman post-2016 practically shoves them in your face even with the guides turned off. the creative assassinations, like dressing up as a tattoo artist and stabbing the target, or having an android shoot at its own creator. Hitman 2 desperately wants players to experience Hitman the way it’s “meant” to be experienced, i.e. I still feel like some of the so-called solutions are a bit too obvious, or contrived. Every few feet is another little vignette, another weapon (improvised or otherwise), and another murderous puzzle for Agent 47. But even then, the density of interaction stays high. The following missions calm down a bit-one’s a pleasant Vermont suburb, the other a mysterious island. And then you head to Mumbai, probably the densest and most labyrinthine Hitman level to-date, and your target a man whose identity you don’t even know. Agent 47’s third mission takes him to Colombia, a sprawl of cartel buildings and drug plantations and jungle cliffs. Miami is just a hint of what’s to come though. ![]() There are a lot of areas on the farm that were merely set dressing before, but now feel much more tactical. Most noteworthy is that Agent 47 can now hide in foliage, which makes the Colorado map feel especially different. Paris, Sapienza, Marrakesh, Bangkok, Colorado, Hokkaido-I’ve played through Hitman’s levels a number of times before, but it felt great to dip back into them.Īnd Hitman 2’s engine upgrades translate into the old missions, which is a neat addition. As part of this review I played all the way through Hitman’s missions again inside the Hitman 2 engine. It follows on directly from the first season’s cliffhanger ending, and those who owned Hitman can even access the first game’s missions inside the Hitman 2 client. As I said at E3, this presumably would’ve been called “ Hitman: Season Two” if Square Enix had published it, continuing the episodic release model of the previous game. stepped in as patron, and the upshot is a sequel to one of 2016’s best games. Luckily IO got to keep its beloved costume-wearing assassin and all the work it’d done on a sequel, Warner Bros. Only a year ago Square Enix offloaded developer IO Interactive, and many a series would’ve ended there. First, let’s take a moment to appreciate that Hitman 2 ($60 on Humble) exists. ![]()
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