Hitman Absolution

[shadow_dragon]

I always enjoyed the Hitman games and was sad when they said they weren't doing anymore.

Now there is news to the contrary and... Not sure what to think...

... Other than I think they're trying to beat Rockstar for most offensive title this year.

Some gameplay demo...

[dragonfliet]

But yeah, it looks great. I'm always excited for a new Hitman game.

[shadow_dragon]

It's one of the only series games where I actually bothered to play the entire games from beginning to end.

[shadow_dragon]

Video seems to be a walkthrough of an entire level so might spoil stuff. Does exhibit gameplay well though I think.

I'm not sure about the point shooting but the rest seems okay.

Now pre-ordered and sniper challenge is being played.

Also asynchronous multiplayer mode:

[Hadmar]

Custom contracts? Holy poopie, looks like I'll spend more time with this game than I thought. I preordered a couple of weeks ago and spend a good part of that weekend with the sniper challenge. I'm not awesome at it, my top score is around 2.3ish million points or so, but I played it enough to unlock everything. I was kinda surprised that I spend so much time with something that initially looks as simple as that mini game. Can't wait for the full release.

[Godfrey.Payans]

Originally Posted by shadow_dragon

Now there is news to the contrary and... Not sure what to think...

Kudos to the artist(s). This religious group would be a great faction for UT3...

[d3tox]

I "preordered" this yesterday on steam and got the rest of the games thrown in. Nice bonus...

Anyone else stoked for this release? The Sniper Challenge really got me wanting this game.

[Capt.Toilet]

Originally Posted by d3tox

I "preordered" this yesterday on steam and got the rest of the games thrown in. Nice bonus...

Anyone else stoked for this release? The Sniper Challenge really got me wanting this game.

I preordered from GMG and got 45% off $29.25 is not bad for a new release.

[Sir_Brizz]

Gon murder some nuns!

[dragonfliet]

I'm very tentatively excited about this. From the less PC gaming centric sites it has been getting great reviews, but from places like PC Gamer and Rock Paper Shotgun, they're really called it out as not being the Hitman game that fans of the series deserve. Damn. I would probably pass on it, based on these reviews, but I had preordered it (because a) greenman gaming gives out insane coupons and b) the series had earned enough credibility from me for an instant buy). Here's hoping that despite its shift away from its core values, it is still a good game.

[Balton]

Originally Posted by dragonfliet

I'm very tentatively excited about this. From the less PC gaming centric sites it has been getting great reviews, but from places like PC Gamer and Rock Paper Shotgun, they're really called it out as not being the Hitman game that fans of the series deserve. Damn. I would probably pass on it, based on these reviews, but I had preordered it (because a) greenman gaming gives out insane coupons and b) the series had earned enough credibility from me for an instant buy). Here's hoping that despite its shift away from its core values, it is still a good game.

according to a friend of mine who has played all previous Hitmans it's a crappy approximation to the original games.

[Capt.Toilet]

Originally Posted by Balton

according to a friend of mine who has played all previous Hitmans it's a crappy approximation to the original games.

Did he play with tutorial hints and instinct mode turned off? Did he play Purist mode? I must know these things otherwise your friends input is invalid.

[Balton]

Originally Posted by Capt.Toilet

Did he play with tutorial hints and instinct mode turned off? Did he play Purist mode? I must know these things otherwise your friends input is invalid.

Weeell... he played on 360 at 3am in the morning and he was a bit cranky. He did say something about stupid spidey senses about action being favored over stealth, about not being able to select your gear pre-contract.
And that there is alot of story and little contractual killing. That was all first gameplay rambling while I was just trying to play Borderlands2 with other RL mates.

I'll just have to ask him next time what he thinks now that he's got more time into the game.

[Capt.Toilet]

Originally Posted by Balton

Weeell... he played on 360 at 3am in the morning and he was a bit cranky. He did say something about stupid spidey senses about action being favored over stealth, about not being able to select your gear pre-contract.
And that there is alot of story and little contractual killing. That was all first gameplay rambling while I was just trying to play Borderlands2 with other RL mates.

I'll just have to ask him next time what he thinks now that he's got more time into the game.

Yeah he must have been in a real stupor. Allow me to break it down for him

-Stupid spidey sense can be turned off allowing it to only be used to "blend in" if you are being detected. This means you won't be able to see enemy movment patterns, and see items of interest. Favoring action over stealth? I snuck the entire way through the tutorial mission and parts of the 1st.

-Can't select gear. Might be a valid complaint but again I am only a mission and a half in so can't comment.

[d3tox]

From the reviews I've seen it is a mixed bag.

[Godfrey.Payans]

I'm up to the third mission. Given the preview above I had some expectations about what nuns in the game would be like, so the first one I saw was a bit of a surprise.

So far there's quite a lot of cut-scene stuff wrapping the mission steps. It has a cover system that I find a bit annoying, like the one in Mass Effects 1 & 2, because of the tendency to get stuck on things at awkward times.

It's not as simple as I'd like, so I'd rate it lower than the likes of Deus Ex: HR or Sleeping Dogs, but I can see myself playing it to the end.

[d3tox]

I'm about 4 or 5 missions from the end. I actually think its a good offering. This one has some good solid replayable missions in it. That's really what I look for, and why I even bother with this. I notoriously hate most single player games, but because this series tends to offer some replayability while presenting the challenge of offing that guy any number of ways, it gets my seal of approval.

[Capt.Toilet]

Originally Posted by d3tox

I'm about 4 or 5 missions from the end. I actually think its a good offering. This one has some good solid replayable missions in it. That's really what I look for, and why I even bother with this. I notoriously hate most single player games, but because this series tends to offer some replayability while presenting the challenge of offing that guy any number of ways, it gets my seal of approval.

Yeah I could instantly tell it was a hitman game the moment I started Chinatown. I saw about 3-4 different ways to take out the target, but I decided to use sniper bullet patte. The game didn't like that and decided to kill me dead with cop bullets.

[Phopojijo]

Originally Posted by Capt.Toilet

Yeah I could instantly tell it was a hitman game the moment I started Chinatown. I saw about 3-4 different ways to take out the target, but I decided to use sniper bullet patte. The game didn't like that and decided to kill me dead with cop bullets.

I just zipped him with piano wire while he was taking a leak behind a cop under the cover of a dumpster.

Didn't even hide the body. Immediately stopped dragging his body before I even started to and casually walked away. Waited around the level chilling out until they found his body. When the cops started walking around trying to figure out what the hell happened, I just returned and exited through the door.

[dragonfliet]

Hmmm. Five missions in I'm having a great time. While the narrow pathway of the level where you're escaping the cops was annoying, it was a clever take on the series mechanics (though, seriously, more ways through would be freaking nice.

The only thing that's bugging me right now is the recognition setup. I've been doing a bunch of ridiculous turning around, moving forward, turning around, moving forward during the missions packed with guards in order to not be suspicious and...well...it looks ****ing ridiculous. We'll see how the rest of the game shapes up, but not killing anyone (other than the target) is suitably difficult (on hard) yet doable, so I'm pretty happy.