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Hitman: Absolution

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Hitman: Absolution
Developer(s)IO Interactive
Nixxes Software (PC)
Publisher(s)Square Enix[2]
Director(s)Tore Blystad
Artist(s)Visual Works (CGI)
SeriesHitman
EngineGlacier 2[2]
Platform(s)Microsoft Windows
PlayStation 3
Xbox 360
Cloud (OnLive)
Release20 November 2012[1]
Genre(s)Action-adventure, stealth
Mode(s)Single-player, asynchronous multiplayer, (third-person view)

Hitman: Absolution is an action-adventure stealth game developed by IO Interactive and published by Square Enix.[2] It is the fifth entry in the Hitman game series, and runs on IO Interactive's proprietary Glacier 2 game engine. Before release, the developers stated that Absolution would be easier to play and more accessible, while still retaining hardcore aspects of the franchise.[3] The game was released on 20 November 2012, which is in the 47th week of the year (in reference to the protagonist, Agent 47).

Gameplay

The game takes place in the United States,[4] and features an online option.[5] In addition, the game features "instinct mode" which allows 47 to predict enemy patrol routes, much like the "sonar vision" that was featured in Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell: Conviction, "eagle vision" in Assassin's Creed, "tracker mode" in Crysis 2, "dark vision" in Dishonored and "Detective mode" in Batman: Arkham Asylum.[6]

Synopsis

Plot

In the aftermath of Hitman: Blood Money, Diana Burnwood, Agent 47's handler with the International Contract Agency, suddenly goes rogue, carrying out a catastrophic sabotage that includes publicly exposing the Agency. The Agency reforms under agent Benjamin Travis; Travis assigns 47 to kill and bring Victoria, a teenage girl in her care, to the Agency. Shooting and wounding Diana in her home, 47 hesitates before killing her, and she asks him keep Victoria from the Agency.[7]

47 hides Victoria at a Catholic orphanage and contacts an informant named Birdie who tells him that Blake Dexter, head of Dexter Industries, may have more information on Victoria. Eavesdropping on Dexter, 47 learns that he plans to kidnap and auction Victoria to the highest bidder. Sanchez, Dexter's enormous associate, then proceeds to knock him unconscious. Framed by Dexter for the murder of an innocent bystander, 47 evades the police, only to learn Birdie is being hunted by Dexter's ally, Wade; despite 47's intervention, Birdie still sells Victoria's location to Wade.

47 reaches Victoria, only to find Wade and his men attacking the orphanage and many of the staff dead. 47 mortally wounds Wade, but Victoria is kidnapped and taken hostage by Lenny, Dexter's son. The hitman then follows him to Hope, South Dakota, where he kills Lenny's gang, before interrogating Lenny, then disposing of him. Learing from Lenny that Victoria is at Dexter Industries HQ, 47 infiltrates the facility and destroys their research data on the girl while assassinating its head scientists, and discovers that Victoria is in fact a genetically engineered clone, bred to be a top-class assassin like him. 47 kills Sanchez in an underground cage fight after learning from him Victoria was taken back to Hope. Recuperating at a hotel, he routs an ICA attack lead by the elite all-girl hit team "The Saints."

Infiltrating Hope Courthouse Jail, 47 reaches Victoria but is subdued by the local sheriff Clive Skurky, who is working with Dexter. The ICA, led by Travis, takes over the town in an attempt to get Victoria back and kill 47, but she is nowhere to be found, while 47 escapes the prison, evades the ICA, and kills Skurky. Travis pays a ransom for Victoria, but 47 arrives at Dexter's penthouse and kills Dexter's assistant, Layla, and finally Dexter himself, before escaping with Victoria.

47 learns from the letter Diana gave to him, that Travis created Victoria without the Agency's knowledge; in the letter she also requests him to kill Travis to protect Victoria. Pursuing him to England, 47 finds the ICA exhuming the Burnwood family graves, believing Diana's death to have been faked. After killing Travis' assistant Jade and then his personal guards, 47 corners Travis, who asks him if Diana is dead, but he refuses to answer him and kills Travis.[8] During a closing cutscene, 47 watches Diana and Victoria, before a message from Diana welcomes him back to the Agency, revealing that he spared her. Another cutscene then shows Birdie offering information on 47 to Cosmo Faulkner, a detective investigating his case.

Voice cast

The barcode logo for Hitman: Absolution

Development

System requirements
Minimum Recommended
Windows[12]
Operating system Windows Vista (Sp2) / Windows 7Windows 8
CPU 2GHz Dual Core (Intel Core 2 Duo or better / AMD Athlon X2 or better)Intel Core i7 (1st gen)3.0Ghz or better / AMD Athlon II X4 or better
Memory 2 GB4 GB
Free space
24 GB of free hard disk space
Graphics hardware NVIDIA GeForce GT 210 512 MB or AMD HD2600 XT 512 MBNVIDIA GeForce GTX 260 896 MB or ATI Radeon HD 5770 1 GB
Sound hardware
DirectX 10.1-compliant sound card
Input device(s)
Mouse and keyboard / Xbox 360 controller

Though plans to continue the Hitman franchise were first announced in 2007,[13] it was not until May 2009 that Eidos confirmed the game was in development.[14] Certain plot details for the game were rumored in 2009, stating that the game's story would lead Agent 47 to a low point from which he would have to rebuild himself.[15] On 20 April 2011, Square Enix filed the trademark for the name Hitman: Absolution in Europe, leading sites to speculate that it would be the name of the fifth Hitman game.[16] On 6 May 2011, a teaser trailer was released, confirming the title Hitman: Absolution. The trailer briefly showed Agent 47 attaching a suppressor and a rattlesnake coiled around his signature Silverballer pistol.[17] It has been reported the game will be a "familiar and yet significantly different experience from other Hitman games."[18] On 9 October 2011, a full gameplay trailer entitled "Run for Your Life" was released.[19] Hitman: Absolution is a shooter/stealth game said the team on gametrailers.com.

David Bateson will reprised the role of Agent 47 in Hitman Absolution.

Soundtrack

The original soundtrack for the game is composed by Thomas Bärtschi with additional music written by Peter Kyed, Peter Peter and Dynamedion[citation needed], replacing the series's previous composer, Jesper Kyd.[20]

Marketing

The Professional Edition of Hitman Absolution features Professional Clamshell packaging for the game, a Hitman art book, making of DVD and the "Agency Gun Pack" DLC.[21]

Hitman: Sniper Challenge, a standalone experience is available to people who pre-order the game at selected retailers. A code supplied at the time of pre-order will be redeemable via PSN Store, Xbox Live and PC. While the console version launched worldwide on 15 May 2012, the PC version was released on 1 August 2012.[22][23]

Pre-order bonuses

Square Enix announced special Hitman: Absolution pre-order bonuses for selected retailers:[24]

  • High Tech Suit and Bartoli Custom Pistol – The advanced High Tech suit provides Agent 47 with 50% increased armor paired with the Bartoli Custom, an engineered precision weapon, complete with sight and silencer.
  • Public Enemy Suit and the Bronson M1928 submachine gun – The Original Assassin can dress in a stylish Public Enemy gangster suit armed with the Bronson M1928, a classic submachine gun with high fire rate and deadly stopping power.
  • Agency Kazo TRG sniper rifle – This weapon is fully upgradeable with both scope and silencer.
  • High Roller Suit and the Krugermeier 2-2 Pistol – The High Roller suit dresses Agent 47 in a fancy tuxedo discreetly outfitted with the Krugermeier, an accurate, reliable stealth weapon with a built-in silencer.

Reception

Hitman: Absolution received mixed to positive reviews with most criticism stemming from the inordinate difference in gameplay from previous entries. Aggregating review websites GameRankings and Metacritic gave the PlayStation 3 version 84.83% and 83/100,[25][28] the Xbox 360 version 79.38% and 79/100[26][29] and the PC version 76.13% and 79/100.[27][30] GamesRadar gave the game 4.5/5, saying "Hitman’s temporary hiatus did worlds of good for the franchise, and Absolution is one of the strongest entries in the series to date."[34] Game Informer gave the game an 8.5/10 saying "Devising a strategy, using the environment and disguises to your advantage, and leaving before anyone knows you’re there are the hallmarks of a perfect hit, and Absolution proves Agent 47 is still gaming's premier hitman."[33] The Daily Mail gave the game a 4/5 saying "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."[40] Edge gave it 7/10 saying "The game has taken a unique formula and diluted it."[31] VentureBeat gave it 7.5/10 saying "Absolution aims high but misses the mark."[41] Eurogamer gave it 7/10 saying "Agent 47 doesn't begin Hitman: Absolution with amnesia, but the six years that have passed since we last took control of him in Blood Money do seem to have dulled his creators' recollections of what made him so popular in the first place."[32] GameSpot gave it 7.5/10 saying "Hitman: Absolution's vivid world and enjoyable stealth-action gameplay overshadow its few notable inconsistencies."[35] IGN gave it 9/10 saying "It’s nice to have a game that doesn’t just encourage improvisation; it requires it."[37] Forbes and Kotaku both gave Absolution positive reviews.[47][48] Giant Bomb gave it 4/5,[42] as did Joystiq.[43] Destructoid gave it 8.5/10.[44] GameArena gave the game a 3/10 saying "IO Interactive needs to restart from the Blood Money checkpoint and try again - they screwed up this run spectacularly."[45]

The Daily Telegraph gave the game a 2/5 saying "Despite the fact that Absolution is a hugely disappointing entry into the canon, Hitman is still a fabulous series."[46] IBITimes gave the game a 5/10 saying "An unremarkable, derivative clone of a game that's barely a shadow of what Hitman used to be." [49] Videogamer.com gave it 5/10 saying "The problem with Absolution is that its new custodians from the Kane and Lynch team seem to have fundamentally misunderstood what made Hitman great."[39] Blogcritics.org gave the game a 3/5 saying "There are definitely good things about it, but all too often the game's failures shine through more clearly than its successes."[50] PC Gamer gave it 66% saying "A passable stealth game, but one that betrays almost everything that, until now, has made Hitman great."[38] GameTrailers gave it 6.9/10 saying "It’s clear that a good deal of effort was put into crafting Hitman: Absolution’s world. This makes its flaws all the more unfortunate."[36] New Statesman gave no rating but said "If developers want to win back fans when they revisit established franchises maybe they should look to what made those games popular in the first place and by doing so maybe they’d avoid stepping on a rake or two."[51] GamerSyndrome gave no rating but said "Hitman Absolution tries to be a jack of all trades but ends up being a master of none."[52] The Irish Times gave no score but said "The move away from the completely open world may leave some hardcore fans of Hitman disappointed."[53] Gaming Age rated the game a 'C' and said "It feels like I’m playing a low rent, knockoff Metal Gear title as opposed to traditional Hitman"[54]The Daily Record gave the game 3/5 saying "While it’s more accessible than previous Hitman games, Absolution loses a lot of the freedom that fans of the franchise love, and perhaps doesn’t necessarily fit the Hitman name any longer"[55] TheEscapist gave no score but said "Hitman Absolution is not the best nor the worst Hitman."[56] Whatculture gave the game a 3/5 saying "Not Quite the expected hit"[57] The Guardian gave it 3/5 saying "The game may look better and play better than any Hitman game before it, but one can only marvel at how IO managed to lose sight of their IP's most appealing aspects so often"[58]

Technical errors

Shortly after launch, scores of complaints came in about the game crashing, freezing and corrupting file saves on the PlayStation 3 and the Xbox 360, rendering many of the games unplayable.[59] On 26 November 2012, IO Interactive stated that they were working around the clock to try and fix these technical errors, but also stated that they did not know what exactly was causing the errors, so a patch may take some time.[60]

Controversy

On 29 May 2012, a cinematic teaser trailer, produced by Square Enix's CGI studio Visual Works, titled "Attack of the Saints" was released.[61] The trailer's depiction of "gun-toting, PVC and latex-clad nuns being killed in a hail of bullets" sparked controversy over the allegedly sexist portrayal of women.[62][63] IO Interactive's Tore Blystad, the game's director, later apologized, stating they're "sorry that we offended people" and that it "was truly not the intention of the trailer."[64]

References

  1. ^ Harman, Stace. "Hitman: Sniper Challenge official, launching next week". VG247.
  2. ^ a b c Johnny Cullen (10 May 2011). "Square Enix announces Hitman Absolution with teaser". VG247. Retrieved 20 May 2011.
  3. ^ Dutton, Fred (27 May 2011). "Hitman: Absolution to be "more accessible"". Eurogamer.net. Retrieved 21 July 2012.
  4. ^ Steve Boxer (10 June 2011). "E3 2011: Hitman Absolution – preview | Technology | guardian.co.uk". London: Guardian. Retrieved 13 June 2011.
  5. ^ "Hitman: Absolution Returns". Eurogamer. 6 October 2011. Retrieved 4 October 2011.
  6. ^ suhail (11 May 2012). "Hitman Absolution The Original Assassin Returns". www.techgadgetsweb.com. Retrieved 14 May 2012.
  7. ^ IO Interactive. Hitman Absolution. Diana: Now go. Take the girl and run before Travis finds out. Please do not let her turn into you.
  8. ^ IO Interactive. Hitman Absolution. Travis: Just tell me... did you kill her? Diana... is she really dead?
    47: You will never know.
  9. ^ Stratford, Luke (11 May 2011). "Marsha Thomason to mocap in Hitman 5 « The Gamer's Sauce". Beefjack.com. Retrieved 23 November 2012.
  10. ^ Michetti, Nick (5 July 2012). "Hitman: Absolution: The Saints Introduced & Vivica A. Fox Interviewed". Playstationlifestyle.net. Retrieved 23 November 2012.
  11. ^ a b c d e f g Hillier, Brenna (26 October 2012). "Hitman: Absolution cast revealed in full". VG24/7. Retrieved 23 November 2012. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  12. ^ "System Requirements for Hitman: Absolution". Eidos Interactive. 18 November 2012. Retrieved 18 November 2012.
  13. ^ "SCiAR07" (PDF). Retrieved 20 May 2011.
  14. ^ "Hitman 5, Kane & Lynch Sequel And Movie In The Works". IncGamers. Retrieved 20 May 2011.
  15. ^ "News: Hitman 5 out 2010 - plot details". ComputerAndVideoGames.com. 29 June 2009. Retrieved 20 May 2011.
  16. ^ Spencer (22 April 2011). "Hitman: Absolution Sounds Like The Name For "Hitman 5"". Siliconera. Retrieved 20 May 2011.
  17. ^ Mike Fahey (10 May 2011). "Agent 47 Steps Out of the Shadows in Hitman: Absolution". Kotaku.com. Retrieved 20 May 2011.
  18. ^ Arthur Gies (10 May 2011). "Hitman Absolution Announced - PlayStation 3 News at IGN". Ps3.ign.com. Retrieved 20 May 2011.
  19. ^ "Hitman: Absolution Gameplay Trailer". 9 October 2011. Retrieved 15 December 2011.
  20. ^ "Hitman Absolution Original Soundtrack". Square Enix Europe. Retrieved 4 February 2012.
  21. ^ "Square unveils Hitman Absolution Professional Edition". VG247. 11 April 2012. Retrieved 21 July 2012.
  22. ^ "Hitman: Sniper Challenge official, launching next week". VG247. 11 May 2012. Retrieved 21 July 2012.
  23. ^ Yin, Wesley (10 May 2012). "IO confirms Hitman: Sniper Challenge with trailer, screenshots". Eurogamer.net. Retrieved 21 July 2012.
  24. ^ Romano, Sal (9 May 2012). "Hitman: Absolution pre-order bonuses announced". Gematsu. Retrieved 23 November 2012. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  25. ^ a b "Hitman: Absolution (PlayStation 3)". GameRankings. Retrieved 29 January 2013.
  26. ^ a b "Hitman: Absolution (Xbox 360)". GameRankings. Retrieved 29 January 2013.
  27. ^ a b "Hitman: Absolution (PC)". GameRankings. Retrieved 29 January 2013.
  28. ^ a b "Hitman: Absolution for PlayStation 3 Reviews, Ratings, Credits, and More". Metacritic. Retrieved 29 January 2013.
  29. ^ a b "Hitman: Absolution for Xbox 360 Reviews, Ratings, Credits, and More". Metacritic. Retrieved 29 January 2013.
  30. ^ a b "Hitman: Absolution for PC Reviews, Ratings, Credits, and More". Metacritic. Retrieved 29 January 2013.
  31. ^ a b Edge staff (18 November 2012). "Hitman: Absolution review - Page 2 of 2". Edge. Retrieved 23 November 2012.
  32. ^ a b Bramwell, Tom (18 November 2012). "Hitman: Absolution review • Reviews • Xbox 360 •". Eurogamer. Retrieved 23 November 2012.
  33. ^ a b Marchiafava, Jeff (18 November 2012). "Agent 47 Returns At The Peak Of His Game - Hitman: Absolution - Xbox 360". Game Informer. Retrieved 23 November 2012. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  34. ^ a b Cooper, Hollander (18 November 2012). "Hitman: Absolution Review". GamesRadar. Retrieved 23 November 2012.
  35. ^ a b VanOrd, Kevin (18 November 2012). "Hitman: Absolution Review". GameSpot. Retrieved 23 November 2012.
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  37. ^ a b "Hitman: Absolution Review". IGN. 18 November 2012. Retrieved 23 November 2012. {{cite web}}: |first= missing |last= (help); Unknown parameter |lastp= ignored (help)
  38. ^ a b Francis, Tom (18 November 2012). "Hitman: Absolution review - Page 3 of 3". PC Gamer. Retrieved 23 November 2012.
  39. ^ a b Schilling, Chris (18 November 2012). "Hitman Absolution Review". VideoGamer.com. Retrieved 23 November 2012.
  40. ^ a b Musa, Talal (18 November 2012). "Hitman: Absolution review". Daily Mail. Retrieved 18 November 2012.
  41. ^ a b McLaughlin, Rus (18 November 2012). "Hitman: Absolution aims high but misses the mark (review)". GamesBeat. VentureBeat. Retrieved 23 November 2012.
  42. ^ a b "Hitman: Absolution Review". Giant Bomb. 19 November 2012. Retrieved 28 November 2012.
  43. ^ a b Xav de Matos (18 November 2012). "Hitman Absolution review: Murder by Numbers". Joystiq. Retrieved 28 November 2012.
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  49. ^ Smith, Edward (18 November 2012). "Hitman: Absolution - Review". International Business Times. Retrieved 23 November 2012.
  50. ^ Lasser, Josh (18 November 2012). "PlayStation 3 Review: Hitman: Absolution". BlogCritics. Retrieved 23 November 2012.
  51. ^ Hartup, Phil. "Newsstateman Review".
  52. ^ Finch, Ryan. "Gamerssyndrome Review".
  53. ^ "Irish Times Review".
  54. ^ Chadwell, Dustin. "Hitman: Absolution Review for Xbox 360, PS3". Gaming Age. Retrieved 24 January 2013.
  55. ^ Comments By Dailyrecord.co.uk (23 November 2012). "Review: Hitman Absolution". Daily Record. Retrieved 24 January 2013.
  56. ^ Hitman: Absolution. "The Escapist : Video Galleries : Zero Punctuation : Hitman: Absolution". Escapistmagazine.com. Retrieved 24 January 2013.
  57. ^ "Hitman: Absolution Review - Not Quite The Expected Hit". Whatculture.com. 6 December 2012. Retrieved 24 January 2013.
  58. ^ Nick Cowen (7 December 2012). "Hitman Absolution – review | Technology | guardian.co.uk". Guardian. Retrieved 24 January 2013.
  59. ^ Scammell, David (22 November 2012). "Hitman Absolution bug wipes game saves". VideoGamer.com. Retrieved 22 November 2012.
  60. ^ Scammell, David (26 November 2012). "IO working 'around the clock' to fix Hitman Absolution's corrupt save glitch". VideoGamer.com. Retrieved 26 November 2012.
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  62. ^ Silver, Dan (31 May 2012). "Why the Hitman video game trailer is a shameless piece of sexist tat designed to get the internet worked into a lather". Daily Mirror. Retrieved 6 June 2012.
  63. ^ Mac Donald, Keza (30 May 2012). "Opinion: What The Hell Is With That Hitman Trailer?". IGN. Retrieved 6 June 2012.
  64. ^ Seitz, Dan (7 June 2012). "Hitman: Absolution's IO Apologizes for Nun-Shooting Trailer". GameTrailers. Retrieved 8 June 2012.
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