Hitman: Absolution – First Impressions

Agent 47 returns a little worse for wear in Hitman: Absolution, coming in 2012.  Betrayed, alone, and on the run, Agent 47 must put all of his skills to use not to hunt, but to survive.  We met with the crew from Square Enix and got a first glimpse of his new upcoming adventure.

Our demo began on a dark and rainy night as Agent 47 breaks into an abandoned library attempting to elude police while they try to hunt him down.  In this sequence, the predator had become the prey.

Agent 47 moves between the shadows, using his finely honed instincts to guide him.  Your perception changes as trails of light show you the path he expects his pursuers will take as they search for him.  This gives you the ability to plan your movements ahead of time to either take them down from behind with one of Agent 47’s many signature moves, or let them live another day as you quietly slip into another hiding spot.

During this demo, it became clear that Agent 47 could use everything in his environment to help him escape the police.  While you could have Agent 47 sneak up behind his prey to snap his neck, you could just as easily grab a nearby candelabras or marble bust to knock the victim unconscious.  Also showcased were Agent 47’s abilities of stealth and disguise.  As Eidos underscores the importance of Choice and Free Will, there are many ways to solve any given problem: You can be aggressive and take out everyone with coldly efficient violence, or you can be stealthy, sneaking into the shadows, donning disguises and melding into the crowd.

Built on IO Interactive’s Glacier 2 technology, Hitman Absolution is absolutely stunning to not just the eyes, but to the ears as well.  Graphically this game is exceptionally crisp with every texture generated in painstaking detail.  But what really caught my senses was the sound.  From the moody and despairing music, to the pitter-pat of the rain, its pitch changing as you move from inside the church to the rooftops of New York.  Eidos has really worked hard to ensure that Hitman: Absolution will be as immersive as possible.

The brief glimpses into Agent 47’s return left us wanting more.  All I can say is that 2012 cannot come fast enough!