{"id":48058,"date":"2012-12-05T12:09:12","date_gmt":"2012-12-05T10:09:12","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/mygaming.co.za\/news\/?p=48058"},"modified":"2012-12-05T15:36:38","modified_gmt":"2012-12-05T13:36:38","slug":"hitman-absolution-review","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mygaming.co.za\/news\/reviews\/48058-hitman-absolution-review","title":{"rendered":"Hitman: Absolution review (PS3)"},"content":{"rendered":"

The latest entry into the Hitman franchise is ostensibly a really long \u201cChoose Your Own Adventure\u201d book. Except it\u2019s R18, packed with dark humour, and every single choice you make ends in murder.<\/p>\n

And boy, is it a real page-turner. Combining traditional measured stealth with Splinter Cell-style action and even some Uncharted-esque set pieces, this orgy of assassination shines as an addictive and massively replayable adventure, and the addition of several new features alongside a familiar core experience makes Hitman: Absolution a welcome and long overdue return for Agent 47.<\/p>\n

Things haven\u2019t changed too much since we last strangled unfortunate enemies with our trusty fibre wire in Blood Money, but developer IO Interactive have really embraced the idea of choice and multiple paths so prevalent in today\u2019s gaming zeitgeist.<\/p>\n

Absolution\u2019s first level, after a short tutorial prologue, asks you to dispose of an evil underworld kingpin in a small, seemingly straightforward mission in Chinatown, but even this tiny level set in an enclosed courtyard market offers almost a dozen different ways to exterminate the target. Whether you snipe him from an overlooking apartment window, drop a pallet of crates while he relieves himself in an alleyway, push him down a manhole, disguise yourself as his drug dealer to get closer to him, sabotage his car, run \u2018n gun both him and his bodyguards, or poison him one of three different ways, you always feel like a clever and well-trained killer thanks to a remarkably open-ended game world.<\/p>\n

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If the impressive number of varied levels isn\u2019t enough, obsessive players will revel in the new Challenges aspect of Absolution, a series of over 250 optional tasks that affect your score multiplier for each stage. While most levels offer rewards for finding collectibles stashed around or completing an area without using disguises, there are numerous extra points to be found through sneaky environment kills and player cunning. Death by electrocution, falling chandeliers, exploding safes and flaming barbeques are all as gruesome as they are darkly hilarious, and the ever elusive Silent Assassin rank, a series trademark, can only be obtained by those willing to constantly explore more exciting ways to exterminate.<\/p>\n

The main change to the game\u2019s mechanics comes in the form of Instinct, a kind of \u201cassassin vision\u201d that highlights enemies, patrol paths and items of interest thanks to (as the game explains to you) 47\u2019s naturally superior instincts and training. This mode effectively replaces a larger overhead mini-map, and has to be recharged by completing objectives or colourful kills so that it doesn\u2019t make things too easy, an especially important point considering that 47 can also use it to line up a series of slow-mo executions called Point Shooting when things go pear-shaped.<\/p>\n

Veteran murderers will be glad to know that Instinct can be crippled or disable completely in the range of five difficulty modes, but fair warning: Normal mode itself can be challenging enough for new players, especially if you\u2019re aiming for the higher rankings, and the brutal Purist mode is strictly for the absolute perfectionists and those who like to reload a whole lot.<\/p>\n

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Picking up the story where Blood Money left off, Absolution weaves its narrative closely around each hit, always providing motivation for your actions and a drive to find out what happens next. Although not particularly original, the plot still shines thanks to an extensive cast of Hollywood talent that bring it to life.<\/p>\n

Marsha Thomason, Keith Carradine, Shannyn Sossamon, Traci Lords, Vivica Fox and more recognisable voices deliver great performances, a crucial but often overlooked part of a quality game that contributes significantly to the title\u2019s cinematic feel and AAA branding. And, because no star-studded cast is complete without its extras, there are over 2000 pages worth of NPC dialogue to further increase the game\u2019s polish and immersion; for a welcome change, a lot of this seemingly pointless background banter can actually be rather useful to the observant player.<\/p>\n

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Multiplayer is also no stranger to the game\u2019s dedication to open-ended slaughter thanks to the addition of Contracts, an online mode that allows you to create and share your own custom hit challenges. You choose a level, targets, weapons and rules for the hit, and it\u2019s all done without clunky editors or complicated mechanics: all you need to do is play through your setup (asynchronously, so your friends don\u2019t have to be online at the time), and once you\u2019re done, you can challenge your friends to do the same.<\/p>\n

Contracts injects a strong social and competitive element that gels perfectly with the creative nature of killing in Absolution, and even if you\u2019re not keen to play online, there\u2019s still a bunch of pre-set Contracts for you to enjoy offline.<\/p>\n

No matter which mode you play in, what difficulty you pick, which Challenges you attempt or which path you decide to take in this \u201cChoose Your Own Murderous Adventure\u201d, you\u2019re always offered a smorgasbord of death that\u2019s well paced and consistently fun to play through. It\u2019s just enough of a move forward to feel current while still retaining everything that has made the series a hit, and whether you\u2019re an seasoned slayer or a kindergarten killer, Hitman: Absolution comes highly recommended.<\/p>\n\n\t\t