lttp: Hitman Absolution

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cafemomo

Member
Got the game free via PS+ back in August, but I just finished the game. It was my first venture into the series.

The instinct/disguise dealio was bretty cool, but at the same time it was kinda stupid and a bit useless. The disguise system was a mix bag. Most of the time it was broken as heck. How in God's name did some helicopter that was like 500 feet away know it was me under the cop uniform? As for Instinct, I liked the concept, but all you did was just either cover the back of your head with your hand or tilt your hat down to "blend in".

Storywise, it was a bit forgettable/boring and towards the end I just started skipping the cutscenes. Did the previous Hitman games have good stories?

Overall, it was a ok but fun game for what it was.

Should I try out any other Hitman game? Which one would you peeps recommend?
oh, and I did like how 80% of the game was set in Chicago though. Chinatown level was my fav.
 
The good news (I guess) is you got the worst game out of the way already, your Hitman experience can only go up from here.

Play Silent Assassin and especially Blood Money. The latter is considered one of the best stealth games of all time. No they don't have good stories but they have great gameplay that few games have ever tried to mimic and they both embarrass Absolution. You'll quickly find out just how linear Absolution was and how little choice there really was in the few legitimate Hitman areas it had.
 
suppadoopa said:
Alrighty.

Are they more stealthy than Absolution? Because one of my main complaints in Absolution is that there are some parts where it felt like it was literally a TPS
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Yes. Absolution was just another dumbed down current generation game aimed at the masses. It's not a good representation of the Hitman series and it's why I strongly urge newbies to avoid playing it first. It would be like playing Splinter Cell Conviction as your first SC or Invisible War as your first Deus Ex game.
 
I replayed this a few months ago and I realised that stealth does not matter at all.

On this second play through I was just going Terminator through each level killing everyone and not hiding at all.

The game progresses the exact same even if you did do it stealthy.
 
suppadoopa said:
Alrighty.

Are they more stealthy than Absolution? Because one of my main complaints in Absolution is that there are some parts where it felt like it was literally a TPS
Click to expand...

They're not stealth games in the MGS/Splinter Cell sense where you're sticking to shadows/hiding behind objects and generally trying to avoid being seen. They still have the disguise system that you got a taste of in Absolution, but the system works a hell of a lot better in the older games because unlike Absolution they are designed top-to-bottom to be stealth games.

Basically, Blood Money has much larger levels with many more distinct disguises available, each with varying levels of clearance for what areas you can safely enter without raising any alarms. The levels are designed with many, many possible solutions in mind.

Remember back to, say, the Chinatown or Strip Club levels of Absolution, then imagine levels that are between 2-4 times as large, but maintain the same sort of systemic/puzzle game aspects of stealthing about, then bundle around 10-12 of those levels together and that's basically Blood Money. Also Instinct doesn't exist in Blood Money because Instinct is super duper dumb.
 
Thanks for all the info

TheVampire said:
I was just going Terminator through each level killing everyone and not hiding at all.
Click to expand...

I guess that's what bummed me out a little about the game. I know you don't have to go full rambo, but the fact that you could and just get away with it really felt stupid. I mean, you are an assassin. You just don't do that kind of stuff.
 
I downloaded it and played it for the first time a few days ago. It's my first time playing a Hitman game too. I just stopped playing after an hour. It was just boring to me. And I actually like stealth gameplay. Reading that this is the worst in the franchise makes me want to give the rest a chance. Glad I read these first few replies lol.
 
You should just get the hitman HD collection, it has 2, Contracts, and Blood Money.

2 is pretty rough now, didn't age too well and it'll be hard to get into due to the AI being pretty brutal, but Contracts is a little better in that regard. Blood Money is most people's favorite as it communicated when you were doing things wrong much better before getting shot to hell, and it has pretty great levels.

suppadoopa said:
Thanks for all the info



I guess that's what bummed me out a little about the game. I know you don't have to go full rambo, but the fact that you could and just get away with it really felt stupid. I mean, you are an assassin. You just don't do that kind of stuff.
Click to expand...

You can still do this in any of the games. To me it's always part of the charm, while getting Silent Assassin rank is what you end up striving for.
 
The way the disguise system worked made using disguises a a greater challenge, but not in a way that makes sense. Anyone wearing the same type of outfit you are will recognize you if you're in their line of sight for too long or are too close (the threshold for detection for both variables decreases at higher difficulties). I get why it was done and I greatly appreciate the devs trying make using disguises are more involved process; I should be at the edge of my seat if I'm walking through a room full of armed guards who might realize I'm not one of them if I do something out of the ordinary. I should have to actively try to stay in character or divert attention from myself.

The problem is that (at least on Hard/very hard), enemies would become suspicious in a really unbelievable way and ridiculously quickly. It made sections of the game appropriately tense, but in ways I doubt the developers intended. I often had to crouch and sneak through areas while in disguise because of this suspicion mechanic. The "hide face/look away" move that would counter this was tied to the instinct meter, something that only gets refilled by performing certain actions (and doesn't exist at the highest difficulty level). Being able to casually hide your face while passing past other people who would believably recognize whether you're in their group is cool, but having it tied to this meter rather than making it a somewhat unreliable move (either based on chance or timing) is silly. It also sucks that one a particular person becomes suspicious, you get no chance to talk your way out of it or divert attention; you have a certain amount of time to knock them unconscious, kill them or take them hostage once they draw a weapon on you.

Again, the way it works in this game does make some segments appropriately intense and challenging. When you have to escape the apartment building as cops search for you, I couldn't just knock out a cop, take his outfit then waltz on out. I had to be careful throughout and waiting for the L train to arrive was actually intense, what with cops interspersed through the crowd. The way I played that section (crouching while in disguise, walking past other people) was dumb though.

I hope a future Hitman uses a new disguise system and doesn't just copy Blood Money because the potential is there for interesting gameplay options and intense moments. It would really help to make that disguise system fit within the game world though. The more scripted moments are fine in themselves, so long as they aren't as frequent as in Absolution and still leave you completely in control with a reasonable amount of options. Stuff like that scene in Deus Ex: human Revolution where armed guards rush into the office you're in (you can stealth kill/incapacitate them, sneak through them, shoot them, or avoid the entire room entirely) is great even though you're forced to act within a time frame.
 
The story in past Hitman games are very brief and nothing deep or anything, but to me it had a nice touch to it and it was interesting. Now with Absolution... It's basically a very shitty hollywood movie.

About the game, it has it's moments, but unfortunately they wanted to take the Conviction route in most of it.

I highly recommend you get the HD collection. They put Absolution to shame in most aspects in my opinion. Maybe the gameplay is a bit stiff in the older titles, but they're still true stealth games with a lot depth and insane replayability.
 
Between Instinct and going crazy killing everyone it made this game a huge mixed bag for me. I enjoyed it, but at bargain bin price and not playing it like a traditional stealth/Hitman game.
 
Absolution was alright, frustrating to play through since the disguises don't really work like they seem to in past games. Amazing texture work though, and I love the small conversations you can eavesdrop in all over the place. Really helps fill out the world.
 
Spring-Loaded said:
The way the disguise system worked made using disguises a a greater challenge, but not in a way that makes sense. Anyone wearing the same type of outfit you are will recognize you if you're in their line of sight for too long or are too close (the threshold for detection for both variables decreases at higher difficulties). I get why it was done and I greatly appreciate the devs trying make using disguises are more involved process; I should be at the edge of my seat if I'm walking through a room full of armed guards who might realize I'm not one of them if I do something out of the ordinary. I should have to actively try to stay in character or divert attention from myself.

The problem is that (at least on Hard/very hard), enemies would become suspicious in a really unbelievable way and ridiculously quickly. It made sections of the game appropriately tense, but in ways I doubt the developers intended. I often had to crouch and sneak through areas while in disguise because of this suspicion mechanic. The "hide face/look away" move that would counter this was tied to the instinct meter, something that only gets refilled by performing certain actions (and doesn't exist at the highest difficulty level). Being able to casually hide your face while passing past other people who would believably recognize whether you're in their group is cool, but having it tied to this meter rather than making it a somewhat unreliable move (either based on chance or timing) is silly. It also sucks that one a particular person becomes suspicious, you get no chance to talk your way out of it or divert attention; you have a certain amount of time to knock them unconscious, kill them or take them hostage once they draw a weapon on you.

Again, the way it works in this game does make some segments appropriately intense and challenging. When you have to escape the apartment building as cops search for you, I couldn't just knock out a cop, take his outfit then waltz on out. I had to be careful throughout and waiting for the L train to arrive was actually intense, what with cops interspersed through the crowd. The way I played that section (crouching while in disguise, walking past other people) was dumb though.

I hope a future Hitman uses a new disguise system and doesn't just copy Blood Money because the potential is there for interesting gameplay options and intense moments. It would really help to make that disguise system fit within the game world though. The more scripted moments are fine in themselves, so long as they aren't as frequent as in Absolution and still leave you completely in control with a reasonable amount of options. Stuff like that scene in Deus Ex: human Revolution where armed guards rush into the office you're in (you can stealth kill/incapacitate them, sneak through them, shoot them, or avoid the entire room entirely) is great even though you're forced to act within a time frame.
Click to expand...

I think you put it perfectly for me. I still enjoyed Absolution, even as someone who had played all Hitman games prior. There were really interesting ideas in Absolution that changed game mechanics in a way that made them less fun/more frustrating. What made Blood Money so amazing is that it embraced the trial and error methods of stealth games. You wanted to see how many ways you could have offed that dude. There were done flashes of this in Absolution, but there was too much linearity and instances where it felt like direct confrontation was the ONLY way forward.

I think I couple tweaks and learning from their mistakes with absolution could result in a really fantastic game, though.
 
Has a couple of really good Hitman sections, and some really bad sections from some other game. Don't waste your time on Purist mode, it's almost impossible and a stupid addition that was supposed to "appease" classic Hitman fans.
 
Stet said:
Has a couple of really good Hitman sections, and some really bad sections from some other game. Don't waste your time on Purist mode, it's almost impossible and a stupid addition that was supposed to "appease" classic Hitman fans.
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Ugh god, first thing I thought of when I saw this topic pop up. I played that mode first (along with only killing targets) and I hated it because it just didn't work. The Trainstation was absolutely broken, I dropped the difficulty there and never looked back.

The idea behind the disguise system sounded great at first, but served no function on hard or above. You would still get spotted fairly quickly and the later levels didn't have that many options to disguise yourself in that wouldn't get you insta-caught anyways. As an action game it was great, as a Hitman game it was really shitty.
 
Starting this game on one of the harder difficulties, I hated it a lot. Replied it on medium and began to actually understand the systems which are a bit stupid but can be fun at times. Played it a third time on the hardest difficulty and ended up really enjoying it now that I understood how the disguise and instinct thing worked.

It's not as good as the previous ones but it ain't bad. The disguise system is a little messed up. That mission in the orphanage where 47 just decides not to wear the mask that the enemies are wearing when you take their clothes just so he can be spotted is so incredibly stupid, it hurts.
 
Stet said:
Has a couple of really good Hitman sections, and some really bad sections from some other game. Don't waste your time on Purist mode, it's almost impossible and a stupid addition that was supposed to "appease" classic Hitman fans.
Click to expand...

This. It's pretty funny that the system that ostensibly is supposed to be the most "classic" feature of the game (disguising yourself) is made useless by purist mode.
 
I just ordered absolution and 5 other games I got for cheap. Blood money was such a great game too bad it seems this one isn't as good. I want to play games I missed or waited for the price to drop before getting next gen.
 
BibiMaghoo said:
No. I mean best. As in better than Blood Money.
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Factually incorrect from a gameplay point of view. There's less kill options, less traditional Hitman levels, smaller levels overall, disguise system is completely non functional in Absolution. It's not even a contest.
 
I've only played it to the mines, but in general it's a disappointment compared to the joy of Blood Money. Strict, linear levels for a Hitman and no focus on assassinations. I've started a second playthrough of Dishonored because it scratches that itch so much better.

Haven't done any of the contracts,but the idea seems more fun than the 'campaign'.
 
I think the biggest problem I had with Hitman: Absolution was the instinct system.

If you play on any difficulty that starts gimping this feature, the game becomes a frustrating mess. Game is based around this feature so, game becomes artificially difficult if you ask me.

The actual open ended parts in the game I didn't actually mind regardless, as it had semblance to the other titles. But the 'get from point a to point b' missions were dreadful.

Blood Money is still easily the best title in the series, and probably one of the greatest stealth games of all time in general, up there with Chaos Theory.
 
blood money is the best hitman game if you listen to the people who recognize what makes the hitman games good games.

personally, I liked absolution, I think it was better than both codename 47 (the first one which was a buggy mess with terrible controls, I loved it nonetheless) and silent assassin (hitman 2, the most popular one among dedicated hitman fans)

blood money and contracts are the best hitman games because they took what made hitman great and focused on that. absolution took a huge step back towards silent assassin, its nowhere near bood money and contracts, but I still enjoyed it, it had some good stuff which it doesnt get credit for.
 
Absolutely loved the single player, contracts however was dog shit.

Also, the Sniper Challenge that was available through pre orders was the most fun Ive ever had in a hitman game.
 
I've never played a game with such a fucking strange, weird and uninteresting story. What the eff was going on with that? Apart from that I liked the game a lot. Could've done with some more assassination levels as those were a lot of fun.
 
Derrick01 said:
Factually incorrect from a gameplay point of view. There's less kill options, less traditional Hitman levels, smaller levels overall, disguise system is completely non functional in Absolution. It's not even a contest.
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We have had this discussion before, you and I.

There are more levels than BM, more kill options than BM (no idea how you make less), there are only 3 less actual targets than BM last I counted (BM having levels with several in one) the levels are smaller yes but there are twice as many of them, the disguise system worked perfectly pre-patch, and still works now, just not in the same way as BM. The principal and actual workings are clear. People in the same disguise become suspicious of you. Where that leads depends on your difficulty. I except your hatred of 'pressAforawesome/bullettime/seethroughwalls', and understand the reason for it, but do not think it damaged the gameplay.
 
Blood Money, although technically inferior was just more fun to play. Absolution forced a lot of things on the player, and it didn't really seem like a good Hitman game. Change the franchise around, and maybe it'd have been passable.
 
Up until the big oil refinery level in the desert, I would've called Absolution my favorite Hitman game in the series. Once you start adding PMCs and shit in, I'm out.
 
I gotta agree that the disguise system of absolution was actually one of its strenghts, blood moneys disguising was just game breaking overpowered. I feel contracts had the best disguise sysetm of the franchise, it was somewhere in the middle between the overpowered blood money ans the very strict absolution system.
but what I enjoy about hitman is that every installement handles disguises a bit different.
all of them are completely unrealistic, absolutions, too. but it had some interesting logic behind it. as a huge hitman fan since c64, i liked it a lot, although I dont mind if they change it again in the next installment, as usual.
 
I hope the bring back the disguise system from contracts. no matter what difficulty you're playing, you had to be careful(i.e. not stand too close to a person) in order for your disguise to still work. blood money's disguise system gave people too much leeway.
 
BibiMaghoo said:
We have had this discussion before, you and I.

There are more levels than BM, more kill options than BM (no idea how you make less), there are only 3 less actual targets than BM last I counted (BM having levels with several in one) the levels are smaller yes but there are twice as many of them, the disguise system worked perfectly pre-patch, and still works now, just not in the same way as BM. The principal and actual workings are clear. People in the same disguise become suspicious of you. Where that leads depends on your difficulty. I except your hatred of 'pressAforawesome/bullettime/seethroughwalls', and understand the reason for it, but do not think it damaged the gameplay.
Click to expand...

There are more levels, the majority of them being smaller linear traditional sneaking levels where you go from point A to point B. That is not Hitman. As far as actual Hitman levels go there's only around 3-4 and they are VERY small (remember the strip club?). Due to those insanely tiny levels that means by default there are less kill options for each target, any more and they would have been virtually stacked on top of each other in the levels.
 
It was alright, I enjoyed my time with it. There were some nice moments with 47 during the story and I liked Contracts mode for the brief time I put into it. The disguise system was pretty frustrating on harder difficulties, lack of freedom. I picked up the Hitman HD Collection right after Absolution and dived back into Blood Money.
 
There is a glimmer of greatness hidden away in Absolution, but it's so cluttered with absurd design choices that it trainwrecks the entire game into utter mediocrity.

Absolution's saving and checkpoint system alone is fucking awful and sucking any fun out of experimenting with the environment and the npcs, a hallmark from the previous games. The disguise system doesn't work like it's supposed to and once again restrains from experimenting. The instinct system was unnecessary but at least it was optional.

The game looks stunning but the level design is awful in most cases, with some exceptions like the Chinatown [I forgot the name] level. Most of the game is extremely linear, which is absurd if you consider the previous games. The worst offender in this case is the Dexter Industries level, which consists of utterly boring hallways and cave systems that aren't fun to explore. All you do is disguise yourself, hope the AI doesn't spot you and if they do just fucking kill everybody and move on to the next stage.

However, like I said the sandbox segments are cool but the lack of quicksave option renders the entire experience pointless. Which in turn renders this entire game pointless.
 
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