The PS360 era was a strange beast.

Absolution was my first interaction with the Hitman franchise, although I never actually touched it at first. I fixated on it primarily through various edgy youtubers I was subscribed to at various points. I’d smuggle the 2013 original trilogy into my house the following year, and I’d actually play half of Absolution in 2015, with my college purchase of my first laptop and the Steam account that soon followed.

This 2023 replay was done under a bit of a time crunch. I had a flight in 48 hours and I didn’t want to carry 22 gigs of a mediocre edgeboy-core game onto my travels. My thoughts are sort of being compiled as I travel via plane or kick back in my partner’s apartment. So, I’ll admit some trainers were utilized for over half the levels to get through the game as quickly as possible. I wanted to get an accurate experience, but I also had like, life plans to get through. So I couldn’t torture myself as much as might be ideal for the game.

Still. Strange beast.

Much has been made about the game’s structural issues. In its attempt to focus on 47’s characters, the game cuts back on the gameplay that made Blood Money so beloved. In the game’s 20 levels, 3 are placeholders to find costumes and weapons, and only half seem to involve actual assassinations. Dev reports seem to suggest most of the assassinations were late additions to the game, after negative initial responses to the trailer.

Primarily, players engage with the world through linear maps. Experimenting with or without trainers forced a unique realization: I was exploring more while I was invisible rather than moments where I was fully visible. The disguise system takes cues from Silent Assassin, but in odd methods. Disguises allow you to enter new zones without being a trespasser, but it also places you in further danger. People wearing the same outfit have an easier time clocking you than they would opposing outfits. For example: entering a kitchen as a chef might not get any second glances from security guards, but fellow chefs are gonna be constantly suspicious. This might make more logical sense, but it’s often a frustrating gimmick to interact with. The only way to hide from these opposing guards is through the instinct meter. This lets you get a lay of the land, track enemy movements, and hide yourself from enemy guards. But the meter runs out when you’re hiding from nearby guards and it mostly ends up adding more stress to the experience. It might even be more worthwhile to just go Suit Only and dodge around everyone’s movements. The disguise system becomes a hassle instead of the core gameplay feature. And again, when the disguises don’t provide you with meaningful new places to go, the goal becomes to get to the exit rather than test out the areas.

The assassinations themselves, as well as the various challenges paired with each level, can be fun! You can see the prototypes emerge for Hitman 2016, the devs figuring out how to make the engine work to their benefit. But every now and then, the 100% Level Complete challenges are labelled with a weird description like “So Many Ways to Kill!” in a way that feels a little desperate. Knowing that the assassinations were a late addition add a weird layer to these comments. Those achievements could just be “you really liked torturing that guy!” or “Its time for the greaser era to end.” But by faux-bragging about its options, the game feels less confident in itself. Less assured of its vision. The team already knows this game isn’t gonna react well with its core audience and has to desperately hope that appealing to the mass market will fix up the losses.

Its especially a shame because some of the level designs are really neat ideas. I’m not inherently opposed to the game’s focus on Hope, South Dakota. I think playing up the danger of disguising yourself in a small town, gun heavy environment is actually a novel idea. Breaking into a courthouse and impersonating a judge is one of the funniest options the game gives you, and its all towards the effort of just progressing to the next level. The prison itself is a great gimmick for an assassination level too, and its not utilized in the slightest. I think using that kind of premise for one of Hitman 2016 levels would have been great fun, but its been left to rot with the cemetery and the wrestling arena (also great level ideas).

Hitman has always relied on stereotyping to do its narrative heavy-lifting, but it’s a true oddity in this one. Half of the game punts the narrative into Hope, a company town owned by weapons manufacturer Blake Dexter. He’s an easy folksy villain, announcing “I’m not a Yee-Haw kind of guy, but this is a Yee-Haw moment” at one point. You can overhear passerby discuss how someone must be putting on an accent to seem cool, because no one really is that stereotypical. With a charming self-aware humor, those passerby immediately start indulging in some phrases like “hootenanny” or “and that’s true” that the rest of the game has leaned into. The writers know what this is. But it also means there’s not a lot of narrative heavy-lifting they can do. They’re depraved jerks. Mr. The Hitman will kill them. That’s the plot, spread out across a dozen hours.

I think its within the stereotyping that the real theme of this game emerges. The central fear, the crux of the matter, the anxiety resting within the very center of the game.

This is a game about masculinity.

47’s motivation as a character comes down to “protect girl.” There’s some broader motivations involving his clone history or the hope that no one will live his pain, but its not the kind of sympathy he’s extended to other clones before. He is Man. He will Portect Girl.

The villains all broadly hurt women in some way or generally show some “failure” of masculinity. Blake Dexter is a slimy pig who delights in being awful to women. The game’s 10th mission exists entirely within one desert area and Dexter’s son Lenny. Lenny has a stutter, a limp, and is depicted as a whiny failure who you can test out any kind of murder scheme onto. Dexter’s lackey, Sheriff Sturkey, is heavily involved in the BDSM scene, and his delight in punishment is shown as another depraved “failing” compared to 47’s stalwart manliness.

The incidental NPCs all seem similarly fixated on their masculinity. Men posture with each other, throw around slurs, assert their confidence or failed confidence. Sometimes these men will share a sincere conversation, but more often than not it ends with some “lol what are we WOMEN” joke to brush it off. I can’t recall more than a few women on a map at a time, and most of them are flirting with the male NPCs. On the strip club map, the instinct system lets you make out women’s entire chests in a way that feels more voyeuristic than the outright nudity in Hitman Contracts. And the central assassin girl, Victoria, who the whole plot revolves around, is forever shunted off to be kidnapped again, only getting to use assassin skills once as a shocker than never again. No more violence, child. Let the Hit Man handle this.

Yet there’s also something fascinating about the sheer wealth of dialogue there is to overhear. NPCs talk over each other, they’re so eager to get to their lines. Its overwhelming, but it somehow feels like I’m peering into the 2000-10s headspace in such a specifically pointed way. It’s like how Scooby Doo Mystery Inc, for all that I love it, often feels like you’re listening directly to the all-male writer’s room of some insufferable nerds. It’s annoying, but kind of fascinating to watch unfold.

Absolution is a strange black sheep. Anxious, needy, chasing after shocking highs to keep up with the trends. It’s almost oddly endearing to me. Like babysitting a 13-year-old, desperate to be cool. It’s not a good game, I don’t think. But it’s a piece of history. Its more enlightening about the gaming trends to me than any of the more successful Call of Duty clones. I’m fascinated by it. Maybe there’s something to that. Maybe something positive.

But probably not.

There's a reason why people say it's not a "true" Hitman game - linear levels that trade social stealth for pure sneaking or cover shooting, depending on the moment. Given the format differences and the plot that's weirdly action-heavy (and full of schlocky, cartoon-villain antics) it feels like a normal Hitman game adapted into a low budget movie, then back into a game. If it didn't have the expectations that come with the Hitman IP it would be a decently fun - if somewhat shallow - game. It still wouldn't blow any minds, and it would probably be forgotten in 2020. I would argue this is a much better outcome than Absolution's true fate as a real stinker that soured a lot of people on the franchise and created additional cynicism when IO announced that Hitman 2016 would have an episodic release schedule.

The fact this is what closes the original series is depressing. Everything about this game is trash. The storyline is a dumpsterfire. Clearly made the way it was to pander to the most casual of audiences in the most cringe ways. It also doesn't make sense in a lot of ways because the story retcons a lot of previous events.

The gameplay here is lacking in every single way you can think of. There's maybe two levels I personally enjoyed and the reason I enjoyed said levels is because they were like a short glimpse of hope for this pile of shit game. Said levels were similar to the classics, and that's what made me like them. Though, the issue with these levels is the fact that they're still overly restrictive.

I did not expect to replay this and dislike it so much, but this is currently tied with CN47 for my least favorite entry in the series. I have yet to play the reboot series (I have to buy them still) but hopefully those are actually good. This however, is a disappointing mess and I will most likely never play it again.

Imagine that for the next game in your favorite franchise, the entire premise would be reversed, like a Resident Evil game where you played as a zombie and had to hunt down a hero and exhaust their limited supplies. While a lot of the series’ staple elements would still be there, calling it a mainline entry rather than a spinoff would be an incredibly divisive move. Some people would certainly enjoy it, and you couldn’t argue that it doesn’t belong within the series, but you couldn’t be blamed for being disappointed all the same. By using the same franchise title but not fulfilling the same expectations, the developers break the unspoken trade that comes with that decision, exchanging some creative freedom for a guaranteed audience. Hitman: Absolution may not seem like this sort of flip, since Agent 47 is still pursuing targets, swapping disguises, and sneaking around, but in all other ways, the premise is a complete reversal. It’s not 47 stalking targets on his own terms anymore, he’s the one being hunted. He can’t just slip into disguises to avoid suspicion since people are actively trying to find him, so guards see through his tricks and he’s forced to do more typical sneaking. As a result, the room for free approaches and navigating maps has been severely limited, a core element of what gave the prior games their identity. This is what separates Absolution from successful franchise pivots like Resident Evil 4, its uniqueness actually declined rather than grew with the changes. Not only that, but even when compared to the games it seeks to emulate, it doesn’t have a particularly special level of refinement or polish. The game does occasionally shine, particularly in the few missions where it fully embraces the concept of a hunter being hunted, but these moments are but rare glimpses at the potential of the concept. The theoretical version of Absolution that completely embraced this style of gameplay could have been fantastic, and Hitman/2/3 have shown how hungry people are for iterative improvements, but the version we got only proves how flipping the script without adequate development just leaves everyone unsatisfied.

По нелепому стечению обстоятельств левая ножка моей клавиатуры Genius была сломана. Пожалуй, это сигнал Свыше, не иначе. Признаюсь честно, к тексту приступаю Я с великим нежеланием. И всё же с лысым пора кончать, ибо как Новый год встретишь, так его и проведёшь.
Что такое Hitman: Absolution? Первое, что бросается в глаза, - это ярко выраженное детище 2010-х. Визуальная простота и минимализм 2000-х сошли на нет. Отныне пред нами грязный, чрезмерно детализированный, трижды отфильтрованный боевик, больше напоминающий очередного представителя серии Batman: Arkham, нежели финал классической саги о Шалтай-болтае. Спустя 6 лет после Грязных денег 2006 г. игра неузнаваема настолько, что без знакомого человека яйца Я бы и вовсе принял это за историю о свихнувшемся Брюсе Уэйне на подработке.
Геймплейная составляющая перевёрнута с ног на голову, а нововведений столько, что более менее освоил их Я лишь к половине игры. Возвращаясь всё к тому же Бэтмену, стелс здесь упрощён настолько, что большую часть игры вы проведёте на карачках за раставленными по всей карте укрытиями, периодически отвлекая от себя внимание бутылками и прочим мусором, попадающимся под руку. Но лишь только осознав тщетность пресмыкающегося бытия безволосого болванчика в костюме, Вы вновь воплотите в жизнь лихорадочный сон Джона Ву и столкнётесь в свинцовой суматохе одного человека против ста.
Сюжет же данного творения, как и полагается серии, умом не блещет. Правда, в этот раз оно делает этой с горделивой улыбкой недалёкого ребёнка, предоставляя нам финал эпопеи о плешивом выродке под видом линейного B-movie с его собратом по плешивому несчастью Джейсоном Стэтхемом. Также, помимо очередных параллелей с Бэтменом в лице неуравновешенных мультяшек и генно-модифицированного качка в придачу, Вас ждёт вполне себе читаемое подобие Логана, к слову, вышедшего спустя 5 лет после Absolution.
Ну а теперь перейду к наиболее скучной, но не менее грустной части. Игра оптимизирована просто отвратительно. Имея комплектующие, с которыми в 2012 Вас бы причислили к лику святых, предоставленное Мне в Steam недоразумение не удосуживалось держаться хотя бы на 60 FPS даже при нижайших параметрах до тех пор, пока Я не нашёл и не выключил сглаживание в настройках дисплея. Жалкое зрелище, недостойное трезвого взгляда.

Hitman Absolution is the 5th Entry in Io-Interactive's series, and this game is sure a doozy. Following the release of the stellar entry, Hitman Blood Money, it almost felt like IO wanted to branch out and try new games which resulted in stuff like Kane and Lynch, and Mini Ninjas neither of which seemed to stick in the popular conciousness. and around the release of Kane and Lynch 2, Eidos, Former publisher for the Hitman Franchise was gobbled up by the japanese gaming conglomerate, Square Enix. These factors could have brought some stress upon the team around Absolution's development to result in such a tonally inconsistent, jumbled amalgamation of random ideas and concepts that is this game. Whatever the reason was Hitman Absolution really dropped the ball in terms of series momentum. The story follows Agent 47 as he is tasked to eliminate his former retainer, and only real friend, Diana. He soon comes to find out that the reason he was sent to eliminate her was so the Agency could get their hands on an experimental super soldier child that they had been developing who was stolen by Diana. He is left to care for the child but quickly gets out smarted by the main antagonist of this game who is just Jack Nicholson from the shining but slightly more nutty. The story tries to take it's self so seriously that it comes off incredibly edgy, and to top it all off it throws in all sorts of nonsense jokes and line delivery that throws the whole tone out the window. But most people don't play Hitman for the story, they mostly play it for the fun sand box levels and mechanics that they can play around with, so does this game deliver on that front? No. This game instead opts for an extremely linear level design philosophy which is so counter intuitive to the mechanics of the Hitman series, and this game in general. All the staple mechanics from Hitman return here such as sneaking, wearing disguises, and dragging bodies, but the way these levels are structured makes it so that all these core mechanics are pretty useless and instead the most optimal route to completion most of the time is to just instead go in guns blazing. It certainly doesn't help that this game also has really cheap enemy placement which makes it hard to not get spotted when joined together with the terrible instinct system. The basic premise of the instinct system isn't terrible, it essentially allows you to see enemies through walls and pin point targets which could be helpful for strategizing if it weren't for the fact that there is no map to reference along to like previous games. There is also the problem with disguises basically being more useless than they were in Hitman 2 Silent Assassin which says a lot. Basically any guard can see through any disguise unless you use your instinct ability to hide your features from oncoming guards. The big problem with this is that the instinct ability is based off a meter which lasts too little to really have an impact on sneaking past guards. Overall Hitman Absolution is an over bloated, mess of a game that if I had played on launch I would have assumed that this game would mark the end of the Hitman franchise as we know it. But at the time of writing this review there has been 3 additional Hitman games to have come out who bring the series back to it's roots and then some in some very impressive ways. There is only really one positive thing I can say about the game and that is that it runs as it should and isn't very buggy which nowadays is something that is far too rare. I wouldn't really recommend this entry to anyone, not even fans of the series, but if you are a completionist who has to play all the entries in the series, I just recommend playing this game more like a cover shooter, and less like a stealth game and you will have a much better time.

Peguei pra relembrar um dos jogos que mais fechei na minha infancia/inicio da adolescência. Depois de ter terminado todos os Hitman eu consigo entender o pq de Absolution ser meio polemico dentro da comunidade. Por ele ser a sequencia do Blood Money, o melhor jogo da franquia, todo mundo esperava a continuação do modelo estrutural bem livre daquele jogo, o que não acontece aqui em. Sem duvidas Absolution é o jogo mais linear da franquia em questão de opções pra completar os assassinatos, as areas das missões ainda tem são bem exploráveis e existem formas diferentes de assassinar os alvos, mas não chega nem perto dos outros jogos, em Blood Money algumas missões te davam opções de 5/6 formas de finalização...Tirando isso, a gameplay envelheceu como um vinho, o stealth do jogo é simplesmente delicioso, ainda é bonito visualmente com cenários impressionantes. Encarado como um jogo de Stealth narrativo da pra se divertir muito, No final das contas, é um bom jogo de Stealth, mas um Hitman decepcionante.

🕗 Total time played (approx.): 51h
🏆 Completion: 100%

REVIEW:

"Hitman: Absolution", released in 2012 by IO Interactive, is the fifth installment in the popular "Hitman" series and an iconic entry in the stealth action genre. The game masterfully combines a compelling narrative with intricate gameplay, offering players an immersive experience in the clandestine world of contract killing.

The narrative of "Hitman: Absolution" is a departure from previous titles in the series, with a more focused and character-driven storyline. Players assume the role of Agent 47, the genetically engineered contract assassin, who finds himself in a morally complex situation as he must protect a girl named Victoria from a powerful and corrupt organization. This shift to a more personal story adds depth to the character of Agent 47, shedding light on his motivations and inner conflicts. The storytelling in the game is cinematic and engaging, making players genuinely care about the characters and the unfolding plot. The writing of these characters, however, isn't without its flaws.

One of the game's standout features is its level design, though. Each mission presents a complex, open-ended sandbox filled with opportunities for creative assassinations. The game encourages players to be methodical and strategic, rewarding those who take their time to study the environment and the behavior of NPCs. The disguises system allows players to blend in, infiltrate secure areas, and get close to their targets. The freedom to approach objectives in multiple ways, whether through silent assassinations or chaotic firefights, is where the game's replayability shines.

The visuals and audio in "Hitman: Absolution" are also noteworthy. The game boasts detailed environments, creating a sense of immersion. The soundtrack enhances the atmosphere, providing tension, excitement, and a noir-like ambiance. The sound design is very well done, as it plays a crucial role in alerting players to danger and creating an atmosphere of tension.

However, "Hitman: Absolution" is not without its criticisms. Some fans of the series expressed concerns about the more linear level design in certain missions, which limited the freedom experienced in previous titles, which is true. Additionally, the checkpoint system can be super frustrating. All in all, I think this is a good game, but not just not a perfect "Hitman" game. It is a solid change of pace from the average third person action game with stealth elements, featuring well designed levels and solid yet exaggerated caricatured characters, that's just not everyones cup of tea. Unfortunately the last entry in the series before "Absolution" ("Hitman: Blood Money") was as close to perfect as you can get. Compared to that, "Hitman: Absolution" falls short in some aspects.

⭐ Rating: 3/5