Absolution definitely shakes up the formula Hitman had with minor additions and chances since Codename 47. Some of this shakeup lends to modernizing the mechanics to be less behind the times. Others detract from what makes Hitman Hitman to the degree of being unpleasant.
If I had to give one wholesale positive, point shooting is a fun idea that’s cinematic and doesn’t feel as incredibly busted as similar mechanics in other stealth games around this time, such as Splinter Cell’s Mark and Execute.
The cover system is a nice addition, though it isn’t as fluid or useful as Splinter Cell Conviction’s.
The core gameplay in terms of what you’re able to pull off for assassinating your targets is very neat.
The biggest detractors from the gameplay are disguises and the new scoring system. When disguised, any enemy who is wearing the same outfit as you will immediately recognize you if you get too close. You can mitigate this by burning instinct to blend in, but having to recharge and manage your ability to not be incompetent at disguise yourself is a huge minus. Despite the open ended nature of most of the game, you’re railroaded into doing pretty specific things to not get a bad score. Killing or knocking out anyone who isn’t a target subtracts from your score heavily, even going negative if you’re low enough beforehand. After a stealth takedown, your only option to nullify this negative score is to hide the body in a closet or similar. At least this can be ignored to have more open ended fun, unlike the disguise issue.
Story is pretty weak, and bizarre at times, but some of the one off characters are fun. I’ll leave it at that.
Not the worst game ever, but if you had to choose one, just go WoA.
If I had to give one wholesale positive, point shooting is a fun idea that’s cinematic and doesn’t feel as incredibly busted as similar mechanics in other stealth games around this time, such as Splinter Cell’s Mark and Execute.
The cover system is a nice addition, though it isn’t as fluid or useful as Splinter Cell Conviction’s.
The core gameplay in terms of what you’re able to pull off for assassinating your targets is very neat.
The biggest detractors from the gameplay are disguises and the new scoring system. When disguised, any enemy who is wearing the same outfit as you will immediately recognize you if you get too close. You can mitigate this by burning instinct to blend in, but having to recharge and manage your ability to not be incompetent at disguise yourself is a huge minus. Despite the open ended nature of most of the game, you’re railroaded into doing pretty specific things to not get a bad score. Killing or knocking out anyone who isn’t a target subtracts from your score heavily, even going negative if you’re low enough beforehand. After a stealth takedown, your only option to nullify this negative score is to hide the body in a closet or similar. At least this can be ignored to have more open ended fun, unlike the disguise issue.
Story is pretty weak, and bizarre at times, but some of the one off characters are fun. I’ll leave it at that.
Not the worst game ever, but if you had to choose one, just go WoA.