Hitman goes way back to the early days of PC gaming with a new take on stealth gaming. In other words, the new Hitman must have its roots from somewhere and most of the time, the usage of “already developed” mechanics , a known game plan or even a hardcore community is positive when creating a newly adapted version of previous Hitman games. However, when a successfully game of a certain franchise has been released, the way people look at this game, isn’t the same as before. I mean, developers hype a game so much which results in communitycreated high hopes for the next big thing, most of the time people are disappointed in the actual outcome of a game’s quality. This new approach is trying to fix this feeling, but will it work?
The Hitman game of 2016 tries something new by creating a standalone unfinished game with upcoming episodes that continues the journey of our beloved Hitman, agent 47. It looks like a release schedule from one of your favorite TV series. This episodic release can turn out both ways, positive and negative. Normally a game is bought and people will like it or not… If you don’t like a certain approach of the developers, chances are slim that you’ll be able to influence their way of thinking. You’ll just have to complain about it on the forums and hope for a “promising” patch in the near future. The developers of the 2016 Hitman, are trying something new by releasing episodic parts of the game that can still slightly be shaped in the way the community wants it, of course without changing the core mechanics. This approach has still some time to prove itself but I wonder if this is really the best way to handle things…
One of the best Hitman games “Hitman: Blood Money” was released in 2006. This game raised the bar for the stealth genre in the gaming world. It was all about the freedom of killing your targets or completing your objective in your own way. The developers actually motivated you, to plan your own assassination and eventually executing it. This Hitman does exactly the same but gives you hints and “opportunities” in executing the perfect assassination in different parts of the world and after a great episode in Sapienza, it’s time to take on Marrakesh.
An incredibly detailed world, adds up to an amazing immersion which is one of Hitman’s biggest strengths.
Agent 47 is given the freedom to eliminate two main targets: a Swedish banker and a Moroccan general. These 2 might have something to do with the recent riots that have been plotted by conspirators in their quest for power. Agent 47 has to explore a living breathing market with a big amount of NPC’s, doing what they’re doing. In the beginning, it’s quite overwhelming to see these many people fitted on a screen but then again this and an incredibly detailed world, adds up to an amazing immersion which is one of Hitman’s biggest strengths. The central market is a big place to explore, but the map doesn’t feel as big as in the previous episode, however, the level’s space is still big enough to explore. You’ll still want to take your time to search for specific equipment that will help you getting that perfect kill.
Just like any other episode, there’s still the opportunity system in Hitman. This mechanic gives you a heads up about “innovative ways of killing your targets”. The developers really worked their butts off to get this system right. In the beginning of this new Hitman game, the opportunity system was “present” but the developers didn’t really focus on getting your attention on that specific mechanic. They re-implemented the opportunity system into the previous episode and the difference was “night & day”. Sapienza implemented the opportunity system perfectly but it seems that the opportunity system within the latest episode Marrakesh is somewhere in between the first and the second episode. Some of these current”possible assassinations” felt creative but most of them seemed bland and uninspired. Though, the sandbox you’re playing in is still a lot of fun but less than previous episodes.
Each episode stands alone and this is a good way in keeping those customers motivated and excited to play the next episode.
Even though one of the core mechanics seems to fail sometimes, the mission itself has been written like agent 47 is in his own James Bond movie. Each episode had a different tone so far and I really hope they’ll continue in this direction. You get the feeling that your targets really influenced the world around you and that you’re actually playing a big important part in this universe. Your targets are constantly different with their own set of schemes and it’s up to you to prevent it whatever they’re planning to do. I really like the idea of getting my targets from an unknown source and you’re not hunting one main enemy. You’re hunting targets with their own characteristics and personal goals, none of these targets from all episodes have a connection between them. You’re just killing the bad guys one by one and I love it. You’re always wondering what kind of target you’re getting next… It can be anything and that’s what’s exciting about this periodically releases. You don’t have to re-read quests or journals to keep up with the story thanks to the release of the next episode. You just start over again with a clean slate or maybe even replay the mission to get a better score. Each episode stands alone and this is a good way in keeping those customers motivated and exciting to play the next episode.
The gameplay doesn’t differentiate from previous episodes. You kill someone or knock them out cold, get their clothes and disguise yourself like any other Hitman will do. It’s a formula that works well alongside the opportunities system but it gets kind of boring after a while. Nothing new has actually been added to the game but they do try a different approach when you’re targeting General Reza Zaydan. This mission takes a more stealthy approach than other targets. This general is literally surrounded with X-ray vision soldiers that can see through all of your disguises, so you’ll have to hide, peek out the corner and get to the General without anyone noticing you. It’s a bit back to the basic roots of the Hitman games but it’s definitely a way of regaining focus and approach the target from a different angle. It’s more like the “stealthy kill and run away” strategy.
However, the Swedish target is much more boring and takes on the classic pattern of previous episodes, it’s all about the right disguise for the right zone. This pattern becomes boring and uninteresting, we need more creative opportunities, maybe take on a more “gadget” like approach with the next target? What’s a special agent without his tricks up his sleeves? Another thing I noticed was the response of the AI to an unsilenced gun. Nobody moved after the shot, not even an inch… Even though the game can be immersive due to its detailed world, the AI is another thing. The same goes for their terrible American accent… Everybody in Marrakesh seemed to be influenced by the American culture as a lot of the characters share the same dull American accent. This doesn’t cut it for me, to be honest… It takes away a lot of immersion. Just try to be more realistic and get 90 percent of the facts straight, this includes from “happenings” to “accents”. Hopefully, the developers will see into this matter.
Conclusion:
Marrakesh is good for a next episode but it doesn’t remove the spotlight from Sapienza. It’s a good example of how missions can be and how to improve certain missions. Killing the general was a lot more satisfying than killing the Swedish banker and that’s all because of a limited amount of creative “opportunities” you got. I hope the developers will stray away from this classic “Get a disguise and kill your target” approach and try to think out of the box. Don’t get me wrong, from what I’ve seen so far, the game is great but some things can be improved for the better, just like any other game but this episodical approach gives the opportunity to the developers to respond to the communities issues and solve them. Their game isn’t completed yet, so why not improve the future episodes to make an excellent game instead of a good game. I’m looking forward to the next episode…
