Hitman - Episode 1: Paris Reviews
A glorious return to form for Agent 47 and the Hitman series. Even the constant server issues can't stand in the way of just how rewarding the gameplay is and the multitudes of approaches to the mission.
One thing's for sure: The more I've played Hitman's debut "episode" the more I've enjoyed it. Despite the often boneheaded AI and dire loading times, Hitman has definitely combined the best of both worlds. There's scope for it to improve in some areas as the levels are released throughout the year but this is a fun, confident start.
I'm still not entirely sold on the way Hitman is being sold, in an episodic package that will open up over the next few months. Regardless, the game is off to a great start thus far, despite minor glitches and drab conversations. Agent 47 continues to be a master of his killing skills, and the first stage of the game, along with the escalation mode and Contracts, really give you a better idea of what's ahead. This is one assassination you'll want to see through to the end.
When you're playing and engaged, Hitman is a thoughtful, well-paced, and beautiful introduction to what should be an incredible multi-part adventure. It's hard to imagine how Square Enix and IO could possibly screw up something this good. If nothing else, for $15 The Prologue and Paris Showstopper missions are absolutely worth your time and money. The stages were so lovingly pieced together and offer you seemingly endless possibilities for creative, violent expression. Even after you execute every hit every way you possibly can, you can create your own contracts or take on those of your peers for an extra challenge. It's an incredible bang for the buck, and I can't wait to to head to Italy next month.
Hitman hält bereits in der ersten Episode einiges für Fans der Serie bereit und bietet eine gekonnte Mischung aus einer riesigen Sandbox und deutlich verbesserten Gameplay gegenüber den bisherigen Ablegern der Serie. Der Umfang ist zwar nur bedingt zu empfehlen, da Story Spieler eher wenig aus den vielen Möglichkeiten machen können und der Titel hat auch seine Schwächen wenn es um Realismus und Einbindung von Spieler Entscheidungen geht, aber ansonsten bleibt nur noch abzuwarten, was die nächsten Missionen für uns bereit halten werden.
Review in German | Read full review
Despite being a smart progression of Blood Money's ideas, Hitman feels unrefined and unfinished in lots of small but important ways.
Hitman tries an interesting balance of stuffing a lot into a little, but doesn't exactly pull it off with elegance. While levels are large sandboxes containing numerous death-fulfilling opportunities, they come with the extra baggage of lackluster technical performance. Without the option of going to different locations of an equal size, Hitman currently feels like a product that lacks in its offering once enemy patterns and building layouts have been memorized.
Stop, infiltrate, and listen. 47's back with a great new invention
Hitman looks very promising so far even as an episodic release title, but the always-online DRM hampers it and may prove a serious black mark if it remains this unstable.
There is not much to say about the story for the Hitman Intro Pack, but it does leave the player at quite a cliffhanger. Impressive graphics and intuitive gameplay mechanics give this game a good replay value, but it boils down to if you would want to play the same mission over and over again before the next episode comes out.
Review in Arabic | Read full review
Hitman is off to a good start, but the ridiculous load times and the always-online issues bring down an otherwise impressive entry in the Hitman series.
Overall, the Hitman reboot is something I expected for a stealth game. The franchise reboot installment went to a path of letting players experience what an ultimate assassin should be, it didn't disappoint, but with all the server issues plus the 90% to be always-online overthrows the long-term experience of what Io Interactive wants to give to its players. Until the servers are fixed and stable, it's the first impression that makes the game worth buying.
The first episode of Hitman has a lot to offer creative assassins, but enjoying it requires you to look past an array of inconsistencies.
Stealing a staff uniform from the locker room, dropping your gun into a wastebasket so you can let a guard frisk you before he lets you into the room of a Sheik, then knocking the Shiek out, stealing his clothes, and infiltrating a high-society sale of state secrets so you can tamper with an outdoor heater and let a woman blow herself up when she goes to grab a smoke. That's Hitman's highs.
The HITMAN "Intro Pack" tries to squeeze out as much gameplay as it can from a limited amount of content. While it succeeds in doing so, it also has a tendency to become quite repetitive and long loading times have a tendency to hinder the experience. What it does do is create a solid foundation upon which the rest of the content can build.
Hitman's pioneer episode does right by the Hitman name. Dozens of challenges and user-generated assassinations offer untold hours of replay value, even when the exotic sounds and sights of Paris lose their allure.
Playing by the rules can still be fun, and despite my misgivings I'm interested in seeing more Hitman in the coming months. Its lavish environments allow for enough outcomes and stories that I can't dismiss its decision to trade real freedom for bespoke scenarios out of hand. And most importantly, the illusion it offers of getting in and out without being seen and on your own terms lingers just long enough to be worthwhile. I'm just disappointed it was an illusion in the first place.
Plenty of promise, but this game is going to require some decent updates over the coming months.
It's understandable that the release of Hitman in episodes may cause concern as it's not something that the gaming community will likely want for its triple-A titles. Though, with this particular game, I consider it paramount that IO interactive get it right, especially after the disappointing Hitman: Absolution, which felt incomplete.
This review covers the PS4 version of the game.