Gaming Target - PlayStation 2: 007: Hitman 2: Silent Assassin

Written by Chris Reiter on February 01, 2002

First Impressions: Now you see me, now you don't.

Maybe Hitman for the PC platform wasn't as good as everyone might've expected. But, there's always room for change, isn't there? That's where Hitman 2: Silent Assassin for the PlayStation 2 console comes in. With better controls, sharper graphics, and even a new storyline in which you kill or become killed, Eidos Interactive promises this time better results for whether you were a fan or not in the original. Any way you look at it though, from the outcome of this game, it's turning out to be killer.

A hitman is someone who's paid to take out another person by any means possible. Whether it is to use a sniper rifle from a distance, or going undercover, and unleashing brutal force upon the target -- that's the life of a professional murder. As the main character the "Hitman", your retirement is refurnished when a crime boss persuades you to come back into the game, to kill for him. Soon after, you'll find out it was all a setup, and the job you were once assigned to was a deceptive trick, and now you're the one everyone wants to wipeout. It's now up to you to take on the bad guys with your vast knowledge of stealthy skills, and slick weaponry.

So far, the game is looking excellent. In fact, Eidos hopes to have the game polished off, and ready to look good at a rate of 60 FPS by the time it's finished by its summer release this year. Each of the game's areas is being built with splendorous architectural designs, and high polygon counts. Realistic lighting and shadow effects will also fine-tune the finish. Basically, the developer, IO Interactive, is leaving no stone unturned for this version of a Hitman title.

Through exotic locales, you'll get to visit such worldly areas as St. Petersburg, Sicily, Japan, India, and Malaysia. Hitman's gameplay offerings are handed to you in a set of differences, for whatever the mission's task requires. Sometimes, you may need to kill a bunch of different enemies head on with a giant arsenal of weapons, ranging from explosive devices, to handguns, knives, and even a sniper rifle. Non-lethal weaponry, from stun guns to chloroform and accessories, such as lock picks or night vision goggles will also come as part of the gameplay.

With all of the above mentioned items used to kill, or even use to advance ahead in the game, it's intended that exercising their abilities will not always be an easy task. The gameplay is taking a turn in a different direction than any normal action game ever has. Hitman 2 will have the player decide what the best choice always is for any situation. For example, one level within India has two different options from which to proceed in the game. The scenario lets you either take a sewer route to sneak inside an enemy sanctum, or, you can choose the latter which has you kill a guard, and take his clothing to disguise yourself for an easy passage through the front door. Also in effect through the gameplay is a tension meter, that if you are to act funny in anyway, a bar will fill up giving guards the impression that you're not one of them. No matter how you look at it, Hitman is indeed becoming an interesting game on any ratio.