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Hitman: Blood Money (Reviews)

As I began writing this review word of the Hitman Blood Money demo has spread across the Xbox Live Community which is now available to download via the Xbox Live Marketplace. Agent 47 has returned in High-Definition glory in Hitman Blood Money. The Hitman franchise has been an incredible success for Eidos and IO-Interactive over the past few years as numerous incarnations of the game have sprawled across the Playstation 2, Xbox and PC but this time Agent 47 experiences his first next generation outing on the Xbox 360.

Enter the mind of a hired gun and welcome to the world of contract killings. You'll be given assigned contracts by the International Contract Agency Headquarters (ICA HQ) via your rather plush laptop, which will provide you with details of your next hit. Intelligence is very limited but the developers have included the option of buying further intelligence should you need it, but be careful with your cash as you can run out of it pretty quick and you'll need funds if you intend on splashing out on equipment and weapon upgrades.

You're initially armed with an assassin's Fibre Wire, which is basically a wire that you can use to strangle your victims in silence. Other items in your equipment arsenal include binoculars, syringes and coins. You've got an RU-AP mine and Detonator which are effective for well timed operations as you can detonate the mine from up to 25metres away.

As a Hitman you will have access to a number of weapons such as knives, the assassin's fibre wire and of course guns, lots of guns like assault rifles and sub-machine guns among many others. The really cool element with the weapons is that you can modify them by buying upgrades which could provide you with more lethal fire power or enhance your scope.

One of the first things you'll notice when you've loaded Hitman Blood Money and set up your profile (career) is the difficulty settings. There are four choices of difficulty and these are Rookie, Normal, Expert and Pro - each difficulty setting ranges in toughness: for example in rookie mode you have access to Infinite Saves and Full Agency Assistance while in Pro difficulty you won't be able to save the game until you've completed the level and you'll have very limited Agency Assistance.

Once you've started the game you can access a training guide by pressing the back button on the controller and the really neat thing is the instructions are read out to you making it a lot easier to get familiar with the character controls. You should really pay close attention to the training guide as you'll learn all of Agent 47's lethal moves including numerous close combat moves like head butting or disarming your opponent.

Each level in Hitman Blood Money is extremely detailed and very noticeable if you're playing the game on an HD TV. The locations that the levels are based on have been created with a realistic flair and as you wander around you can see the tiniest detail such as leaves covering an old wall with shadows cast on the ground. The amount of detail in the game is pretty amazing. For example, the guards' movements reflect those of a real person, and once they've patrolled an area they will have a rest by sitting down or slouching against a wall.

Over the past few days I've really got to grips with the game play and I'm astounded by the sheer amount of ways and freedom you have to complete a level. At times you will often need to infiltrate a heavy guarded area, and if you're wearing your classic black Hitman suit you won't get anywhere fast so you will need a disguise. Disguises can be acquired by searching rooms or by knocking out or killing workers and guards but remember you're an assassin and you cannot leave any trace of your presence. You will need to dispose of the body or bodies by placing them in containers or throwing them off cliffs.

When you complete a level a newspaper will appear on screen with headlines of the day's carnage, highlighting how many bad guys you've taken out alongside any innocent victims that got in the way of a fire-fight (whoops).

Overall, Hitman Bloody Money is an impressive and well executed game on the Xbox 360. There is no Xbox Live multiplayer but we are sure fans of the Hitman franchise will not be disappointed with Hitman Blood Money, after all it's the only legal way you can shoot people and make money without going to jail.

- posted by cro on 25.05.06
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