The infamous game which puts you in the shoes of an international assassin is back. Once again you get to become pure evil and to enjoy the faces of your victims as you slowly pull the trigger. Corrupt and in some ways sick, this game is almost guaranteed success.
Improving on Hitman - Codename 47 is no small feat. The problem list, generated by the game, is long and the complaints many. Difficult controls, dumb enemies and chance missions were just some of the unpleasant features of the first Hitman. It seems however, that IO Interactive have been paying attention. Hitman 2 promises to improve on the first and will deliver a captivating, immersing experience.
Hitman 2 - Silent Assassin is scheduled for a possible Q4, 2002 release.
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Enter the realm of a retired assassin, forced back into action by treason. You may be a hired killer but you still have a sense of loyalty and justice.
Visit the dark recesses of a world corrupted by crime, greed, degradation and dishonour.
And a past that catches up with you.
Trust no one - if the price is right, the finger of your most trusted ally will be on the trigger.
Your targets may hide in the most remote areas of the planet, but their destruction is never prevented - only postponed.
Learn your trade - master your tools - overcome your obstacles - outsmart your enemies - eliminate your targets. Remember - rash decisions bleed consequences. Know when to strike instantly, know when to take your time. Chance favours the prepared player. Failure is not an option - it is a privilege reserved for those who do not try hard enough.
You have returned - and you will track down the organization that forced you out of retirement. You may find that the enemy is closer than you think - retrace your steps, and you will prevail.
Changes
According to IO's Thor Frolich There are so many (changes) I don't know where to start, but here goes: You're able to turn off lamps by shooting at them or disrupting their power supply. Hitman's visibility is depended on the amount of light on the character, so you're able to hide in shadows. We've implemented non-lethal methods of subduing victims. If you're a great shot it's possible to disarm enemies by hitting their weapon or the hand. The AI now responds to irregular behaviour, ie. running - it won't trigger enmity right away but rather raise their interest in you. A save game feature has been implemented, much to our delight. These are just some of the things that have happened between Hitman - Codename 47 and Hitman 2 - Silent Assassin
On the influence of gamer feedback he says We got a lot of feedback from the first game. Much of it was quite useful. Gamer feedback is a tricky thing, however. You constantly have to keep in mind that the most vocal groupings in the gaming community aren't necessarily speaking on the behalf of everyone. That said, the most important thing we realized was the importance of having an open gameplay. Reading about how players completed missions in the weirdest of ways was really gratifying and reinforced our belief in this being much of the key to Hitman's success.
Hitman 2 FPS?
According to Frolich The 1st person option was originally implemented as an aid to the auto-aim for the consoles. That way you'd be able to make a more carefully aimed shot. We left it in for the pc version because we believe in letting the player chose how to play the game. So you'll be able to play the entire game in 1st person OR never use it - it's up to you.
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One of the most impressive features of the first Hitman game was the assassin's immense arsenal. IO Interactive are promising more of the same for the new installment.
Handguns
AMT Hardballer .45
One of Hitman's trademark tools. Reliable and packing quite a punch, this pistol quicky became a recurring companion on the job. The Hardballer is a deluxe version of the Colt 1911 service pistol and shoots the hard-hitting .45 ACP round.
Other available handguns include the Beretta Model 92, Desert Eagle, Ruger .22 silenced, PSM and the Colt Python
SubMachine Guns
Heckler & Koch MP5
THE sub-machine gun. Used by virtually every special anti-terror organisations all over the globe, this SMG is delicate, precise and compact. With its high rate of fire and very little recoil this weapon is excellent for indoor and urban operations.
Other submachine guns used are the modified MP5 SD6 complete with integrated silencer and the alltime classic, the Uzi
Rifles & MachineGuns
AKSU
A special version of the successor to the most popular assault rifle in modern times, the AKSU is built on a very well documented and tested foundation. It's based on the AK-74, but is a great deal shorter. This rifle is usually issued to para-troopers and special forces.
Other rifles and machine guns are the Franchi SPAS 12, M4A1 and the M60
Sniper Rifles
Dragunov SVD Sniper's rifle
This popular sniper rifle is based on the very popular AK-47 assault rifle but has simpler, more delicate and precise inner workings. It fires the old 7.62 x54R cartridge and has an effective range of appr. 1300 metres with an appropriate scope fitted.
Considering the nature of the game it is evident that a wide selection of sniper rifles is available, some of those are: Crossbow, R93, Walther WA2000, Walther WA2000 Custom and the Barrett M95
Special Weapons
Pentagon Combat Knife
As a Hitman you work under very stressful conditions, sometimes the job has to be done very quietly and stealthy. This is where the knife comes in. The Pentagon Combat Knife has a stainless steel blade with a serrated edge. It's standard equipment with many special forces through-out the world.
Other special weapons include Chloroform and Fiber wire although many more will be introduced as development of the game progresses.
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Extreme conditions demand extreme responses. Therefore, as a hitman, you must wield a number of finely tuned abilities with precision and caution. After all, only the most professional and focused mind will prevail. Who's ever heard about an old hitman…?
Stealth
Getting to your victim can be a laborious task. More often than not, they suspect someone like your self might come calling. After all, contracts are rarely taken out on completely innocent civilians.
Sneak up on victims from behind and take them out using a variety of tools, such as garrottes and silenced firearms. Employ stealth and meticulous timing to circumvent patrolling guards and other pesky security precautions taken by your "mark". If too noisy and careless, you might end up staring down the business end of a sub-machinegun. And there is nothing more embarrassing than not being able to fulfil your contractual duties.
Modus Operandi M.O.
Being a freelance operator means that victims often won't suspect you until you trespass upon them. Use your anonymity to your advantage. Before a hit, be sure to have a good look at your surroundings. Is there anywhere you might stash a weapon in order to bypass a checkpoint? Maybe you can create a gap in security by creating a diversion?
Always have your escape route planned ahead of execution. Getting in might be relatively easy - getting out might not.
Guises/Appearance
Being able to move around restricted areas is crucial to your success as an assassin. Paranoid victims often enforce a strict closed-door policy. Therefore, disguising yourself will often aid you in your efforts to enter and exit locations unseen or at least unhindered. Subdue or terminate someone with access to the desired area and have a change of wardrobe. You will now be able to move around more freely. Be careful, though! After all, clothes aren't everything, so you'll still need to keep a low profile so as to not attract unwanted attention to yourself.
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In an attempt to overcome the many flaws in the enemy AI of the first game IO Interactive have introduced a wide range of enemies and targets which will react in a much more realistic way.
Charlie Sidjan - International Terrorist
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia: A teeming and at times turbulent hotspot of cultures with a booming economy - attracting investors and know how from all over the world. This overwhelming wealth makes the peninsula a spearhead of prosperity, luxury and incredible opportunities - with a feeding frenzy of organized crime in its wake.
Within the smog-infested city of Kuala Lumpur there lies a technological development; and on a greater scale, to the Multimedia Super Corridor - a vision of high technology that will propel Malaysia to the status of a developed nation.
A fantastic office building is the headquarters of Carniwarez Inc., run by Charlie Sidjan. Charlie Sidjan is of Minangkabau origin and, from an early age, became involved in local criminal activities. A large consignment of dadab (illicit drugs) was discovered by the police, and he was forced to flee across the Mallacan Strait to Singapore, and there on to Kuala Lumpur, where he used his hi-tech prowess and skills to establish a potent hacker corporation....
Don Anguillo Gulliano - Head of Sicilian Mafia
Head of one of the largest, oldest and most influential mafia organisations on Sicily. 60 years old, 1.80 tall, 120 kgs - and with quite an impressive rap sheet - extortion, prostitution, murder, kidnapping, racketeering, smuggling, illegal arms etc. The story about this castellamarese first family is a colourful yet dreadful history etched in blood - from omerta and the traditional mafia rituals of Sicily to the internecine bloodshed of a family feud over centuries, eventually resulting in him being the capo di tutti capi on this island. In the murky aftermath he ruthlessly removed all the competition - all the other Mafia chieftains, union racketeers, drug kingpins - and forever changed the course of organized crime history on this island. He has won a legacy that will live for centuries - but he has grown complacent. Complacency breeds mistakes. The Don had a routine kidnapping of a stranger carried out - nothing out of the ordinary here. But it would turn out to be the mistake of a lifetime. As they say here: Lu sangu lava lu sangu (blood washes blood).
Rinat S. Rumyantsev - ex KGB Officer
After the crumbling of the Kremlin, life in Russia turned hard - especially for ex-KGB officers. No longer could they rely on a corrupt system to protect them from retaliating forces and individuals who were suppressed and harassed during the Communist era. Some say the former Soviet Union was run by organized crime for almost 75 years. Be that as it may - facts are that large parts of the army suddenly found themselves in a void lacking proper funding and guidance. So - underpaid, understaffed and under equipped, many ambitious ex-KGB officers had to do zapodlo (shady business) with the underworld just to make ends meet.
In St. Petersburg, ex-KGB officers regularly do zapodlo with the local vor (crime boss) of one of the biggest mafia organizations. Rumours have it that a torpedo (underworld Russian slang for a contract killer) has been hired to take out one of the officers turned suki (traitor).
The commodity these officers usually trade in is arms - of all kinds and quantities. Now corruption, not control, rules the country. And these officers still have connections high in the nomenklatura (members of the government elite) - as well as access to nuclear weapons.
Masahiro Hayamoto - International Arms Dealer
The oyabun (head of a Yakuza clan) Masahiro Hayamoto runs the local chapter of the infamous crime syndicate, Yamaguchi-Gumi. Income stems from arms dealing and narcotics, primarily amphetamines. Other fields of activity include: money lending, smuggling, and pornography. Hayamoto-san is the survivor of many assassination attempts, including one in 1988, when he was shot in the neck by a member of a rival yakuza clan.
Masahiro Hayamotos six-story castle is located in a snowy canyon, complete with giant pine trees, patrolling shinobi guards and the latest in electronic surveillance. A local shogun built it here during the Edo period - and it's a fitting setting for a 20th century oyabun like Hayamoto.
Masahiro Hayamoto has a penchant for weaponry of every kind, so of course he spends a lot of time in his own private armoury…..Needless to say, all of this area is the private property of Hayamoto - trespassers will be dealt with swiftly and ruthlessly. But even the strongest chain has a weak link - as they say here: "Saru mo ki kara ochiru" Literally: Even monkeys fall from trees. Meaning: Even experts make mistakes, or - pride comes before a fall.
Abdul Bismillah Malik
Deep within the Kunduz valley, lies a secluded citadel, ruled by a local khan, Abdul Bismillah Malik, and his motley crew of warmongering Mujahedin and fierce Pushtun tribe members. Years of international terrorism, illegal drug trafficking and arms deals has earned him a reputation and a listing on the FBI's Most Wanted List: To his people he was a hero, and the local folklore already coined him as a paladin, bringing prosperity to this barren land. However - complacency, indolence and greed set in. He got softer on the religious principles and harder on the locals (to keep up his increasing demands of living standards). No more makeshift tents and dugout latrines! So - although he's lost his rebel credentials (and gained a great deal of weight!), he still holds the locals in a firm grip of terror, as refugees in a lawless state. The warlord is definitely not invulnerable, but almost untouchable - besides being protected by inhospitable mountains and vast deserts, he also has his staunch and taciturn bodyguards and travels in an armoured car in a cortege, on the rare occasions that he ventures out.
All of your main enemies will have various allies, as you will learn the game you will slowly begin to recognize them and to devise tactics in order to confront them.
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As an international Hitman you will live up to your title and travel all over the world in your quest for kills.
St. Petersburgh
Once called Leningrad this old city has seen its share of bullets and betrayal over the years. Communism, converted to a market economy with a teeming corruption following tightly in the wake - a bad cocktail. Difficult terrain, even for a trained assassin.
Expect both guards and soldiers here to be well trained, experienced and highly suspicious of foreigners. Wide, open boulevards makes hiding difficult. Weapons aren't exactly scarce here, so law enforcement and criminals alike are well equipped. Proceed with caution.
Sicily
Spring breaks early and powerfully on the Gulf of Castellammare. The citrus groves west of Palermo are already in fruit by the end of February, and the Sicilian air is so ripe with the odour of lemon and orange that it makes a visitor dizzy. From the sea, hillside villages are splashes of pastel masonry on a brilliant carpet of green and gold.
Above the awnings of the marketplace rises the dome of the church of the Carmine. The whole scene emanates balance, harmony, serenity. However, the shadow of the Casa Nostra looms ominously, ruthless if crossed even the slightest.
Malaysia
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia: A teeming and at times turbulent hotspot of cultures with a booming economy - attracting investors and know how from all over the world. This overwhelming wealth makes the peninsula a spearhead of prosperity, luxury and incredible opportunities - with a feeding frenzy of organized crime in its wake.
Legions of sterile and clean office buildings are the proud hallmarks of this explosive advance - at the same time reaching for the skies, and looming ominously over an ancient culture at the crossroads, staking a claim for the future.
Japan
Mountains cover three-quarters of Japan, with the larger ranges running through the centre of the Japanese archipelago like a spine. Towering above a beautiful lake and archaic temple-studded town emerges the sacred mountain of Kurokiyama - an inaccessible site visited only by the occasional Shinto pilgrim.
An ancient, six-story castle, with ceramic tiled hogyo roofing and massive stonewalls, looks down from its strategic position high on the neck of the mountain. A local shogun built it here during the Edo period - it is a fitting setting for a 20th century oyabun like Masahiro Hayamoto. From here he controls his yakuza maneuverings and international arms deals.
Nuristan
In a remote valley, hidden in the Hindu Kush mountain range in Nuristan,lies this secluded citadel. Ruled by a local khan, Abdul Bismillah Malik and his motley crew of warmongering mujahedin and fierce tribe members. Although the solid brick walls surrounding the citadel seem to indicate security, this stronghold has changed hands many times over the centuries.
The minaret also works as a watchtower, overlooking the steppes, hillsides and nearby river. A stranger sticks out like a sore thumb in these neck of the woods - but a professional always finds a way.
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