Game Review: Hitman 2 tries to unveil tale behind Agent 47's past

Despite a weak story mode, Hitman 2 pays great attention to the details of cities where it plays out

When the episodic Hitman released in 2016, it was by far one of the best stealth games out there. The sheer number of ways to kill a target and the complex levels — everything just stood out. The new Hitman 2 brings more of that to the table.

Unlike the last game, in this series, we get all the chapters up front. This means that you no longer spend a significant time finishing a level over and over again, before the next episode is out. Here, you can do them in quick succession. Most importantly, the game builds on several aspects of the first game and people, who bought the previous Hitman, can download an updated version that features new graphics and all the extras, free of cost.

Hitman 2 can be finished from start to finish in around 15 hours. However, as was with the previous game, this is meant to be played multiple times. Each level has many objectives and stories to be discovered and you can play through them to get 100 per cent completion, and extra points for killing people without anyone noticing.

The game's story-mode tries to unveil the tale behind Agent 47's past. Unfortunately, it is merely a distraction and you can see that the developers put little time into building it. The story is only an outline. All the cut-scenes in between levels are just pictures of people with voice-overs from the characters. It is a bit disappointing, and almost feels low budget. This changes when you actually get to play the game.

The game levels are spectacular with lots of details, little mini stories and ridiculous conversations that you can eavesdrop on. The standout level is the one in Mumbai. The amount of detail, the voice-overs and the familiar feeling you get while playing, is just brilliant. The slums are very thoughtfully recreated with gutters, flimsy boards to walk over them, shanties on top of shanties. It is a little filmy and over the top, but it is grounded at the same time with familiar vehicles, vendors and even BEST buses.

Agent 47, however, makes an unconvincing Indian in disguise. The vast Mumbai map is also one of the maps that really force you to explore it from one end to the other, as targets are at different ends of the location. The other standout location is Whittleton Creek, USA, which has so many stories and other things to explore during the mission. The sniper mode is a brilliant addition to the game. The single location vantage point from where you have to kill multiple targets is ridiculously hard and satisfying when you finish.

The multiplayer mode though, is strange, especially for a game that values taking your time, squaring off against an opponent in the parallel screen, to see who finishes the mission first. If you loved the 2016 Hitman, you will love this one, too. However, the experience could have been better if there was more attention paid to the story. It is still a game worth getting, but Hitman may need to step it up if they want the next one to be a hit.

Hitman 2
Rating: 4/5
Developer: IO Interactive
Publisher: Warner Bros.
Platform: PC, PS4, XBO
Price: PC: Rs 1,349; PS4/XBOX: Rs 3,499

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