Hitman: Absolution Video Walkthrough

Hitman: Absolution release date in October isn't far off but Square-Enix decided they want to give players an even greater look at Agent 47 in action despite the countless other videos and Sniper Challenge mini game. Game director, Tore Blystad and Travis Barbour provide commentary as Agent 47 searches for answers concerning the whereabouts of Victoria. In the level entitled "The Streets of Hope" he's after Lenny "The Limp" Dexter, the leader of a local street gang that goes by "The Cougars". In addition to kidnapping Lenny, you are also tasked with taking out the members of his gang.

The non-linear style of play allows you to approach in your missions in your own unique way and at your own pace. You can explore the environment and find tools and other assets that will aid you in your completion of the mission. Improvised weapons and disguises are two of the biggest assets you will come across. These improvised weapons will prove invaluable to making quick kills or creating accidental deaths to drawing suspicion. Disguises, as always will be your key into restricted areas. In some cases however, characters can see through your disguise if you aren't careful or linger in their line of sight too long, so they aren't fool-proof this time around.

A new notebook feature, similar to the PDA from Blood Money, allows you to track your progress in the current mission. You can see your completed objectives and view challenges in the notebook as you play. Challenges are similar to those in the Sniper Challenge game and if completed will earn you more money. The notebook tracks how much money you've earned for the current mission as well and tells you what negative and what positive scores you have received. Playing more stealthily and covering your tracks will earn you more money.

The new instinct feature shows off how it can be utilized to discover hiding places, weapons and to locate targets. Instinct can be turned off however along with other various advice tools and tips that display on the screen. A new "trespassing" alert will appear if you're in an area that you aren't supposed to be so you know to be careful or to find a disguise. Unlike other Hitman games though, trespassing won"t instantly get you shot at by armed guards. In Absolution, you're simply escorted out of the area, permitting you didn't see any potentially incriminating material. The other alert lets you know that there is a visible weapon equipped so that you can put it away before you're caught. The tips and instinct can all be disabled though for veteran players or those who want more of a challenge.

The trailer shows off a couple of other new features but i'll let you watch to discover those yourself. the visuals look better than any Hitman game before it with excellent lighting effects, facial detail and general body movement and environment detail. Look for Hitman: Absolution on November 20, 2012 and be sure to pre-order the game to earn one of four cool in-game bonuses.

Agent 47 makes a visit to China Town

He's not there for Orange Chicken.

In the first hands-on footage for Hitman: Absolution, shown at E3, Producer at IO Interactive, Luke Valentine gives us some insight on what we can expect in the game. Our favorite bald assassin is after the King of China Town and the demo shows how assignments in Absolution can be completed in a variety of different ways. As Agent 47, you can draw attention to yourself and make a scene, do things quietly or just make the hit look like an accident. In the game, it's up to you.

The gameplay also does an excellent job of demonstrating the crowd effects in Absolution. Unlike the Mardi Gras level from Hitman: Blood Money, the crowd in Absolution behaves realistically. You can overhear conversations, you see people eating, buying or doing different kinds of jobs on the jumbled streets. All of it adds up to create an experience that feels like a real situation. Absolution also makes fine use of a more present soundtrack as well featuring plenty of low, foreboding tones.

You can see some of 47's new tricks and all the methods he employs to complete his assignment in the video below. What do you think of Hitman: Absolution so far?

New Hitman: Absolution trailer pits Agent 47 against Nun Assassins

In the latest trailer (below) for Hitman: Absolution, we see Agent 47 take on some unique looking, rival assassins. The leather clad nuns, armed to the teeth with guns and rocket launchers, ambush 47 in an old looking motel but quickly learn that they are outmatched. In a stylistic fight scene, Agent 47 uses stealth, hand-to-hand combat, and his trusty Silver-Ballers to take out each of the nuns.

While the nuns serve as a cheap effort to implement sexuality into Absolution, the trailer highlights some of the games other strengths. The visuals look absolutely stunning; at one point, early in the video, the game almost looked like a live action sequence. Even during the actual fight scene, the graphics just looked so fine and detailed. The general movement of the characters, their clothes, the behavior of the rain water all made it into a brilliant looking trailer. I really hope to see more in the future and hope that sequences such as this will be abundant throughout Hitman: Absolution. Hitman: Absolution will sneak onto store shelves in November for the PS3, Xbox 360 and PC.

Hitman: Absolution's Sniper Challenge is a riot

After work yesterday at approximately 6 P.M. I made my way over to my local Gamestop to pre-order my copy of Hitman: Absolution. After my receipt printed, the cashier handed it to me and kindly pointed out the redeemable code for one of the coolest pre-order bonuses ever. Sniper Challenge is a downloadable game you can play if you pre-order Hitman: Absolution from Gamestop. I was skeptical about this bonus game but it's well worth the two minutes it'll take for you to pre-order the game. It's based on a single re-playable mission in which you can compete for the highest score or just find different and creative ways to complete the objectives.

As Agent 47, you are assigned a target, a one Jr. Strong to eliminate. Strong is making an appearance at  a party being held atop a Chicago high-rise. In your briefing, you're informed that Strong is very punctual and will only be in attendance for 15 minutes. He's also surrounded by a small army of guards who are either by his side or patrolling the building.

Perched atop a neighboring building, it is your job to eliminate Strong and all of his body guards in whatever fashion you deem necessary. You can make a lot of noise and scare everybody off or you can keep a low profile, like a true assassin. You can time your kills carefully and 'hide' bodies; for instance when guards walk over to a ledge, you can plant a bullet in the back of their skull to send them to street-level. A fountain and elevator shaft also provide excellent spots to dump bodies. By hiding and timing your kills carefully, you can avoid being 'exposed' and earn the legendary Silent Assassin bonus to be added to your score. You also get bonuses for making quick, successive kills, landing head shots, moving shots and how much time you have left when you've eliminated all of the targets.

The bonuses don't stop there however. You're given a list of challenges, which if completed earn you a permanent score modifier. Some challenges offer a tough goal but other challenges aren't so much difficult as they are quirky. The Hitman games have always had a subtle brand of comedy in them and Sniper Challenge is no exception. Be prepared to take out some gnomes, activate some mines, cap a ninja and even remove evidence of a stripper when you go after the challenges. High scores earn you upgrades for your rifle such as enhanced sights, a faster bolt and reload times. These upgrades are also transferred to your game when you play Absolution.

While I have had a blast so far competing for a high score, completing my still incomplete challenge list and just sniping as Agent 47, I have to admit, one of the most impressive features of the game were the actual visuals. The graphics are leagues better than Blood Money (yes I know it came out a long time ago) and the game just looked beautiful. The Chicago skyline is coated in orange hues from a setting sun and it just looks brilliant. You're also given snippets of cinematic and gameplay video when you restart the mission each time and I feel as though I'm awed each time I watch them. I also feel the controls deserve a mention as well. They're set pretty standard (you can really only, aim, shoot, reload) but following guards in the scope felt unusually smooth. I feel like in most games when I use a sniper, the scope staggers, goes to fast and I lose control. In Sniper Challenge, it felt very easy to control the rifle and the scope followed guards very fluidly. There's also a button that activates Agent 47's 'instincts'. When in instinct mode, 47 can see enemies through walls and obstacles highlighted in yellow or the main target in red.

Bottom line, Sniper Challenge is awesome and easily one of the best bonuses I've ever gotten for pre-ordering a game. If you haven't reserved your copy of Hitman: Absolution yet, go to Gamestop and do so now and redeem your free copy of Sniper Challenge!

Hitman: Absolution gets release date

Square-Enix announced this morning that Hitman: Absolution will be hitting stores November 20 and will be available for the PS3, Xbox 360 and the PC. There are a load of pre-order bonuses for Hitman like unique suits and firearms depending on where you pre-order the game from. Gamestop however, is offering the Sniper Challenge bonus game which will be available on May 15. Hitman: Absolution is being released with a list of killer titles this fall, you can take a look at the list here.

What games are you most excited for this year?

I was recently looking at the list of games waiting to be released this year and I literally said to myself, "Holy schnikes!" There are a lot of great looking games that will be shipping this year, almost all of them are part of an already well known franchise. With so many awesome games on the way, which ones are you saving your cash for? Take a look at the list below to get an idea of what's coming in 2012.

Sleeping Dogs – August 17
Dark Souls (PC) – August 24
Madden NFL 13 – August 28
Far Cry 3 – September 4
Borderlands 2 – September 18
Resident Evil 6 – October 2
Medal of Honor: Warfighter – October 23
Assassin's Creed III – October 30
Halo 4 – November 6
Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 – November 13

That's not all though, there's also quite a few titles already confirmed for 2012 but waiting for an exact date. You can expect to see dates soon for games like Tomb Raider (reboot), Hitman: Absolution, Dishonored, XCOM: Enemy Unknown, Brothers in Arms: Furious 4, Aliens: Colonial Marines, Skylanders Giants, and Epic Mickey 2: The Power of Two. There is even speculation that Grand Theft Auto V will hit stores this year as well. 

I've been debating which games I'm most excited for and I have to say that with this year's lineup its going to be  tough. I would have said Bioshock Infinite would be the one game I'm most anticipating but it was recently delayed until February of 2013. My runner up (currently) would have to be the Tomb Raider reboot. It just looks so raw and so real and I can't wait to see how the game has been changed. While details have been scarce since E3 of last year, the game sounds like it will focus a lot more on survival. Lara won't be carrying an arsenal that could supply a small army or her own personal set of gadgets to get her out of trouble. This time around she will have to rely on her instincts to survive. I'm just so intrigued by all the new ideas being implemented and I can't wait to get more details on the plot.

After Tomb Raider, it's a really close tie between, Assassin's Creed 3, Dishonored and Hitman: Absolution. I love Assassin's Creed and I'm really glad they're taking the next step with a completely new game and moving on with the series. As for Hitman, it has been quite a while since Blood Money and I've really missed Agent 47. The game's graphics look amazing and the gameplay trailers show off some of 47's new tricks. He's now able to handle a lot more objects in the environment and employ them to bash an enemy's skull. There's also an ability much like Eagle Vision in Assassin's Creed which 47 can use to aid him in sneaking past enemies or taking them out.

As for Dishonored, I have to say I'm excited because it is influenced by Thief and looks/sounds like it'll play somewhat like Bioshock. Set in the middle ages with some steam punk flair, Dishonored follows the story of former personal guard to the empress, Corvo. He's also a master assassin that has been imbued with super natural powers. He has a skill set that make him a deadly swordsman, expert marksman and skilled infiltrator. The story starts with Corvo having been framed for the murder of the empress, the very person he was assigned to protect. Out for revenge, Corvo vows to eliminate those responsible for framing him and those who have been oppressing the people in the dystopian setting. The game has parkour, powers which can be wielded with weapons much like Bioshock and an awesome sounding plot (there's more to it than I explained). Those ingredients sound like they'll make a mean game and I can't wait. 

Enough about me though, what are you excited for? Maybe Borderlands 2 or Resident Evil 6? Whatever it is, you really can't go wrong here since all of these games look very promising. 

Hitman: Absolution sniper challenge revealed with other pre-order bonuses

IO interactive and Square-Enix teased earlier this week that they'd be making some big announcement related to Hitman: Absolution on May 10 but it seems someone spilled the beans. Hitman: Sniper Challenge is being made available for those who preorder Hitman: Absolution. Not much is known but the picture that spoiled it all came from Gameinformer magazine; it states, as Agent 47 you can engage in a "replayable sniping mission" and customize an "exclusive rifle". As of now it sounds like the game is composed of a single mission and up-gradable rifle - doesn't sound very promising. However there are some other pre-order bonuses you can get your hands on depending on where you get the game from.

Amazon is offering a suit simply called the "High Tech Suit" which increases Agent 47's armor rating by 50%. Also included will be the Bartoli custom pistol, a powerful handgun equipped with a suppressor and sight that will no doubt come in use if you want to be stealthy.

If you pre-order the game at Best Buy, you will get the "Public Enemy Suit" and agent 47 will resemble a gangster worthy of the name John Dillinger. You can also equip 47 with the Bronson m1928 to really fit the role and mow down some bad guys if you get into a tight fix.

Last but not least, a Walmart pre-order nets you the "High Roller Suit" which will let you kill in style with this sharp looking tuxedo. You'll also get the Krugermeier 2-2 pistol, another deadly stealth firearm equipped with a silencer. It's also a great accessory to go with that tux.

So who will you be ordering from now that you know what you can get. I have to say I'm leaning toward Best Buy or Amazon but I also like the bald James Bond look 47 is sporting in the high roller suit. Also, what do you think of this sniper challenge bonus that has also been revealed? Do you think there will be more levels or just the one repayable one described in the article.

Agent 47 gets his hands dirty in new Hitman: Absolution screens

The front page of the most recent issue of the Hope News Times (the local newspaper featured in the game) features two pictures shows the results of Agent 47's dirty work. The article on the paper details the senseless death of a man named Gavin LeBlonde who met his demise after coming into contact with a chain-link fence that had been hooked up to a 'mega-voltage generator'. Sheriff Skurky of Hope Minnesota assures the public that the situation 'is no laughing matter' and sounds like he's on the case and determined to catch the culprit. Will he get in Agent 47's way?

Reading the article, you can see IO-interactive has chosen to continue the occasional comedic quirks that have always been present in Hitman. The title of the article evokes a chuckle almost mocking the death of this Gavin Leblonde and similar elements can be seen in the other newspaper stories.

New Hitman Absolution Trailer Details the art of the Kill

Deadly assassin, Agent 47 doesn't mind getting his hands dirty. In a new trailer, 47 shows off a slew of new tricks and tactics players can employ throughout the game. While some players will go for a stealthy approach donning disguises and sneaking past enemies, the narrator of the trailer suggests you can take out all who stand in your way if you wish. Normally in stealth based games, going all out usually punishes players but it seems in Absolution, it may actually be encouraged. This allows players to experience missions in different ways each time they play them and mix up their tactics. Hitman Absolution looks like it'll be offering a more developed melee combat system, along with improvised weapons and tactics entirely new to the game. At one point, Agent 47 uses a toy to distract a guard or at another point he's seen throwing a syringe at an enemy's face. With all of 47's new abilities, it seems the possibilities are endless, see for yourself in the trailer below.

Aside from showing off all 47's new abilities, the trailer highlights some of the great graphical improvements the game has undergone since it's predecessor. At one point you can actually see the pores on 47's face and his coat and tie move naturally with his movements. Hitman Absolution looks to be shaping up into a fine sequel for the series and is suspected to be released this year.

Two New Screenshots from Hitman: Absolution

Our favorite bald assassin seems to be up to his usual activities in these two new screenshots. I'm sure we can all assume he wasn't invited to this little get-together and he has more sinister motives. Apparently the barbecue was arranged by Mason McCready; likely 47's target. If you look closely, there is a type of logo painted onto the wall. It reads 'Cougars' with some illegible text under it. Could this be a possible gang? Guess we'll have to wait to find out. Hitman: Absolution currently has no release date but is expected to be released this year.