It's been good 20 years, since I last played a Hitman game (Contracts and Agent 47, in that order). While I enjoyed both titles, I never was a "fan". I picked up Absolution and Blood Money, feeling anxious because of the bad reviews on former and never being good at social stealth games. I was pleasantly surprised. The story is basic and a bit cliche, but Hitman never was a series, that took itself too serious. It is a series about a cloned asexual assassin with five dads, killing people for obscene amount of money. The game stops holding you by hand after third mission and punches you in the gut with you having to survive a manhunt by CCPD. Absolution gives you broad inventory of tools and arena-like sections, letting you pick up the pace. With bypassers and even goons now having small "slice of life" episodes, you are encouraged to consider leaving them alive (but never forced to). While I wasn't happy about some things, like suspition mechanic and scoreboard, they are not deal breakers to me. I already can recommend it as an "entry point" to more casual fans. Is it casualized compare to Contracts? - yes, but you will still have to run a gauntlet and see "Restart mission" button even on lower difficulties. 4,5/5.
Cancell the Post-Apocalypse, embrace the Crab.
I am tired of those mandatory reviews!!
i
