Here's 17 Minutes of Hitman: Absolution Gameplay With Commentary from IO Interactive

It's a Hitman game! An actual Hitman game!

I had no real interest in this game but this video has shown me that I was wrong.

There have to be nuns all over the place, and then some, for this game not to be good. Looks pretty damn ace judging by this footage I just saw.

@jbrady said:

I told you not to worry when the nun trailer came out. you see that band-aid on the back of his head? that's priiide fuckin' with you. Fuck Pride. that shit only hurts...

This.

Apart from those cops taking explosions to the face and not being affected by that, this looks really awesome.

Oh come now, 'silenced' guns still make a lot of noise.

And people doubted that this would be a good Hitman game.

Really digging the Splinter Cell mark & execute bit. Hopefully that will be awarded more for stealthy kills, and won't just come back with time.

@GERALTITUDE said:

Wow, super impressive. Game looks awesome but how many levels could there be if they're all so detailed?

Also, some weird logic: The first target is on a phone, but the person at the other end thinks nothing of their choking death or the line going dead. The third target is crushed by a car in the shop, but the cops don't think it's weird that a mechanic walks out?

Hate to nitpick, but they're clearly trying hard to make these systems feel "real," and the realer the systems seem, the more frustrating it is as a player to run into Game Walls, so to speak.

This has always been a thing in the Hitman games. If you stick around once they realize what happened, they will try to take you down, and running away is pretty suspicious. As for the phone bit, I imagine it would take a while for whoever was on the other line to get someone to where he was killed, and 47 isn't too concerned about the investigation following the assassinations. But yeah, the whole "walking away when everyone else is running towards it" always bothered me a bit.

the cash register should have been shocked by the gunshot

point shooting seemed to superhuman

Hype for game.  Cannot watch.  Afraid spoilers. 

@UKSamwise said:

This.

@Potts said:

And people doubted that this would be a good Hitman game.

Really digging the Splinter Cell mark & execute bit. Hopefully that will be awarded more for stealthy kills, and won't just come back with time.

LOL at the watered down Splinter Cell mode. If someone want's that in a Hitman game go play a different game. The game already looks easy enough.

@squirrelnacho said:

@Potts said:

And people doubted that this would be a good Hitman game.

Really digging the Splinter Cell mark & execute bit. Hopefully that will be awarded more for stealthy kills, and won't just come back with time.

LOL at the watered down Splinter Cell mode. If someone want's that in a Hitman game go play a different game. The game already looks easy enough.

you really have to ignore the line "you can turn these stuffs off" do you?

when is this game taking place? over multiple time periods or what?

I wish I was a bigger fan of the Hitman games than I am, but this is looking great. I felt that way when I first saw it, and still do. I really don't know, but I have a feeling this is a game that's going to fit well with fans of the previous ones, but at the same time be more accessible for newcomers as well.

I think it's funny how the cops go to the blown up place, but take no real notice of a man walking away from an explosion un-phased by it all. Then the whole crushing the guy with the car. Now that I've watched all of it... it seems a little ridiculous. It also seems like the developers revel in all that violence, which at times is a bit hilarious the way they talk about it so seriously.

Oh, I see the latest Hitman is using the new SpeedHUMP middleware.

@Ksaw: I find your comment jarring, it really jars me up

@Dixego said:

Take that, people who bashed the trailers!

On a separate note, where's 47's neck barcode?

? That trailer was still a fucking abomination. I'm glad to see the game is turning out alright, but that doesn't excuse that pandering shitty marketing

@AlianthaBerries: Good to know.

@Krystal_Sackful said:

Oh come now, 'silenced' guns still make a lot of noise.

Hardly the game to rally about realism for.

I've never got on with the "tag targets, shooting done for you" mechanics. Always feels like a cop out to me. Like admitting that the controls can't quite handle the gameplay so we have to have control taken away. Wasn't a fan of it in Red Dead Rev nor Splinter Cell. For me it removes all satisfaction of seeing a group drop dead because I didn't actually do it, I just told the game what to shoot and it did it for me. Looks nice otherwise though.

Holy shit at that last scene. Somebody needs to make a gif out of that.

The guy walking away from the explosion like nothing is wrong definitely had nothing to do with it

@AgentZigzag said:

I've never got on with the "tag targets, shooting done for you" mechanics. Always feels like a cop out to me. Like admitting that the controls can't quite handle the gameplay so we have to have control taken away. Wasn't a fan of it in Red Dead Rev nor Splinter Cell. For me it removes all satisfaction of seeing a group drop dead because I didn't actually do it, I just told the game what to shoot and it did it for me. Looks nice otherwise though.

Eh.

Red Dead's combat was a straight up shooter, so I see it there. For Splinter Cell and Hitman not so much. I hate it in stealth games when I do my sneaking right and then fail to get the second guy in a group with a headshot, or he moves and I just miss. I like the notion of "your reward for being unseen is that all these guards go away".

@Shaanyboi said:

@Dixego said:

Take that, people who bashed the trailers!

On a separate note, where's 47's neck barcode?

? That trailer was still a fucking abomination. I'm glad to see the game is turning out alright, but that doesn't excuse that pandering shitty marketing

I'm pretty sure he means the reveal trailer where 47 shot a bunch of guys and made every geek whine about how they "had made Hitman into a shooter".

Yeah, we remember. I'd like some acknowledgement of that one from the guys that freaked out, given how straight-up Hitman this game is turning out to be.

Agent 47 is a vampire and this video proves it!

I'm so relieved that the developers kept the Hitman formula intact!

@NoelVeiga said:

@Shaanyboi said:

@Dixego said:

Take that, people who bashed the trailers!

On a separate note, where's 47's neck barcode?

? That trailer was still a fucking abomination. I'm glad to see the game is turning out alright, but that doesn't excuse that pandering shitty marketing

I'm pretty sure he means the reveal trailer where 47 shot a bunch of guys and made every geek whine about how they "had made Hitman into a shooter".

Yeah, we remember. I'd like some acknowledgement of that one from the guys that freaked out, given how straight-up Hitman this game is turning out to be.

I am one of those that was not pleased with the "E3 Demo" footage. That footage was what they chose to use to market their game, and it did make it look much more shootery than fans of the franchise would like. This video has certainly made me a lot more interested (even though the AI seems retarded), but I stand by my reaction to the first video, as that was all I had to go on.

What they showed in that E3 video was what they wanted the gaming community to discuss, and if that's a gross misrepresentation of what their game actually is, then the blame is on them.

@Khann said:

@NoelVeiga said:

@Shaanyboi said:

@Dixego said:

Take that, people who bashed the trailers!

On a separate note, where's 47's neck barcode?

? That trailer was still a fucking abomination. I'm glad to see the game is turning out alright, but that doesn't excuse that pandering shitty marketing

I'm pretty sure he means the reveal trailer where 47 shot a bunch of guys and made every geek whine about how they "had made Hitman into a shooter".

Yeah, we remember. I'd like some acknowledgement of that one from the guys that freaked out, given how straight-up Hitman this game is turning out to be.

I am one of those that was not pleased with the "E3 Demo" footage. That footage was what they chose to use to market their game, and it did make it look much more shootery than fans of the franchise would like. This video has certainly made me a lot more interested (even though the AI seems retarded), but I stand by my reaction to the first video, as that was all I had to go on.

What they showed in that E3 video was what they wanted the gaming community to discuss, and if that's a gross misrepresentation of what their game actually is, then the blame is on them.

Anyone that has played video games and is a fan of the series knew exactly what the game was about and why they showed that footage. It has been discussed to death how it's difficult to show off exciting "stealth" footage in 6 minutes on stage.

@Humanity said:

It has been discussed to death how it's difficult to show off exciting "stealth" footage in 6 minutes on stage.

I don't see why that has to be the case. If all you want is people to gasp in awe at your explosions and flashy lights, sure. But what's wrong with a little subtlety?

And don't try to tell me everyone knew exactly what that was about. How many countless times have devs showed a rough demo that people have made excuses for, and it has turned out to be exactly that way?

Why is hitman suddenly in the 60's? lol looks GREAT though, played all hitman games up to this point, so I guess you can call me a fan.

Where is his tie?

No tie, no hitman!

@Khann: I guess I just had faith in the team - I've played every single Hitman game to date and each has been better than the one before it. They always kept true to the formula and continued to streamline things that needed more polish and adding new options to the gameplay. In the original game you couldn't even choke someone out with the piano string without raising an alarm unless you were in the "sneak" position which was slower than most enemy casual walk patterns - series certainly came a long way.

I just couldn't see I/O suddenly turning this series they've worked on for over 10 years into a mindless shooter all of a sudden. This gameplay looks great though and is everything that Hitman has always been and much more. I like the bullet time shooting (because bullet time is ALWAYS cool) I like the cool intuition mode and the in-depth stat tracking is just awesome. If people wanna raise a ruckus about the nuns trailer then I'd hate to use a term that I wholly dislike of "I guess they don't understand what Hitman games are all about" but thats the only thing that springs to mind. I'm just happy that a game I'm a huge fan of is finally getting another awesome release.

The guy walking away from the explosion like nothing is wrong definitely had nothing to do with it

@Castiel said:

Where is his tie?

No tie, no hitman!

Seconded. He looks like a politician on the campaign trail.

"A vote for I, Agent 47, is a vote for lower taxes, fewer gun laws and mandartory Armani suits for all."

Now stop bitching about the nuns!

Oh no guys, remember, how that nuns trailer ruined the game, how it's SO awful. Man that marketing trailer oh no .. oh ...oh no so bad.. game is so bad where is the stealth... they ruined Hitman..

@Dark_Lord_Spam: they're not even strippers just assassins that wear full leather suits. I thought it was a cool trailer, guess people just forgot what fun is anymore.

This is the second time I've been completely blown away by this game (the first being the Run for Your Life level).

This looks really good but I'm getting tired of every action game on earth having "Eagle Vision" or "Hyper Awareness" or "Futuristic Eye Mods/Contact Lens". I like having to figure out things for myself rather than instantly knowing everything at the press of a button. I guess the game's designers do that to make things easier or less frustrating.

Whatever, I liked what I saw in this footage and will most likely buy this. Yay Purist Mode!

So I guess this video is to put out the internet fires...

@Dixego said:

Take that, people who bashed the trailers!

On a separate note, where's 47's neck barcode?

See, this is what I don't get. What do people, of similar mindset to the person I quoted, think led Hitman fans to loudly criticize IO Interactive every time they released new information? Because we feast on the dark and the evil, and that nothing would please us more than seeing a series we enjoy get a shitty sequel? Would make all kinds of sense, right?

We've experienced the games industry, and we've seen what suits and their focus groups have been able to screw up many a time in the past.

Splinter Cell hit pretty close to home for many. A highly rated game, surely, and that's exactly the point. Some Hitman fans were concerned that the success of Conviction would inspire IO Interactive to follow suit, and, honestly, judging by IO Interactive's shitty job at communicating with its fan base, can you blame them?

@Dark_Lord_Spam: I think fans of the series weren't affected by that trailer. The series was never very serious in my opinion but at this point were just getting into a "my opinion" versus "your opinion" argument where no one wins. I respect your stance that you think it was a bad trailer, although I personally disagree with it.

On a complete side note I don't think they are wearing S&M gear but thats because I mainly associate that look with zipper masks and a lot of belts. I just think they were wearing leather suits, some with skirts, that covered 90% of their bodies. They look EXACTLY like some insane boss-type assassin character in a videogame would.

Man I remember at the end of Hitman 1 you go back to the facility where they "grew" you and they send clones of 47 to kill you. Standing in this hallways with a minigun, that was just lying around, mowing down carbon copies of yourself just streaming down the hallway .. man crazy game.

WOW

Reminded me a lot of Splinter Cell: Conviction with some of the mechanics. 

that's pretty freaking good, I like the hints and the text over items you can use, I liked hitman: blood money but it had too much trial and error just like the other hitman games. This one looks exactly how I wanted the other ones to be, and they didn't ignore the hardcore crowd either cause if they want to remove all the helpful stuff they can which is awesome!

Always had faith they'd stay true to hitmans spirit as a game and if this video doesn't shut up the doubters then nothing will.

Looks terrific and while some of the new powers may almost make it too easy, they look like a ton of fun and I'll enjoy them a lot before I go for the pro playthrough.

Was the tomahawk a wink at Assassin's Creed?

oh my gosh perhaps the game i'm most excited for in the future. what a demo.

@squirrelnacho said:

The "instinct mode" should be labeled easy mode, and the default should have that all removed. Those features are for people who can't stand to play anything thats not a linear action game. That is not what Hitman is about.

The levels still seem sort of small with with less challenging objectives. Still need to see if the levels are really as big as the old Hitman games. A lot of the obviously new fans here have no perspective on this.

The music sounds generic and pretty bad without the old composer Jesper Kyd, just generic suspense music. Additionally, they are just reusing the Blood Money Hitman theme now (something they never did before) which is pretty lame, they always had nearly all new music in each game before.

The old voice actor was a much better fit as well.

Otherwise it looks like it has many of the elements of an old Hitman game. Without the old voice actor and composer it's missing some important elements. Hopefully the gameplay and level design holds up.

1. Then don't play with it, there is a purist mode for a reason. But i guess complaining about having options and not just "MY WAY" is the cool thing to do?

2. The levels seem small? So far they showed 2 playtroughs both of these didn't involve any exploration at all as the guy playing knew exactly what to do, when to do it and where to go. That's hardly a good point of view from which to judge the size and interaction possibilities of the levels. Even in this one: There is plenty of places you can obviously reach but the demo guy didn't bother to go there because he allready knew where he had to go.

3. You can label any music generic, the sound design still seems solid and manages to sets a mood. Some people call it "reusing" others call it "remixing". But nice contradiction right there, first you complain about the music being generic because there is no Jesper Kyd involved, but when they use a theme composed by him you cry foul and label it "lame" because it's "reused". Can't be happy with anything, right?

Anyway i love how you can write up three huge paragraphs how "everything sucks and why this is such an bad hitman game" just to end you whole comment along the lines of "Oh it looks like it has all the things an hitman game needs!". Haters gonna hate i guess...