Hitman: Contracts

"A trip into Agent 47's mind is a trip I wish I took more often."

After a successful outing with Hitman 2: Silent Assassin, Eidos decided to give us a little more of everyone's favorite bald contract killer with the aptly titled Hitman: Contracts. In Contracts you resume the role of Agent 47 but this time it has a twist. Instead of the standard progression as in the other games you must go into the mind of a ruthless killer. After being drugged during a hit, Agent 47 begins to hallucinate and relive some of his most vile, violent hits he has ever performed.

Gameplay:9/10
The gameplay really shines here with the non-linear ways to complete each hit. You can either do it stealthy or go in guns a blazing. The latter, albeit fun, isn't the best way to go about this as the game is mainly stealth based. An innovative feature that was carried over from the second is the ability to steal others clothes and pretend to be them. This will get you in places you aren't supposed to be and help you progress further into the hit. You also must hide bodies, which seems to take forever, and make sure no one Now my only complaint about the gameplay is how harsh the consequences are if you slip up just a little bit. No matter how much you think you have everything covered and no matter how much you think your tracks are covered something always seems to go wrong. When things go wrong, bad things happen, usually resulting in your death and having to start over from the last place you saved. However if you can perform a hit flawlessly you feel truly rewarded and to make you feel even more rewarded, the game gives you a weapon for getting the coveted "Silent Assassin" rating. You will have to do some of the most creative things to finish the hit though to get this rating. Some missions actually have you hiding guns or other handheld weapons in absurd places, like turkeys. The gun mechanics are also very well done as the guns chamber and fire realistically. Rag doll physics are what make the Hitman series stand out. If you shoot someone point black with a Sawn Off Shotgun they will fly back and bounce off the wall. The react realistically to every gun in the game and will respond accordingly. Also when dragging bodies, the bodies will flip and flop, they will bounce if you are dragging them down stairs, and other things like that.

Graphics 8/10

Now even though the gameplay is the best feature, and the star of the game, the graphics only pale in comparison slightly. The graphics aren't cutting edge or anything but the definitely are fine tuned and look very sharp. The cutscenes and transitions from reality into the mind of Agent 47 are beautifully done. The graphics stay consistent with the physics and there never seems to be any noticeable slowdown in gameplay. The reflections in this game are really good though. The blood actually reflects and you can actually see yourself in the puddles of crimson goodness spilled across some of the levels.

Sound 8/10
The sound in this game is superb with the music and the sound effects. The music reflects the haunting dreamlike theme of the game. The sound effects are also good. Each gun has it's own distinct sound. Shotguns obviously make more noise than a handgun would and the guards respond accordingly to the sounds they hear. The voice acting is great and the sounds that the people you are killing make will give you chills.

In conclusion this game is one of the stand outs of the year. It provides both fun and remains challenging. You never feel as if you are breezing through the game. This game is pretty innovative and we can only hope other games learn from this.

Overall Score 9/10

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 12/16/04