Hitman: Blood Money E3 2005 Preshow Report

Eidos and Io Interactive are reteaming for another installment in the long-running Hitman series. This time around, Agent 47 has gotten himself wrapped up in a war between two contract agencies. It seems that many of his hitman colleagues are getting assassinated by workers from another outfit. Fearing that he's next on the hit list, Agent 47 is attempting to get away from the conflict. But, as you might imagine, it'll take more than just a plane ride to the US to get out of trouble.

The big twist to Blood Money's gameplay is that you'll be earning cash along the way. Cleaner hits will net you more money, which can be spent on equipment, weapon upgrades, information, or lowering your profile. The weapon upgrade system will let you silence weapons and change their rate of fire, recoil, reloading speed, power, zoom, and accuracy.

The game will also control a little differently this time around, as the player movement and camera control have been separated. You'll also be able to employ distraction techniques, dispose of bodies, take human shields, dispatch decoys, and more. But the artificial intelligence sounds like it's getting a bit of a boost, as well. Enemies will follow blood trails and investigate suspicious activity a bit better using new pathfinding techniques.

Graphically, Hitman: Blood Money looks pretty sharp. A new graphics engine is at work here, so that's not much of a surprise. On the sound side, the music will be handled by popular game musician Jesper Kyd.

All in all, Hitman: Blood Money looks like it has the right elements to please fans of the series. We'll have to wait and see how it pans out. The game is currently scheduled for release this fall on the Xbox, PlayStation 2, and PC.