Hitman 2's deeply flawed gameplay isn't worth sticking around for.
The player assumes the role of a bald assassin known only as 47. Throughout the game, you’re given missions with one or more objectives to accomplish in each one. One of these tasks is usually killing someone (47 is, after all, a hitman.) That’s really all there is to the story. In the beginning there’s some business about a priest being kidnapped, but none of the missions are story-driven so it doesn’t matter much.
47 is a legend in his business. Many consider him the best of the best. With a reputation to uphold, he doesn’t off ordinary people from the streets. Instead, he eliminates heavily guarded targets. The usual stealth formula of staying hidden to avoid confrontation wouldn’t work too well here, so Hitman 2 takes a different approach. Instead of hiding, 47 tries to blend in. In order to do so he must incapacitate someone and take their clothes. 9 times out of 10 this is the only way to get close enough to kill a target and operate without suspicion.
With such dark and violent themes, it’s a shame Hitman 2: Silent Assassin doesn’t have an atmosphere that fits. In fact, there isn’t a atmosphere at all and it feels exactly like a video game. You don’t become immersed in 47's world. The fantastic music score is all that sets even a little bit of a tone.
From the sound of things, you’d think putting bullets into anything that moves isn’t the way to go in this game. You would be absolutely correct, too. The nonlinear setup of each level makes the player carefully plan out what they’ll need to do to kill their target. It sounds good on paper, but in execution the game can be almost too nonlinear. You won’t know if you can perform a certain action without arousing suspicion until you’ve tried it. By forcing this decision upon the player, Hitman 2 falls into the trap few stealth games have overcome: trial and error.
47's second outing is designed around the concept of trial and error. The only way to know what to do is try something out and see if it fails. Should it fail, you’ll need to reset your game. Not only is this system unrealistic, it’s also extremely frustrating.
Some very silly gameplay elements considerably up the frustration factor. Most of this involves a disguised 47. Guards around the target are immediately suspicious of him from the get-go. Why? That’s a good question. Guards may decide to tail you or want to check your identification for no reason whatsoever. Somehow, they can immediately spot 47 as an intruder if they get close enough. Once your disguise is blown the guards will open fire. If they get too suspicious (which may be caused by something like running), they will also open fire.
Hitman 2 suffers from a clunky control scheme. Aiming is off and every action requires the use of an unintuitive drop-down menu. Weapon changing on the fly is one particularly hideous feature of the controls. A drop-down menu will appear, and the player gets to choose from what has the potential to be a very long list which item to equip. It takes a while to get used to the controls, and even when you’re done fumbling they still feel sloppy.
Hitman 2 is a difficult game to recommend. Stealth games turn away many gamers right from the start, and this game will even turn away many stealth gamers. With its over reliance on trial and error, frustrating gameplay, and awkward control scheme only a very small audience will find enjoyment here.
Bottom line: Hitman 2's deeply flawed gameplay isn’t worth sticking around for. 4 out of 10.