The last time we saw the mysterious assassin known only as "47," he had just retired from active duty as a professional killer and had sequestered himself in a secluded monastery in Sicily. But 47 has been called back into service--his only friend, the quiet priest who presides over his new dwelling, has been kidnapped, and 47 must rescue him. Armed with a newfound sense of purpose, a powerful new arsenal of weapons, and as bald a head as ever, 47 sallies forth from Sicily to track down his enemies and his only friend in the world.

47 won't be staying in that monastery for long.

That's the background for IO Interactive's Hitman 2: Silent Assassin, a sequel that already seems to be well on its way to improving on the original game, Hitman: Codename 47, and fixing most of the original game's problems. Like in the previous game, in Hitman 2 you'll be sent off on various missions around the world to take down important enemy characters, though this time around, 47 can use anesthetic to knock his opponents unconscious instead of killing them outright. We had an opportunity to play through an early build of the game and see a few of its levels: the initial training level in Sicily, a posh Italian villa, and an evening party at a German consulate. Even at this early stage, each level is extremely colorful and detailed. For instance, much of the German level takes place in a large, richly furnished building, while the Sicilian monastery is gently lit by impressive lighting effects that filter through stained-glass windows. Hitman 2 will apparently attempt to be more colorful than the original game--for instance, all three of the levels we've played have outdoor areas, and the Sicily and Italy levels open with brightly lit, sunny areas that are populated by ambient animals and civilians who will go about their business normally until you spook them with a weapon.

As with the original game, there are a few ways you can deal with your enemies, including going in with guns blazing, taking them down from a distance with a sniper rifle, sneaking up behind them and eliminating them, or fooling them with a disguise. In Hitman 2, you'll want to be as precise as possible, especially when you're trying to break into heavily guarded areas--if you rub out one of your enemies but leave his corpse lying about, any other guards who happen upon it will sound an alarm. Fortunately, 47 can still drag his enemies' corpses off into the shadows and can also relieve any fallen enemies of their clothing in order to disguise himself.

The hitman's tools of the trade.

In order to get the job done, 47 will have access to an expanded arsenal of weapons. We haven't been able to play with all of Hitman 2's toys just yet, but we've already been able to try out some very powerful weapons, including 47's signature dual .45-caliber hardballers, which come in both standard and silenced versions. The hardballers seem just as effective as ever--they're fast, they're light, and they pack quite a wallop--though they're not quite as damaging as Hitman 2's heavier weapons. 47 can also equip himself with the classic H&K MP5 submachine gun (either standard issue or silenced), the powerful Colt M4A1 assault rifle, and the heavy-duty SPAS-12 automatic combat shotgun. The Colt and the combat shotgun don't come with silencers, but neither weapon is intended to be subtle. They tear through enemies quickly, and the combat shotgun has remarkable stopping power. We've also been able to get our hands on some subtler sidearms, including the silenced Ruger .22 pistol and the 9MM Beretta (standard issue and silenced), as well as the Russian Dragunov sniper rifle--which has three very useful zoom levels--and 47's old standby weapons, the garrote and the serrated pentagon combat knife.