Hitman: Tueur à gages

Definitely an original game that puts the player in the shoes of a hitman. At first the game has you killing Hong Kong Triad members and drug lords, but that all eventually leads to the awesome conclusion of your origin. Despite the lack of in game saves and A.I. problems, the atmosphere and tension in this game are second to none.

I'm a big Hitman fan. I've played all the games but not in release order.

Hitman is a beautiful game and series. Its the only game besides Pokemon and gta that I've played religiously.

It started with Silent Assassin which was alright. Then Blood Money was a game changer and I fell in love with the game playing and replaying it for years.

To go from Bloody Money to Codename 47 feels terrible. Codename felt too clunky and lacked the greatness of Blood Money.

I played first mission, turned off the game and never returned to it.

Verdict: I'm sure if I had played it first I would have enjoyed it.

What a great game! So often, games are just easy shoot 'em ups, with no challenge; just walk in and blow everyone away. Hitman however, is a complex game that requires thinking, strategy and precision. Despite a couple of small glitches, graphics are good, gameplay is sweet and the game itself cannot be beat. Highly addictive, this game will put you behind the scope... so pull the trigger.

Codename 47 was a technical marvel back in the day. A unique and mind-blowing take on the stealth genre, with ambitious ideas and even more impressive tech at the time. It's a game filled with a lot of promise. But that overwhelming untapped potential becomes a detriment to the game. As a result, the game hasn't aged all too well and revisiting it after later entries is no easy task.

Firstly, compared to later HITMAN entries, Codename 47 is more of a demo or first draft idea than it is a complete game. Many aspects of the game don't feel quite realized or even polished in most cases. It's a very skeletal game that - like mentioned beforehand - is filled with massive potential. But it is hindered by inconsistent presentation and questionable design choices. In other words, the game feels like it lacked the necessary playtesting. As a result, a lot of the game design doesn't work all too well, due to busted AI or odd level and mission design. But these complaints mostly arise if you try to play the game with the series' "Silent Assassin" philosophy that would be pushed in the subsequent games. You cannot play Codename 47 the same way you play its sequels without finding massive inconsistencies. While later games encouraged much more silent play, sometimes you have no choice but to go loud in Codename 47. And this might stem from what the game's original concept was - a third person shooter - before it went in a stealthier direction later on. Because of this, the game feels like it doesn't know what it wants to be in some areas. But if you look past the inconsistencies within gameplay and just go loud when stealth becomes an issue, Codename 47 still offers a mostly great time.

The game's art direction and visuals are also pretty good and subjectively still hold up. The semi-realistic aesthetic of the game results in a slightly cartoonish look with some more realistic aspects. Other than some dated and blurry textures, the environmental design is well done.

The story is not all that important to note, but it does act as a nice introduction to the world of HITMAN and the character of Agent 47. The plot is fairly straightforward and the worldbuilding is interesting. But don't expect a revolutionary story here. Besides, some of the writing and voice performances aren't anything to write home about. Nor is that the intention.

Other parts of the presentation, like the stellar soundtrack and the technical aspects of the game still hold up really well.

Other than the unpolished gameplay and the choppy presentation of certain ideas, HITMAN: Codename 47 is an innovative take on the stealth genre which would spawn an iconic and long running series that would only get better and better with time. It's still a fun time, but it is admittedly an extremely dated game if you've played later entries.

Here we have a perfect example of a good game that, with a few minor adjustments, could have been so much better. It's one of those games that feels like it should have been great, but when you've finished with it, you've still got that annoying feeling that something's missing.

I don't mean to say that HITMAN isn't any good, because it is. Once you get into it, it's a really engaging experience, darkly atmospheric and full of style. As the nameless contract killer you play, your missions are interesting and varied, and although you'll have to accomplish all goals to get through the game, the way you execute them (no pun intended of course) is usually up to you. Stealth is key, and one of the coolest features in HITMAN is the ability to don the clothes of anyone you kill, allowing you the fun experience of using disguises to get closer to your targets.

Despite being quite an interesting and unique experience, HITMAN is not without its flaws. By far the most annoying is the fact that you can't save your game. Ever. The only time your progress is saved is when you finish a level successfully, which means that if you make even one mistake at the very end of a mission, well, it's all the way back to the beginning with you. Programmers, are you listening? This is not okay. It leads to a lot of resentment and frustration, especially if you're having trouble getting used to HITMAN's awkward and complicated interface. The game tries to make up for it with an odd system of reincarnation, but even that's not very helpful, and only seems out place. The point is, you're going to need a lot of patience to enjoy this game. And you probably shouldn't keep your computer anywhere near the window.

HITMAN's plot is sketchy at best, and comes dangerously close to the whole cliched mad-scientist thing near the end, but does manage to save itself and stay interesting. The writing is quite clever at times, the music is well done, and even the voice acting isn't *too* bad. As for graphics, they're about on par with the standards at the time it was released, and although they're technically nothing special, the game's programmers did a great job turning them into some genuinely beautiful environments, such as jungles and ornate hotels. In fact, when HITMAN makes use of those massive maps and gorgeous surroundings, that's when it's at its best.

My advice? Give it a chance -- but play the sequel first. HITMAN 2: SILENT ASSASSIN has all the style of the original and almost none of the problems, and playing it first will make its predecessor a lot easier to deal with.