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Hitman: Codename 47 (2000)
Silence is key
***VERY MINOR PLOT SPOILERS***
The amount of times I have replayed this game dumbfounds me. I've often tossed aside half-life 2 to step into the deadly world of the hit-man. I have loved this game from the moment I heard about it a good 6 years ago.
From the moment you slip the CD in the disk-drive, you know you're going to have a good few hours hiding in closets (ooh, get her!), creeping up behind, and silently dispatching the mark; before sneaking off to the extraction point.
You take on the role of agent 47; a genetically engineered clone 'born' in 1964, and trained in all aspects of contract killing. You are essentially a prisoner in an underground lab/complex where you reside in a cell. After a solid 40 or so years of training you escape with apparently effortless ease. But it is shown to the player you have been allowed to escape. The scientist who cloned you has a master plan ... which I'll not give away here.
We next see 47 three years after his escape, in Hong Kong. Your ultimate goal is to eliminate Lee Hong; a powerful triad leader with a tight grip over the area (including law enforcement) and steal a priceless yet tacky, ornament for your client. Several assassination missions and sabotage bombings are required before you can get close enough to Lee Hong; and even then he is extremely well guarded. My personal favourite mission was tradition's of the trade. Capping that fat guy in the shower and drowning Herr Fuchs in the pool made me laugh manically every time. I won't spoil the game by divulging any more.
The script for this game is fantastic. No rubbish voice acting here. Everything looks and feels well-polished; and you can tell a lot of time; effort and love went into making this game.
The variety of ways to pull off a kill are astounding and ensure endless replay value. From poisoning right through to lead poisoning; and a few one-off signature moves. The weapons arsenal is not huge, but it's relatively what I expected a hit-man would go for. Piano wire, knives, pistols, SMG's, and a few full automatics. Level design is for the most part brilliant with a few minor glitches.
I cannot stress how effortlessly everything in this game meshes together to create a thoroughly immersing experience; where the only two things that matter are the mark and stealth. Although a lot of patience is required while you're surveying the area/patrol routes/etc it all pays off when everything goes to plan.
47 is a fantastic character to get into. As he has been bred to be a stone-cold killer; I relished slipping into the agent's shoes and becoming the ultimate bad-ass. Play it as if you were actually 47 himself and you'll get a lot more satisfaction than just mindlessly blasting through levels with a submachine gun. Although at times; it is necessary to release all that pent up aggression from failing a mission over and over again.