14 DAY TRIAL // 
Hitman - Episode One is a gamer that can move from straight up espionage drama with big stakes and a somber tone to humorous parody featuring bumbling fools instead of highly trained agents in seconds, and that's one of its biggest strengths.
Just as my Agent 47 is feeling smug about the fact that he managed to eliminate one of his targets via clever disguise plus use of poison and contemplates how to deal with his second task of the da,y he is likely to mess with a rack of equipment, just to see what happens, turn into a target and then catch a bullet from a guard he did not even see.
The game also creates moments when I am running around panicked by the fact that a camera has spotted me, and I stumble onto a way to get rid of the recordings and gain a way to access an area that has been off-limits, opening up a new way to complete my mission.
There's plenty of variety in the Paris mission, which can be enjoyed by both newcomers and long-term fans on their own terms, but this initial package seems a little light, despite the many extra options that it brings outside of the core locations.
Hitman - Episode One is developed by IO Interactive and published by Square Enix, offered on the PC as well as on the Xbox One from Microsoft and the PlayStation 4 from Sony, with more episodes set to be launched throughout the year.
Story
Hitman - Episode One has three missions to offer, but in some ways, it creates more narrative than the entire previous Absolution installment in the franchise because it gives players freedom to create their stories of espionage, assassination and timely escape or spectacular failure.
The first two levels that this first installment in the reboot offers are clearly defined as training and it's great to see the way operatives playing the roles of onlookers and targets react to the actions and mistakes that Agent 47 makes as he learns how to approach espionage and killing.
The big Paris Showstopper mission is on another scale altogether and hints at the wider narrative that Hitman will expand on as the other five major locations of the first season arriving in 2016.
The writing is economical, with Agent 47 as quiet as he has ever been while the characters around him happily chat away about both mission critical details and their everyday lives and concerns.
Hitman is a game about opportunities and the choices the player can make tend to create their narrative threads inside a mission, with spectacular disguises, quick escapes, impressive kills and massive blunders joined to create unique versions of Agent 47.
Gameplay
Hitman - Episode One is a game espionage, infiltration, and murder, a third-person stealth experience that asks gamers to carefully stalk targets, plan complex assassinations and prepare the perfect escape plan for those moments when the situation goes south quickly.
Agent 47 is a good shot and a capable killer, but he really shines at dressing fast, making disguises the most important gameplay mechanic, opening new areas for players to explore and giving them more ways to get to their targets and then extract without being noticed.
For each costume, there are special characters that notice the discrepancies and can trigger an alarm, but the game is pretty forgiving when it comes to detection, allowing players to break line of sight and then chane covers before they are actively hunted.
The Paris location, which features high-profile fashion shows, large throngs of partying people and secret meetings, is a joy to explore and casually moving around will soon reveal a multitude of potential assassination options for the two main targets, some of them more spectacular than the others.
The world created by IO Interactive feels organic, even if there's an oversupply of rat poison and there are moments when characters are unable to react naturally to the weird moves of Agent 47, like moving behind them dressed like a supermodel and then crouching as he prepares to choke them out.
There are plenty of assists that gamers can use in Hitman, including the instinct mode that makes Agent 47 have the perception of a superhero, but all of them can be turned off, including all map-related indicators, to create a more challenging and more immersive experience.
“Most players will choose to use some of the help that the game offers and the best of the bunch is represented by the new Opportunities, scripted conversations between characters that reveal some of the secrets of the location and open up new assassination options.”
Purists can simply rely on their power of observation and their wit to move through the mission, discover the best way to take out their targets and then get out, but I found that the challenges laid out by the developers can revitalize the entire experience after a first playthrough.
To encourage gamers to see everything Paris and the other missions have to offer, Ubisoft is using Mastery levels opened up by completing certain feats, to open up new options, including different entry points and new items that they can use to take out threats.
The Paris mission feel like a big playground and it feels good to move through it all as Agent 47 in order to explore the potential for comedy, action and drama it offers, but the game should have launched with at least another big location to keep gamers engaged and to allow them to forget some details about one scenario before returning to try out new ideas.
Graphics and audio
Hitman - Episode One is a great-looking video game, and the developers have wisely chosen Paris as the setting of the big first mission, allowing players to move at will through an impressive location that showcases the mechanics and shows what the game engine can deliver.
The fashion show and the associated party features extravagantly dressed characters, plenty of delicious looking food and plenty of spectacular ways to take enemies out and it's a joy to simply spend time moving around to find all the interesting situations and simply take in the interesting costumes and design.
The crisp and stylish look of Hitman contrasts with the comedy often generated via gameplay but also makes it very satisfying to execute a perfect run through the level, taking down both targets without being noticed before slipping under the radar to explore the new locations of the first season.
Crowds are one of the most impressive elements of the game, and the Paris fashion show is a great way to show what the Glacier engine can deliver in its current version.
The sound design for Hitman is as solid as its graphics, creating a feeling of immersion that few other titles manage while also allowing Agent 47 to pick up on chatter and clues as he drifts through locations.
The Good
- Plenty of gameplay options
- Paris is a great location
- A mix of comedy and drama
The Bad
- The single big level can become repetitive
- Some weird behaviors from characters
Conclusion
In 2016, the game is set to get five more missions, taking gamers to Italy, the United States, Thailand, Japan, and Morocco and if they are all as well designed as Paris in the first season.
The mechanics that the developers have introduced to convince players to get through the same mission repeatedly, varying their approach, including the Escalations and the Mastery, are a solid idea for those who love the stealth genre and the franchise.
Paris, the big draw for this first episode, will become a bit too familiar after two or three playthroughs, but once the full season is live, I suspect that many players will be willing to go back to older locations in order to see everything that they have to offer in terms of both spectacular success and comical or weird failures.
The new Hitman carefully mixes drama, comedy, action and a well-designed location to create a world that the player will enjoy discovering and a variety of systems that are great to interact with and even break, and we can only hope that the other coming missions deliver on the promise of this first episode.
