Hitman: Blood Money

Well, well, well, well, well, whats all this then... A new year and another chance for the new Hitman game to be released, it's been almost four years of waiting, each year hoping for number 5 to come out but alas ending in disappointment, well my fingers are crossed yet again that 2010 is the year and as a good will gesture (more like a desperate cry for help) I decided to get myself a copy of Blood Money for the 360.

I originally played this game when it first came out on the PS2 and was just blown away, the game was in my opinion the best in the series and provided some intense action. I was a little worried that time had taken it's toll on this game and that as with most classics the age of the game is noticeable within seconds of play but this version has been updated for the 360, I assume from the PC...? This game still looks good, I wouldn't say awesome but hey it's been four years! The levels do look there part and each provides the perfect setting for murder with snow, rain, day and night this game caters for all.

I suppose it may help for those that have never played a Hitman game to perhaps explain the game mechanics, you are Number 47 and you play the role of the Hitman, every missions starts with a briefing provided to you by your agency explaining the background to the hit and the mark itself, you then select the weapons and any upgrades you may need for the mission, now this is one of the aspects I love most about this game because each mission can be completed in an array of different ways hence the weapon selection becomes a pivotal point to the game play, rifles, hand guns, poisons and bombs each provides a different angle to the mission. Being a Hitman is hard work though as you not only have to assassinate the mark but you also have to do it undetected, on some levels this can be hard work but being a professional definitely pays off giving the player a feeling of accomplishment.

The weapon's available in Blood money are fairly varied, in my opinion though most are not needed, if you had to kill a doctor in a hospital would you try and walk in holding an M16? I thought not, but hey it could be fun... The only problem with this kind of "run and kill everyone" tactic is that the results are not as close to real life as the game attempts to achieve, for example the police wont arrive in vast numbers as they would in real life... The game tries desperately to be as realistic as passable, I found myself therefore using the silenced pistol for most of the missions as it's low noise level allows for almost silent assassinations as apposed to a noisy M16, the music blends in well with the gameplay, there is just nothing better than pulling off the perfect hit with some haunting music in the background that somehow says I'm badass but in a rather sophisticated fashion.

All in all this game is well worth a play, each level provides a large open areas for the player to explore and "solve" in an almost puzzle like fashion, if you enjoyed the previous Hitman titles you will defo enjoy this outing, as stated previously this has to be the best of the lot. The gameplay is something completely different even by today's standards, it may not be for all types though and in a way falls into the thriller/strategy genre so if your looking for something COD like then please do look elsewhere!



Gameplay 9/10



Graphics 6.5/10 (Based on today's standards)

Sound 8.5/10

Total 80/100