Gameplay centers around the exploits of a hitman,
Agent 47 as he is sent to various locations to assassinate targets. An array of weapons can be used, from shotguns to
jian. While stealth and subterfuge is encouraged, the game allows the player to take a more violent approach and gunfight their way to their mission goals. As players progress through the game, they can collect the various armaments found in the levels, allowing them to be used in future missions. Aside from the more straightforward ways of killing targets such as gunplay and strangulation, several missions allow the player more subtle ways to eliminate hits, such as food and drink poisoning. This includes "accidents" involving the environment, e.g. falling from a balcony or dying from a heat-induced heart attack in a
sauna.
Players are rated on their performance based on several factors, key among which are the number of shots fired,
NPCs killed, and the number of times the guards are alerted. The lowest rank is "mass murderer," which is awarded to players that kill mass numbers of NPCs in the pursuit of their target and do not use stealth. The highest rank is "silent assassin," which is earned when the player accomplishes their mission near-perfectly.
Contracts continues the trend of "
context sensitive" actions, which means that one button is used in multiple situations for multiple uses. For example, when the player is near a door, the context sensitive button will allow the player to perform door-relevant actions such as keyhole peeking,
lockpicking, or if allowed, simply opening it. When the player is near an unconscious individual, the same button will allow the ability to either acquire the person's outfit or drag the body to an area where it can be hidden from guards.
Along with the context sensitive button, the suspicion meter returns as well; this meter informs players of how close they are to blowing their respective cover. Actions like excess running indoors, brandishing weapons openly, residing in restricted areas, or sneaking can raise suspicion. Proximity will also usually raise the meter. As previously stated, if the suspicion meter fills, guards will open fire on sight of the player and the current cover becomes useless. If the guards discover a body (unconscious or dead), or if an unconscious person awakes and alerts them, the suspicion meter will raise much faster than it would otherwise.
Disguises can be either found in the environment or taken from the bodies of disabled or dead NPCs. Depending on the disguise, the player can then access areas restricted to most individuals in a level. These disguises can be seen through by guards, as stated above; e.g. if guards in a level are all wielding shotguns, a player dressed as a guard but not similarly equipped will draw more suspicion. Though a plethora of disguises exist throughout the game, the most unique is the
SWAT uniform, which is new to the
Hitman series. The SWAT uniform is unavailable unless a SWAT team is present in the level, and the uniform is unique because it provides additional defense against bullets and a radio that reveals the actions of the SWAT team in level.
remember that this game was popular in 2008
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