NoClip's Hitman documentary is an uplifting tale for the medium

[Phoenixmgs_v1legacy]

It's a great watch even if you couldn't care less about Hitman. The surprising aspect of the documentary is that it paints a picture of how the industry should work and how developers should be treated. After watching the documentary, I was left with upmost respect for IO Interactive and even Square's role in the saga. With all the horribleness currently going on in the industry, this felt like gaming's version of Won't You Be My Neighbor?

 

[Phoenixmgs_v1legacy]

It's a great watch even if you couldn't care less about Hitman. The surprising aspect of the documentary is that it paints a picture of how the industry should work and how developers should be treated. After watching the documentary, I was left with upmost respect for IO Interactive and even Square's role in the saga. With all the horribleness currently going on in the industry, this felt like gaming's version of Won't You Be My Neighbor?

It also makes me want to someday commit to playing through all the Hitman games sometime soon. Here?s some testimony from a former dev in the comments -


Andreas Valentin
I was part of the 50% who were let go during SQEXIT in 2017, and I vouch for every statement made by my former colleagues in this doc. Everything considered, both IO and SE handled the layoffs gracefully, and gave incredible support to ensure we'd land on our feet. Thank you Noclip for this pristine documentary, it made me feel so proud of the parts I played in getting HITMAN (2016) off the ground

Also, Humble Bundle [https://www.humblebundle.com/store/search?sort=bestselling&search=Hitman] is running some steep discounts on the last couple games, so it?s a great time to pick them up. I?m really eyeing that H2016 GotY edition myself.

There was another informative and entertaining No Clip below the OP vid about designing a Hitman level. [https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=EjvrTa6IKW8]

I like that part about treating them as puzzle games. It kinda changed my perspective about the series vs thinking of them as mere stealth or even strategy TPS games.

 

[Phoenixmgs_v1legacy]

I can?t believe no one else has commented on this yet. Where?s the Hitman love, dammit. I just bought the GotY edition of Hitman 2016 so am geeked to try it out soon.

 

[Xprimentyl]

I can?t believe no one else has commented on this yet. Where?s the Hitman love, dammit. I just bought the GotY edition of Hitman 2016 so am geeked to try it out soon.

I played the very first Hitman on PC decades ago and really loved it; it started the itch for stealth gaming that Splinter Cell would eventually scratch like no other. A few years ago, during some bundle sale on Xbox Live, I bought every Hitman released on consoles to date, and was really excited to dive back into the game that started my love of stealth and play them all, but (and I hate to say it,) it didn?t feel like it aged well. The controls were clunky, movement off-putting (a fixed camera behind a third-person playable character drives me INSANE,) AI was questionable, etc. I think I barely made it out of the tutorial level before deciding I wasn?t into it.

BUT? I might it give it another go. I think once I push through the re-learning curve and accept the game for what it is, I will love it again, and also be able to appreciate the improvements made in later installments. I?m actually excited about it now; Dark Souls 1 and 2 need a break anyway.

 

[MrCalavera_v1legacy]

I can?t believe no one else has commented on this yet. Where?s the Hitman love, dammit. I just bought the GotY edition of Hitman 2016 so am geeked to try it out soon.

I played the very first Hitman on PC decades ago and really loved it; it started the itch for stealth gaming that Splinter Cell would eventually scratch like no other. A few years ago, during some bundle sale on Xbox Live, I bought every Hitman released on consoles to date, and was really excited to dive back into the game that started my love of stealth and play them all, but (and I hate to say it,) it didn?t feel like it aged well. The controls were clunky, movement off-putting (a fixed camera behind a third-person playable character drives me INSANE,) AI was questionable, etc. I think I barely made it out of the tutorial level before deciding I wasn?t into it.

BUT? I might it give it another go. I think once I push through the re-learning curve and accept the game for what it is, I will love it again, and also be able to appreciate the improvements made in later installments. I?m actually excited about it now; Dark Souls 1 and 2 need a break anyway.

If you started with Codename 47, it's no surprise. Those early games didn't age well at all.
I'd think about skipping it and Silent Assassin(much as i fondly remember that one), and go straight into Blood Money. Or Contracts - it remixes many of the original missions anyway.

 

[Xprimentyl]

I can?t believe no one else has commented on this yet. Where?s the Hitman love, dammit. I just bought the GotY edition of Hitman 2016 so am geeked to try it out soon.

I played the very first Hitman on PC decades ago and really loved it; it started the itch for stealth gaming that Splinter Cell would eventually scratch like no other. A few years ago, during some bundle sale on Xbox Live, I bought every Hitman released on consoles to date, and was really excited to dive back into the game that started my love of stealth and play them all, but (and I hate to say it,) it didn?t feel like it aged well. The controls were clunky, movement off-putting (a fixed camera behind a third-person playable character drives me INSANE,) AI was questionable, etc. I think I barely made it out of the tutorial level before deciding I wasn?t into it.

BUT? I might it give it another go. I think once I push through the re-learning curve and accept the game for what it is, I will love it again, and also be able to appreciate the improvements made in later installments. I?m actually excited about it now; Dark Souls 1 and 2 need a break anyway.

If you started with Codename 47, it's no surprise. Those early games didn't age well at all.
I'd think about skipping it and Silent Assassin(much as i fondly remember that one), and go straight into Blood Money. Or Contracts - it remixes many of the original missions anyway.

I may do that if the early titles prove to grating on my spoiled expectations. Thanks for the advice.

 

[Phoenixmgs_v1legacy]

I can?t believe no one else has commented on this yet. Where?s the Hitman love, dammit. I just bought the GotY edition of Hitman 2016 so am geeked to try it out soon.

I played the very first Hitman on PC decades ago and really loved it; it started the itch for stealth gaming that Splinter Cell would eventually scratch like no other. A few years ago, during some bundle sale on Xbox Live, I bought every Hitman released on consoles to date, and was really excited to dive back into the game that started my love of stealth and play them all, but (and I hate to say it,) it didn?t feel like it aged well. The controls were clunky, movement off-putting (a fixed camera behind a third-person playable character drives me INSANE,) AI was questionable, etc. I think I barely made it out of the tutorial level before deciding I wasn?t into it.

BUT? I might it give it another go. I think once I push through the re-learning curve and accept the game for what it is, I will love it again, and also be able to appreciate the improvements made in later installments. I?m actually excited about it now; Dark Souls 1 and 2 need a break anyway.

If you started with Codename 47, it's no surprise. Those early games didn't age well at all.
I'd think about skipping it and Silent Assassin(much as i fondly remember that one), and go straight into Blood Money. Or Contracts - it remixes many of the original missions anyway.

I may do that if the early titles prove to grating on my spoiled expectations. Thanks for the advice.

I have a very obtuse, incomplete and fractured experience with the series. The first time I can recall playing any Hitman was Contracts on Xbox way back when it was fairly new. Then I played through Absolution 3-4 years ago, and thought it played brilliantly well. However, even considering its excellent execution I completely understand the complaints about it being too linear and streamlined, because I actually played through Codename 47 shortly after that for the first time and even that often felt more open-ended. While I really enjoyed it and thought it aged better than say, the original Deus Ex (which I also played for the first time about 4 years ago), it was certainly a caveated experience. For its time I could sense how the movement, physics and mission design were probably groundbreaking, but yeah it?s a defining example of the gaming term for ?clunky?.

Started playing Silent Assassin shortly after, and while its gameplay seemed to be improved I had to take a break from it. The general consensus on it being the toughest game of the series didn?t help matters for my personal barely-beyond-rookie-assassin status with the series. Currently at Hidden Valley which apparently is a problematic level [https://amp.reddit.com/r/HiTMAN/comments/8e4734/is_there_no_way_to_complete_this_level_with/].

Fast forward to this week after opening this thread and watching No Clip?s recent Hitman features, then noticing that H2016 GotY was only $15 on Humble Bundle, I figured it?s a good time revisit the series. After playing through the well done tutorial and being introduced to the Paris level, I get the impression of huge strides being made. I keep reading that Blood Money (which I also have from an old Steam bundle, just never played) was the gold standard in terms of free form mission design, and that must be the bar they set to break here. Just looking through the mission select sparks my imagination with all the various ways to off targets. It also plays as smoothly as Absolution, basically bringing the best of both worlds.

I?ve shuffled this to the top of my gaming stack along with finishing Detroit: Become Human. Sorry MK11, Witcher 3, Dark Souls 3, Sekiro, Kingdom Come: Deliverance, RDR2 and God of War (for Platinum). If initial impressions carry enough weight, I can easily see it holding my interest throughout. Then I?ll probably have to will myself to go back and finish Silent Assassin and Blood Money before even thinking about the latest.


By the way Xprimentyl, did you ever finish Dark Souls 2?

 

[Xprimentyl]

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I have a very obtuse, incomplete and fractured experience with the series. The first time I can recall playing any Hitman was Contracts on Xbox way back when it was fairly new. Then I played through Absolution 3-4 years ago, and thought it played brilliantly well. However, even considering its excellent execution I completely understand the complaints about it being too linear and streamlined, because I actually played through Codename 47 shortly after that for the first time and even that often felt more open-ended. While I really enjoyed it and thought it aged better than say, the original Deus Ex (which I also played for the first time about 4 years ago), it was certainly a caveated experience. For its time I could sense how the movement, physics and mission design were probably groundbreaking, but yeah it?s a defining example of the gaming term for ?clunky?.

Started playing Silent Assassin shortly after, and while its gameplay seemed to be improved I had to take a break from it. The general consensus on it being the toughest game of the series didn?t help matters for my personal barely-beyond-rookie-assassin status with the series. Currently at Hidden Valley which apparently is a problematic level [https://amp.reddit.com/r/HiTMAN/comments/8e4734/is_there_no_way_to_complete_this_level_with/].

Fast forward to this week after opening this thread and watching No Clip?s recent Hitman features, then noticing that H2016 GotY was only $15 on Humble Bundle, I figured it?s a good time revisit the series. After playing through the well done tutorial and being introduced to the Paris level, I get the impression of huge strides being made. I keep reading that Blood Money (which I also have from an old Steam bundle, just never played) was the gold standard in terms of free form mission design, and that must be the bar they set to break here. Just looking through the mission select sparks my imagination with all the various ways to off targets. It also plays as smoothly as Absolution, basically bringing the best of both worlds.

I?ve shuffled this to the top of my gaming stack along with finishing Detroit: Become Human. Sorry MK11, Witcher 3, Dark Souls 3, Sekiro, Kingdom Come: Deliverance RDR2 and God of War (for Platinum). If initial impressions hold enough weight, I can easily see it holding my interest throughout. Then I?ll have to will myself to go back and finish Silent Assassin and probably Blood Money before even thinking about the latest.

Yeah, I regret that I let this series slide by with as little notice as I did, particularly since it?s literally the reason stealth is probably my favorite genre. I completed the very first one on PC, and I think I played through a decent portion of whichever one released on the Original Xbox, but didn?t follow up beyond that until I bought the bundle on the 360. I?d prefer to play through in the order they released for context 1.) so I can appreciate the iterative improvements and 2.) to ensure I?ll actually play them all, i.e.: I don?t see myself going back to play objectively inferior games after great, newer experiences.

By the way Xprimentyl, did you ever finish Dark Souls 2?

Begrudgingly, yes; I finished DS2 once and once only. My first pass was a train wreck of wasted time and inventory mismanagement, and I started a second playthrough determined to do it better, but the game was is damned taxing compared to DS1, my heart isn?t in it. I pop it in once a month or so, but meh. Compare that to DS1 which I?ve completed countless times. I?ve got about 20 characters across three Xbox profiles; none of them have logged fewer than 15 hours, my first guy has 200 all to himself.

 

[stroopwafel]

I played and completed each and every Hitman game except the very first and most recent one(3 missions in). But yeah, great games made by great developers. All the games have this kind of distinct clockwork structure but the past titles felt more improvisational in this regard probably b/c the old consoles didn't have the resources to process so many variables and nudge you this subtly towards a target's activity loop.

But yeah, definitely agree with devs that they are more like puzzle games. Good to hear Squeenix also did their best to find IO a different publishing partner.

 

[Phoenixmgs_v1legacy]

Spoiler

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I have a very obtuse, incomplete and fractured experience with the series. The first time I can recall playing any Hitman was Contracts on Xbox way back when it was fairly new. Then I played through Absolution 3-4 years ago, and thought it played brilliantly well. However, even considering its excellent execution I completely understand the complaints about it being too linear and streamlined, because I actually played through Codename 47 shortly after that for the first time and even that often felt more open-ended. While I really enjoyed it and thought it aged better than say, the original Deus Ex (which I also played for the first time about 4 years ago), it was certainly a caveated experience. For its time I could sense how the movement, physics and mission design were probably groundbreaking, but yeah it?s a defining example of the gaming term for ?clunky?.

Started playing Silent Assassin shortly after, and while its gameplay seemed to be improved I had to take a break from it. The general consensus on it being the toughest game of the series didn?t help matters for my personal barely-beyond-rookie-assassin status with the series. Currently at Hidden Valley which apparently is a problematic level [https://amp.reddit.com/r/HiTMAN/comments/8e4734/is_there_no_way_to_complete_this_level_with/].

Fast forward to this week after opening this thread and watching No Clip?s recent Hitman features, then noticing that H2016 GotY was only $15 on Humble Bundle, I figured it?s a good time revisit the series. After playing through the well done tutorial and being introduced to the Paris level, I get the impression of huge strides being made. I keep reading that Blood Money (which I also have from an old Steam bundle, just never played) was the gold standard in terms of free form mission design, and that must be the bar they set to break here. Just looking through the mission select sparks my imagination with all the various ways to off targets. It also plays as smoothly as Absolution, basically bringing the best of both worlds.

I?ve shuffled this to the top of my gaming stack along with finishing Detroit: Become Human. Sorry MK11, Witcher 3, Dark Souls 3, Sekiro, Kingdom Come: Deliverance RDR2 and God of War (for Platinum). If initial impressions hold enough weight, I can easily see it holding my interest throughout. Then I?ll have to will myself to go back and finish Silent Assassin and probably Blood Money before even thinking about the latest.

Yeah, I regret that I let this series slide by with as little notice as I did, particularly since it?s literally the reason stealth is probably my favorite genre. I completed the very first one on PC, and I think I played through a decent portion of whichever one released on the Original Xbox, but didn?t follow up beyond that until I bought the bundle on the 360. I?d prefer to play through in the order they released for context 1.) so I can appreciate the iterative improvements and 2.) to ensure I?ll actually play them all, i.e.: I don?t see myself going back to play objectively inferior games after great, newer experiences.

By the way Xprimentyl, did you ever finish Dark Souls 2?

Begrudgingly, yes; I finished DS2 once and once only. My first pass was a train wreck of wasted time and inventory mismanagement, and I started a second playthrough determined to do it better, but the game was is damned taxing compared to DS1, my heart isn?t in it. I pop it in once a month or so, but meh. Compare that to DS1 which I?ve completed countless times. I?ve got about 20 characters across three Xbox profiles; none of them have logged fewer than 15 hours, my first guy has 200 all to himself.

Including the DLC? It?s up there with some of FROM?s best work in terms of locations and bosses have imo. Sorry to hear the 2nd Souls game wasn?t jiving well with you though.

I?m still chipping away at DS3 myself. From a gameplay standpoint it feels like the most smoothly playable entry yet, and the locations are as good as ever but I?m also too distracted by other unfinished games.

 

[Xprimentyl]

Spoiler

Snip

Snip

Snip

Snip

I have a very obtuse, incomplete and fractured experience with the series. The first time I can recall playing any Hitman was Contracts on Xbox way back when it was fairly new. Then I played through Absolution 3-4 years ago, and thought it played brilliantly well. However, even considering its excellent execution I completely understand the complaints about it being too linear and streamlined, because I actually played through Codename 47 shortly after that for the first time and even that often felt more open-ended. While I really enjoyed it and thought it aged better than say, the original Deus Ex (which I also played for the first time about 4 years ago), it was certainly a caveated experience. For its time I could sense how the movement, physics and mission design were probably groundbreaking, but yeah it?s a defining example of the gaming term for ?clunky?.

Started playing Silent Assassin shortly after, and while its gameplay seemed to be improved I had to take a break from it. The general consensus on it being the toughest game of the series didn?t help matters for my personal barely-beyond-rookie-assassin status with the series. Currently at Hidden Valley which apparently is a problematic level [https://amp.reddit.com/r/HiTMAN/comments/8e4734/is_there_no_way_to_complete_this_level_with/].

Fast forward to this week after opening this thread and watching No Clip?s recent Hitman features, then noticing that H2016 GotY was only $15 on Humble Bundle, I figured it?s a good time revisit the series. After playing through the well done tutorial and being introduced to the Paris level, I get the impression of huge strides being made. I keep reading that Blood Money (which I also have from an old Steam bundle, just never played) was the gold standard in terms of free form mission design, and that must be the bar they set to break here. Just looking through the mission select sparks my imagination with all the various ways to off targets. It also plays as smoothly as Absolution, basically bringing the best of both worlds.

I?ve shuffled this to the top of my gaming stack along with finishing Detroit: Become Human. Sorry MK11, Witcher 3, Dark Souls 3, Sekiro, Kingdom Come: Deliverance RDR2 and God of War (for Platinum). If initial impressions hold enough weight, I can easily see it holding my interest throughout. Then I?ll have to will myself to go back and finish Silent Assassin and probably Blood Money before even thinking about the latest.

Yeah, I regret that I let this series slide by with as little notice as I did, particularly since it?s literally the reason stealth is probably my favorite genre. I completed the very first one on PC, and I think I played through a decent portion of whichever one released on the Original Xbox, but didn?t follow up beyond that until I bought the bundle on the 360. I?d prefer to play through in the order they released for context 1.) so I can appreciate the iterative improvements and 2.) to ensure I?ll actually play them all, i.e.: I don?t see myself going back to play objectively inferior games after great, newer experiences.

By the way Xprimentyl, did you ever finish Dark Souls 2?

Begrudgingly, yes; I finished DS2 once and once only. My first pass was a train wreck of wasted time and inventory mismanagement, and I started a second playthrough determined to do it better, but the game was is damned taxing compared to DS1, my heart isn?t in it. I pop it in once a month or so, but meh. Compare that to DS1 which I?ve completed countless times. I?ve got about 20 characters across three Xbox profiles; none of them have logged fewer than 15 hours, my first guy has 200 all to himself.

Including the DLC? It?s up there with some of FROM?s best work in terms of locations and bosses have imo. Sorry to hear the 2nd Souls game wasn?t jiving well with you though.

I?m still chipping away at DS3 myself. From a gameplay standpoint it feels like the most smoothly playable entry yet, and the locations are as good as ever but I?m also too distracted by other unfinished games.

I dabbled a bit in each of the DLC areas, but only got to the invisible snow lion thingy; died a couple times, and settled for the vanilla ending. I was just so tired of my first character; it felt like it was the character the game made me into and not the character I wanted to make. I dragged him to the finish line only to see three other finish lines, and was like? ?no.? I might get into the DLC with my second guy; I just need to quit hitting snooze, get my ass outta bed and try again.

 

[stroopwafel]

I'm still chipping away at DS3 myself. From a gameplay standpoint it feels like the most smoothly playable entry yet, and the locations are as good as ever but I'm also too distracted by other unfinished games.

How can you be distracted by other games when you have DS3 still unfinished bro, that game sits on lonely heights! Tell me you've visited Irithyll atleast.

 

[Phoenixmgs_v1legacy]

I'm still chipping away at DS3 myself. From a gameplay standpoint it feels like the most smoothly playable entry yet, and the locations are as good as ever but I'm also too distracted by other unfinished games.

How can you be distracted by other games when you have DS3 still unfinished bro, that game sits on lonely heights! Tell me you've visited Irithyll atleast.

Lol I hear ya. What am I thinking!? Currently trudging through Farron Keep, looking for the last flame to extinguish. Those shiny souls laying around in the back swampy nooks are getting me into a decent bit of trouble! I took the elevator to the top of the bridge and saw a big bad waiting for me, so I went exploring down below some more to make sure I didn?t miss anything. Will report back later on how things go tonight...

But having said that, Hitman 2016 is also very enticingly deep in its own right. I will probably end up splitting my time with each (DS3 on PS4 and Hitman on PC).

 

[Phoenixmgs_v1legacy]

I beat the Stray Demon on the bridge and got some nice loot, but those Abyss Watchers down below...I barely could take off half of the second meter. His flame sword has so much range and I spend most of my stamina dodging everything to get decent attacks in. I might have to level a bit more, unless there?s another strategy. Maybe I?ll try reinforcing that Irithyll frost sword I tried earlier.

 

[stroopwafel]

I beat the Stray Demon on the bridge and got some nice loot, but those Abyss Watchers down below...I barely could take off half of the second meter. His flame sword has so much range and I spend most of my stamina dodging everything to get decent attacks in. I might have to level a bit more, unless there?s another strategy. Maybe I?ll try reinforcing that Irithyll frost sword I tried earlier.

cool. I usually dodge their quick attacks and wait for the big leaping attack. That's a good opening for a counter offensive. Would recommend greatsword or something similar that does a lot of damage per hit.

 

[Phoenixmgs_v1legacy]

I beat the Stray Demon on the bridge and got some nice loot, but those Abyss Watchers down below...I barely could take off half of the second meter. His flame sword has so much range and I spend most of my stamina dodging everything to get decent attacks in. I might have to level a bit more, unless there?s another strategy. Maybe I?ll try reinforcing that Irithyll frost sword I tried earlier.

cool. I usually dodge their quick attacks and wait for the big leaping attack. That's a good opening for a counter offensive. Would recommend greatsword or something similar that does a lot of damage per hit.

I?m at lvl 33 now and thinking of switching my Astora SS to offhand and dual wielding with the GS version. With low VIT and END it?s rough going with a shield, and in this game I barely use it outside of close quarters since most enemies drain poise rather quickly. Also haven?t even been able to entertain Fashion Souls yet, as leveling seems to be harder-earned than ever.

 

[Phoenixmgs_v1legacy]

I beat him with my trusty Astora SS. Burning an ember really helped tip the battle in my favor by giving some breathing room. Now I?m looting the Catacombs. Kinda reminds me of a more elaborate blend of the original?s Catacombs, Sen?s Fortress, DS2?s Undead Crypt and Grave of Saints.

I?m really loving the locations so far. Most seem bigger and better than prior games, with the only caveat being a lack of those brilliant interconnections as of yet.

 

[stroopwafel]

I beat him with my trusty Astora SS. Burning an ember really helped tip the battle in my favor by giving some breathing room. Now I?m looting the Catacombs. Kinda reminds me of a more elaborate blend of the original?s Catacombs, Sen?s Fortress, DS2?s Undead Crypt and Grave of Saints.

I?m really loving the locations so far. Most seem bigger and better than prior games, with the only caveat being a lack of those brilliant interconnections as of yet.

I think DS3 is an exceptionally pretty game. Not just the graphics but more it's artistic and creative direction. It also has the biggest artbook of all the games. Not just regular art either, like, museum quality stuff.

 

[Phoenixmgs_v1legacy]

So I?m in the Paris level and damn it?s impressive how many different ways you can cook a goose here. It kinda makes me wonder what the optimal way to play would be though. I turned off instinct as that seemed too obvious, but am using the tracking function for opportunities, because it?s a bit too oblique otherwise in terms of progression of a hit.