Already own or are thinking of buying Hitman 2? It’s not a bad choice to make.
IO Interactive’s latest entry into its long-running Hitman series is undoubtedly the best yet, and if you own all of Hitman Season One you can import its levels into it too, revised to make use of the sequels new features. That amounts to potentially hundreds of hours of assassination sandbox fun.
You don’t need to have played previous Hitman games to enjoy Hitman 2 though; it may be a sequel, but it’s still a great entry point into the series. If you do decide to enter the world of Hitman for the first time though, you’d be wise to check out our handy tips to get your assassination skills up to scratch. Pay heed to our advice and you’ll be killing targets left, right and centre in no time.
Follow Mission Stories
The first time you tackle a level, it’s a good idea to follow Mission Stories to eradicate your targets. Mission Stories provide you with a sequence of tasks that will ultimately allow you to kill your targets undetected and in style, like blowing someone off of the top of a building with a giant fan. To instigate Mission Stories, you can either find prompts in the environments to start them, or open up the pause menu and choose to follow one of the many Mission Stories available from there.
Use the Right Disguise For the Task
Success in Hitman 2 largely relies on your ability to not look suspicious. Your civvies are fine for walking the streets, for example, but try and enter a guarded area in them and you’re likely to get turned away, or even worse, shot. If you need to be able to explore an area freely that you’re unable to enter or is classed as trespassing, seek out NPCs in the environment that you can steal clothes from that would make you fit in. Also, changing clothes is a great idea when you’re compromised: those pursuing you will lose your trail if your appearance is totally different.
Use the Crowds
New to Hitman 2 is the ability to blend into crowds, and it’s a feature that comes in very handy. If you’ve caught someone’s attention and are worried that your cover is going to be blown, head to the nearest crowd. If you manage to blend in before an alarm is raised, you’ll save yourself a world of trouble. Saying that though, it’s also worth trying to blend into crowds if chaos has ensued. If you can break line of sight for just long enough to get yourself a new disguise, you might just be able to turn around a catastrophic situation.
Be Patient
Hitman 2 rewards those who are patient. Study the environments and the NPCs that are in it. Keep an eye out for places that are prime for assassination attempts and find ways to make use of them. Follow your targets and memorise their movements. Only fools rush in, and in Hitman 2 you’ll be a dead fool if you act too brazenly.
Keep Your Eye Out for Handy Items
Screwdrivers, poison, wrenches; just a few of the many items that can be found in Hitman 2‘s environments that prove to be useful time and time again. They can be picked up and pocketed for use later on, won’t get you into trouble for carrying them for the most part, and will save you time when you do find a use for them. Pick up as many handy items as you can when exploring, because you never know when you might need them.
Be Aware of Your Surroundings
Always be aware of your surroundings. It’s common sense, isn’t it? Before you set about the act of killing, make sure there are no security cameras waiting to record your actions, or guards that could walk in on you. And always try to kill or incapacitate when you’re near items that can be used to store or dump bodies so they’re not found. Taking out targets is one thing, but preventing them from being found before you’ve put good distance between you and them is another.
Take Out Security Cameras
Security cameras are pesky things. While being recorded by them generally isn’t much of an issue other that it reducing your mission score, if you’re seen doing something illegal by them an alarm will be raised. It’s best, then, if you take them out of action whenever you can. Your silenced pistol is great for the job – just make sure you’re not seen. Alternatively, if you can locate the central security system you can erase all video evidence there, putting you in the clear.
Briefcases are Your Friend
Once you’ve finally gained access to sniper rifles, you’ll find that it’s hard to travel with them without scaring everyone who sees you. The solution is to carry a sniper rifle in a briefcase. Of course, briefcases can also be used to carry other items that may cause suspicion too, and can even be thrown if you want to knock someone down in a comical fashion. Agent 47 means business, and business sometimes means carrying a case to make you look important.
Act Fast If Caught
While Hitman 2 generally rewards those who plan meticulously and take their time, when things do go wrong, it’s better if you act fast. If you’re caught by a lone guard in a restricted area, for example, you might just get away with it if you can quickly take them down. If you gain lots of attention all at once, on the other hand, it might be a good idea to immediately flee and find somewhere to hide for a short while, preferable cutting through crowds on the way.
Make Use of the Save System
Unless you’re playing on Master difficulty, you can save your game as often as you like in Hitman 2. Make use of that to help you flawlessly eradicate your targets or experiment with new tactics. Making good use of game saves can also enable you to complete challenges more effectively in levels.
Play Your Way
One of the best things about Hitman 2 is that it allows you to play it your way, and that’s what you should do. Find out what works for you and run with it. There isn’t a right or wrong way to complete missions as long as you do indeed complete them. If you like stealth, try to be a ghost. If you like shooting guns, be a little more macho. All that matters is that you get the job done, one way or another.
