By Quintin Smith on June 13th, 2011 at 3:48 pm.
Oof, there’s no telling how long this one will stay online, but some scamp has posted footage of the behind-closed-doors showing of Hitman: Absolution (EDIT: turns out it was the Danish news. Oops.). According to our man John Walker, who actually saw the full demo, the following is an odd compilation of scenes from it, cut with scenes from the glossy, ambiguous cutscene that we did see. Odd.
Thanks to CVG for the footage, but only a half-hearted, mumbled thanks. I’m not sure how I feel about this context-sensitive action that Absolution seems to be focusing on. But then I suspect my dream Hitman game would have had most of the development time sunk into nothing more than 47′s strut and the way his tie billows in the wind.
On the other hand, the last level of Hitman: Contracts, where the police storm the building you’re sheltering in, was absolutely mega. Maybe this will be mega too. God, please let it be mega.
13/06/2011 at 15:53 westyfield says:
Sorry Quinns, I’m afraid it will only be *10^5.
13/06/2011 at 16:02 sonofsanta says:
Maths joke! Good show, sir.
13/06/2011 at 16:11 MiniMatt says:
Make me feel stupid will you? I’ll show you…. I can count to …. erm…. numbers and stuff.
Right, we can do this. Is 10^5 = 100,000? If so, erm… reference to “mega”? Does “mega” have an actual mathematical value rather than just a prefix to manga baddies? Erm…
I give up :o)
13/06/2011 at 16:27 HermitUK says:
Guards, help! That man’s trying to murder that joke! Somebody stop him!
13/06/2011 at 16:29 mlaskus says:
Mega is 10^6
13/06/2011 at 16:30 MiniMatt says:
Nah – I’ll just kill this clown, dump the body in the van and steal his clothes, then no-one will be any the wiser that it was I who killed comedy…
13/06/2011 at 16:30 ckpk says:
why can’t we start using 10^-(number) prefixes to say things are rubbish
i.e. that game demo was absolutely femto
13/06/2011 at 18:19 PopeBob says:
People! The mutant is pursuing me!
13/06/2011 at 19:56 Eolirin says:
@MiniMatt Mega is the next prefix up from Kilo in the metric system. 1,000,000 or 10^6.
13/06/2011 at 20:15 SprintJack says:
Ever heard of megabyte? Quite frequently used in computers…
14/06/2011 at 01:02 Stormbane says:
Could we please use exponential expressions please.
e+5
Much cleaner. Thank you.
16/06/2011 at 10:57 apa says:
I have to reply to an old post but as this is about computer games, we should be aiming for 2^20.
13/06/2011 at 15:55 danimalkingdom says:
The editing on this video is mesmerisingly hare-brained, but it looks like hitman is in good hands. Please let it have big environments, multiple routes, sardonic humour, wonderful animation and all the other things that make this one of my favourite series.
13/06/2011 at 18:03 chiroben says:
This.
13/06/2011 at 22:22 bhlaab says:
Hitman isn’t supposed to have “routes”
05/09/2011 at 13:01 LennyLeonardo says:
Yeah, I mean he doesn’t even have any hair, full stop.
13/06/2011 at 16:07 LarsBR says:
Some of those clips were from a Danish news show (the DR logo in the bottom is dr.dk, the national broadcasting corp.)
13/06/2011 at 16:09 Bhazor says:
The news? Have they already blamed a murder on it?
13/06/2011 at 16:22 TheSquarePear says:
@Bhazor
We don’t have much to be proud of in Denmark (bacon and beer is probably it) so the fact that “we” (IO Interactive) can compete with major games studios is something that the nationalist news agencies are happy to brag about I guess.
13/06/2011 at 17:05 MiniMatt says:
Bacon, beer, and LEGO. Coincidentally, also my perfect weekend.
13/06/2011 at 18:17 Nalano says:
“We don’t have much to be proud of in Denmark, just the two most awesome things ever in the world.”
13/06/2011 at 16:10 mangrove says:
Looking pretty slick, me hearties.
13/06/2011 at 16:14 Metaphorazine says:
So damn nervous about this… I’m optimistic at the moment, that lock on cover system isn’t yet cause for alarm but hopefully run and gun is not a big part of this game. Hopefully not a central part at least!
13/06/2011 at 16:15 derFeef says:
There is also this non-blurry, non-dumb-edited, official footage during this interview_
http://www.ign.com/videos/2011/06/09/e3-2011-ign-live-hitman-absolution?objectid=14251574
13/06/2011 at 16:19 Heliosicle says:
Think this is just an edited together clip of all the footage out there, none of it has been leaked, you got me excited Quinns :(
14/06/2011 at 05:31 KenTWOu says:
Definitely now I feel like I’ve been Rick Rolled!
13/06/2011 at 16:27 woodsey says:
Bit of an odd focus on conventional stealth.
13/06/2011 at 16:28 CharlO says:
Is it that expensive a “Pick-that-up” animation?
05/09/2011 at 14:02 hello_mr.Trout says:
^ agree
kinda ruined the mood for me
13/06/2011 at 16:30 Drake Sigar says:
I don’t know whether to play it or fuck it.
13/06/2011 at 16:35 Gamer-DealZ says:
From all I have seen – I am missing the “stealth”. I know you could possibly shot yourself through all levels of the games. But it is just so much more interesting if some “accidents” happen and noone even suspects 47 was there.
Please don’t turn Hitman into Kane & Lynch.
13/06/2011 at 16:51 Serenegoose says:
They probably aren’t, it’s just that things like showing you the One True Route of a level in the release trailers might be considered giving the game away a little, whereas showing you relatively inconsequential action looks a: exciting and b: tells you basically nothing. However, I do hope that this means that the action sequences aren’t considered such a failure state this time. I disliked that the game (blood money specifically) punished me whenever I wanted to do something that -wasn’t- plant a bomb on a winch/chandelier/piano and wait for my target to haplessly walk under it.
13/06/2011 at 16:39 Inigo says:
Well, at least they aren’t unceremoniously ditching 47 and Diana’s original voice actors or getting someone other than Jesper Kyd to do the soundtrack or anything.
OH WAIT.
13/06/2011 at 16:53 Nighthood says:
This. They’ve really been utter dicks to the people who helped get them popular. I hold little hope for the game.
13/06/2011 at 17:26 woodsey says:
Wait, what? They surely aren’t getting rid of 47′s voice actor?!
And Diana sounds exactly the same in the CG trailer.
13/06/2011 at 17:27 Schadenfreude says:
I’d heard about 47, but they’ve got rid of Diana and Jesper Kyd too?
::rageface::
13/06/2011 at 17:15 wodin says:
Did it look like some of them coppers had been munching way to many pie’s?
13/06/2011 at 17:26 fuggles says:
I may be inexperienced at this, but aren’t you supposed to point your gun at the hostage?
13/06/2011 at 20:40 gwathdring says:
I had a similar though. I replied to the guy below you, though.
13/06/2011 at 17:45 hamster says:
You’re supposed to point your gun at the combatants in front of you and immediately start shooting. If you want to secure the hostage as a means of escape, you should also be pointing the gun towards any combatants so as to prevent them (i.e. shoot them) if/when they try to move off at an angle to your side where they can reliably put a bullet in your skull. The problem is that the human shield isn’t really a very good bargaining chip unless you represent that you have nothing to lose/the target is a V.I.P etc – shooting the hostage when combatants push your hand does nothing towards survival. Common sense, really.
13/06/2011 at 20:40 gwathdring says:
Yes and no. I would think there are situations when pointing the gun at the hostage is important. Keep in mind you need a way to convince the hostage not to struggle too much or you’re in trouble. You have more time to move the gun to point at anyone who tries to get a good angle on you than you do to prevent the hostage from ceasing unshieldworthy activity. Really, moving with a human shield is a terrible idea. It requires making sure you convince everyone else that one of them has to die before they get a shot on you, whoever that may be. Then the bystander effect kicks in and everyone waits for a better chance of not dying to act. But there’s no incentive for the hostage to cooperate if you don’t keep them feeling threatened. He could always move the gun randomly between his aggressors and the hostage. If the hostage is either willing to die or thinks he/she has a shot at moving in such a way as to make you a clear target … you’re hosed.
13/06/2011 at 22:36 phosgene says:
and in the game!
14/06/2011 at 07:19 gwathdring says:
What game?
13/06/2011 at 19:54 Eolirin says:
Sigh. Comment system bugs are annoying.
13/06/2011 at 19:55 Fierce says:
Hmm. Getting some serious Splinter Cell: Conviction vibes from this game.
And not in that way where every 3rd person platformer game since 2004 gives off Sands of Time vibes, but actual “This is Conviction with a better dressed protagonist, a colorful(!) environment and better looking/behaving foes” vibes.
If the human shield hostage you take refuses to struggle as well, I might just need a stiff drink to remain hopeful that this will be mega.
13/06/2011 at 20:17 yourgrandma says:
Great a cover system… already hating this game.
13/06/2011 at 20:45 gwathdring says:
It makes hiding behind walls look nicer than static crouching. Since there’s a lot of crouching behind walls and corners in a Hitman game I think it’s a perfect game for some dynamic cover animations. It’s a bit of context sensitive animation, with no current evidence of the gameplay issues that go along with this specific animation in certain games. It’s already a third person game, so it’s not taking away your control or immersion. Cover systems aren’t the ultimate enemy of gaming.
13/06/2011 at 20:49 Kaira- says:
Yeah, I’m with gwathdring in this. Actual “cover system” or “stand tightly by the wall system” instead of just looking stupdily straight to wall is something that the previous Hitmans could’ve used.
13/06/2011 at 22:09 yourgrandma says:
IF it’s just a cover animation with no firing from said cover like in the older splinter cell games then great. My prediction is still until proven otherwise that this game will have rechargeable health, cover system and blind firing dual ballers into linear corridors
13/06/2011 at 23:27 Kaira- says:
I don’t even mind the blindfiring IF I can still sneak around doing sneaky things. Let’s hope we can. :)
14/06/2011 at 02:11 dufake says:
Cover systems are rarely done right.
Kane and Lynch 2′s cover system is not a good one, SO?
14/06/2011 at 03:36 yourgrandma says:
Blind firing would not match Agent 47′s character at all and neither would firing from cover as he is not supposed to be spotted in the first place. He is supposed to be a extremely efficient silent assassin not a gun ho mass murdering tough guy. Even though you could play that way in past games it was never the best option.
14/06/2011 at 07:56 vagabond says:
Your 47 maybe…
My 47 tries to see how many people he can sneak up behind of and shoot in the head with a silenced pistol without anybody noticing. No living witnesses equals no noteriety.
Although, once the silencer is available for the rifle, it’s time to switch guns. I wear my Russian Hare ranking with pride…
13/06/2011 at 20:44 I LIKE FOOD says:
Ah a cover system, thats what they meant by “making it more accessible” I guess. Question is, will this game now be 80% firefights?
13/06/2011 at 20:46 gwathdring says:
Good grief, two in a row? I understand not liking the games that use cover “systems” but all we saw here was a cover animation. Which as I mentioned above, makes sense in a stealth game.
13/06/2011 at 21:08 I LIKE FOOD says:
LOL btw notice all the red arrows indicating all the people you can shoot. Hitman: Gears of War edition.
13/06/2011 at 21:15 gwathdring says:
I didn’t care for the arrows … those were annoying. But I’m assuming they disappear at high difficulty levels, since the hitman-o-vision ability does as well. I doubt there will be a way to ditch them without upping the difficulty though, which I can see be annoying for people who don’t WANT to play at the higher difficulty levels but don’t want to deal with this kind of crap. :\
At the same time though, I’m equally tired of hearing any feature popularized in mainstream games maligned as a sign that franchise X is copying game Z O, the HORROR. Even if it is true, it is an exceedingly narrow way to look at the industry, the game using the feature and even the feature in question.
13/06/2011 at 23:22 Radiant says:
PLEASE BE GOOD.
*looks at recent IO track history*
shit.
14/06/2011 at 02:31 vash47 says:
IO Interactive was my favorite studio until I learned that Jesper Kyd won’t be doing the soundtrack and David Bateson won’t voice Agent 47.
14/06/2011 at 03:05 Commisar says:
yeah, that sucks, but has the composer been confirmed as not returning?
14/06/2011 at 08:07 Radiant says:
I’m usually fairly disappointed that a voice actor looks nothing like their in-game counterpart.
Then I googled David Bateson.
14/06/2011 at 08:50 Coflash says:
http://www.coflash.com/stuff/hitmanabsolution.jpg
http://www.coflash.com/stuff/absolutionpreorder.jpg
http://www.coflash.com/stuff/hitmanarkham.jpg
Can’t wait.