Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #14067 in Computer & Video Games
• Brand: Eidos
• Released on: 2003-06-27
• Platform: GameCube

Amazon.co.uk Review
Eidos' stylish, strategic and almost puzzle-like Hitman 2 makes its console debut, managing to address many of the criticisms that haunted the PC original but still falling short of its potential. The premise sets up the player as a genetically modified hit man, forced out of retirement when things get a little personal. Each level then sets up an overall mission, broken down into sub-objectives, thankfully with a much-requested save-game feature included in case things get a little hairy. This isn't your standard walk-and-shoot kind of game, though; Hitman 2 rewards planning, and lots of it. While there's no fixed linear route through any of the levels, each requires a lot of thought to be completed.

What limits the game's potential though is the continual stream of frustrations. The enemy's artificial intelligence, for instance, is sometimes very sadly lacking, and there are occasions when the pace drops to snail-like speed, without always generating sufficient tension to carry the player through. That said, when it hits top gear Hitman 2 can be tense, atmospheric and enjoyable. Graphically it's very polished, and those who enjoy games that reward solid thinking more than an itchy trigger finger will certainly find something to enjoy. But while undoubtedly a step forward from its predecessor, it's an ambitious game that still falls short of its targets. Put simply, it's good, it's challenging, but it still leaves quite a lot of room for improvement. --Jon Foster

This review refers to the PlayStation 2 version.

NGC Magazine
"Been longing for something as deep as GoldenEye? You'll find it all right here. 91%."

GamesTM Magazine
"One of the most fulfilling stealth experiences ever devised. 8/10."

Customer Reviews

elimination simulation with number 47
Hitman 2 is without doubt the most violent game on the Gamecube and is also one of the most enjoyable.

You begin the game as reitred hitman 47 working for a priest in an attempt to atone for his sins in the previous game, untill the Father Vittorio is kidnapped by mobsters and 47 is forced back into the hitman buissiness. What you get is 20 levels of 47 taking jobs form the Agency which he hopoes will lead him to Vittorio. The way the lavels layout is the best thing, you have multiple ways of completeing the mission, and if you do it well enough you earn the silent assassin rating.

All you have to do is think about whats going on around you and you figure it out that sometimes you have to hide or steal a uniform, or you could go in guns blazing and kill everything insight. Sometimes you will have no choice but to be stealthy but this is only on a few levels, but it really is fun to strangle some waiter and take his uniform so you can enter a certain building without being shot at.

But if you prefer to go in guns blazing then there is an excellent choice of weapons for you altohugh, unlike most games this puts a limit on how many weapons you can carry. You can take as many pistols as you want as they can be concealed as well as Uzi's and sawn-off Shotguns but you can only take one Rifle otherwise you will be easily detected.

Bodies will stay where you shoot them for the whole level and when you drag them the games gravity sensor kicks in, which means that if you are dangling a body into a man hole with half his body in the hole, let go and the legs slowley slide into the hole. Rather then just strangley floating like on some games.

Hitman 2 is an exceptional game, not to be played if you have any sense of morality but if you like a game which makes you think about just what you are doing then this is the game for you.

Mmmmm... blood!
Just one look at the front cover is enough to tell you everything. The picture of a bald man in a suit holding 2 guns and the name of the game 'Hitman 2' tells us that this is not a game for 'ickle Jimmy on his 5th birthday.

Hitman 2 is one of the most violent games you will ever play. Our hero (or should it be villain?) 47 is now retired as a contract killer and has retreated to a church in Sicily for redemption. However when his friend and mentor Father Vittorio is kidnapped by a twisted russian crimelord, 47 is fored to don his suit, tighten the fibre-wire and go back to his previous bosses for information.

The first thing you notice is that the graphics are greatly inproved. There is more speech and the the vioce acting is superb. There is a tutorial for those who want to brush up on thier killing skills and the it's bang smack into your first mission.

The controls have been simplified for the Gamecube. And there is a first person view for precise targeting and detail. There is plenty of blood. Shooting a guy in the head produces plenty of the red goo. But you can even slice with a ninja sword or whack them on the head with a golf club. The choices are endless... as usual.
You can dress up as other people in order to infiltrate or simply go in gung-ho and blast anything that twitches. However, a new rating system encourages you not to go for the second option as the only way you can unlock hidden guns is by getting a perfect silent assaisain rating.

The story is told a bit better than it was in the last game. However, there are still unanswered questions which leave you pondering after the game is finished.

All in all then?
Hitman 2 is a vast improvement over the first game and if you are looking for a change in the usual shooters then this game should appeal to you. But be warned, it is definatley one for the mature gamer...

Fantastic
I now own the ps2 version of this, but when my frend got a game cube and got this, i hated stealth games. But when i played this for the first time, i new i had found the perfect stealth title. Its graphics are ok (better on the ps2) but the gameplay is supurb and it is refreshing to play a game with a darker twist.