Run for Your Life

Hitman Absolution is commonly thought of as the series' black sheep, understandably so. The  open ended murder puzzles Hitman is best known for are largely replaced by linear traversal segments, and when there is an assassination the targets tend to be forgettable thugs or die in scripted sequences. So not only is the gameplay quite different from the previous games, it also isn't very good at making you feel like a hitman. But at its best Absolution does one thing better than any other game I've tried: making you feel like a fugitive.

In particular, I'm talking about the mission titled Run for Your Life.

As the mission begins, 47 has gotten caught sneaking into a hotel room and the weapons manufacturer staying in the room has recognized 47, murdered a maid, framed 47 for the murder and set the room on fire and called the cops because he's going to make a lot of money somehow. ['We know about the woman in the hotel room']. Yeah, the writing in Absolution is complete B-movie schlock? Love it or hate it, the events leading up to the mission make little to no sense but the premise is clear. The police are at the door and know who they're looking for, it's time for 47 to make an exit.

Run for Your Life isn't about assassinating anyone of importance or even about getting to any place in particular, but as the title suggests, it's about escaping an ongoing manhunt.

The actual mission consists of 3 major checkpoints, the derelict Library, the weed filled  apartments of Shangri-La and the busy Train Station. There are also 2 smaller checkpoints, Burning Hotel and Pigeon Coop, which are mostly just used to get 47 to the main areas.

Burning Hotel opens up the mission with a short cinematic moment that sets the mood and gives a sense of urgency, and follows it up with a brief gameplay section on the roof. This is the first time smoke that limits visibility for both the 47 and the enemies is introduced as a mechanic. While the smoke adds some flavor to the short checkpoint, I think the main purpose of this section is to give the player access to a police uniform before the first main checkpoint.

Speaking of unforms, Absolution is often criticized for its disguise mechanics which make anyone wearing the same outfit as you an enforcer who can blow your cover. It does feel off when you're disguised as a street cook in Chinatown or a goon with a full face mask, but the system actually works remarkably well in Run for Your Life. The only available disguise is the police uniform, and since you're already being hunted it makes sense for the cops to be suspicious. Sure, technically there's also a SWAT outfit, but that's near the end and you're pretty unlikely to ever use it.

After the burning hotel comes the derelict library. The only people in the library are 47 and members the police force and that shows in the approach the officers are taking. ["I want this place turned upside down!"]. The library halls are spacious and when keeping a distance to the enemies isn't enough, the book shelves and counters offer good cover.

Mechanically the area is not very remarkable, but it really doesn't need to be as it's only the first of three main checkpoints. That said, the cops do talk about and eventually turn on the lights which makes me wonder if darkness was considered as a mechanic at some point during the development.

The library exit leads back to the Chicago rooftops and to the infamous helicopter scene in pigeon coop. This checkpoint honestly feels a bit out of place but to its credit it at least does at least mix up the pacing of the mission without overstaying its welcome. The way the helicopter watches over the area also adds a small twist.

The mood in the aparments of Shangri-La has a stark contrast to the abandoned library. The look is more bright and colorful, there's even a bit of comedy to the characters. While the large halls have been replaced by narrow corridors and small apartments, but the civilian presence has also forced the police to slow down their approach.

Compared to the library the apartments have a lot more moving parts to interact with, and they also introduce another new mechanic, hiding in foliage. Like the smoke previously, the cannabis farm is not the focus of the area but works to spice the mission up a bit more.

The elevator is used to react the final checkpoint, the crowded train station. I'm not sure the way the apartment building's front door leads straight to the station follows typical Chicago architechture, but it doesn't make the station itself any less remarkable. The police have stopped the trains so the station is full of civilians, and among those civilians are officers looking for 47. Unlike the smoke and the foliage, this is not the first checkpoint in the game with the hiding in crowds mechanic, but this time the mechanic is not just a little twist but the centerpiece of the checkpoint.

The way to cops also blend in with the crowd and make the player pay more attention is what really sells the entire crowd system and makes it feel more than just a simple gimmick. While the platforms themselves are are large and keeping a distance to the cops and disappearing into the crowd is not a problem, but the overpass between the platforms is narrow and requires a more careful approach to get through.

At the very end there's a timed section at the platform, where 47 must keep evading the cops until a train arrives. It's not a difficult challenge, but still has a tense atmosphere and is a fitting end to the mission Though, it can become even too easy if you end up using the not-at-all-suspicious hiding spots while waiting.

I believe the train station to be the single most noteworthy section in the game and maybe one of the most brilliant moments in stealth games in general. This is what the previous checkpoints have been building up to, from an empty library to occupied apartments finally to the busy train station. The way 47's escape progresses feels logical, it starts with the worst possible situation but with every step the advantage shifts away from the police. If infiltrating the White House in Blood Money is like conquering a mountain, escaping in Run for Your Life is like climbing out of a hole.

It's a shame Absolution didn't seem to understand what was good about it. Most missions aren't particularly interesting and had they just been more along the lines of Run for Your Life, Absolution might have a better reputation. It'd still be a bad sequel to Blood Money, but it could've been something more original and interesting.