More dirty work for Agent 47.

"Hitman: Contracts" is the third installment in the Hitman series, and continues giving players the chance to direct the genetically-engineered assassin known only as "47." Once again, there are dangerous and lucrative hits to be completed all over the world, and it will take a combination of patience and daring to complete them all. As with any sequel, it is important that owners of the previous title will have reason to pick up this new installment. It is also important that new players have the ability to jump into the action without feeling lost. "Contracts" fulfills both of these missions quite well.

Unlike "Silent Assassin", "Contracts" has a storyline that is much less linear. Instead, you are directed through a series of flashbacks as Agent 47 lies, seriously wounded, in a seedy hotel room. Some of these missions are actually revisited from the very first Hitman title, although they have been changed signficantly. I have never played the first Hitman game, so these missions were new to me. They were also very challenging, particularly when played on "expert" difficulty.

The gameplay provided by "Contracts" is very similar to "Silent Assassin." In order to complete each mission, you must complete one or two assasinations along with other tasks while avoiding detection. Although you can run-and-gun your way through the levels, the ideal is to take out your primary targets without anyone knowing you were there. This can be very, very tricky when your targets are protected by intricate security networks and armed thugs. To complete your missions, you are given a selection of weapons that include pistols, submachine guns, meat-hooks, butcher-knives, piano-wire, pool-cues, shotguns, sniper rifles, poisons, and other deadly toys. Stealth is achieved by a combination of patience, timing, and the frequent use of disguises taken from the dead/unconscious bodies of your enemies.

The combat in the game is fairly intuitive, although it is never a great idea to rush into a situation with your guns blazing. At "expert" difficulty, for example, you are always outnumbered, usually outgunned, and will likely end up dead once your cover is blown. Your character is relatively tough, but a few blasts from a high-powered rifle will bring him down in a hurry. It is best to do your killing from behind, without warning. There are times when nearly every weapon in the game is necessary, although I find that the piano-wire is the most satisfying way to take out a target. It is also the most difficult to pull off, so you need to practice quite a bit.

Although most of the gameplay features have not changed since "Silent Assassin", there are a few tweaks that make things a bit more enjoyable on this go-around. First of all, you can run more often without instantly blowing your cover. This allows you to move through levels much faster, which is nice after some of the tedious crawls in "Silent Assassin." You can also "sneak" much faster, which makes the paino wire a more viable weapon. Disguises, as in previous titles, can be more or less effective depending on the mission. At times, you will find a logical disguise is actually completely uselss in a certain mission. This is frustrating, but with a little trial and error you soon discover which disguises are the most effective.

The worst change between "Contracts" and "Silent Assasin" is the way in which you are outfitted with weapons for each mission. In SA, you had the ability to capture weapons from various enemies and keep them in your weapons stash for future missions. At the start of each mission, you could choose which weapons you wanted to bring. This was a nice touch, because it gave you an incentive to collect interesting and effective weapons as you went along. In Contracts, however, you do not have a choice about which weapons you can bring with you on each mission. Instead, you always start out with the same assortment, and any further weapons must be taken in-mission from enemies or from a strategic stash. This can be really aggravating because you are not given a silenced weapon or a knife to work with at the start of your missions...in SA, the knife was one of your most trusted tools.

Despite a few annoying changes, "Contracts" is a solid step forward for the Hitman franchise. It updates the graphics just enough to present things with a bit more polish than before...environments are nicely detailed, and there are some cool weather effects. The sound of weapons and dialogue is still very nice, and load times are short between missions. You still have a limited number of saves, which can be aggravating, but lower difficulty levels have more saves. The game runs well on my system, and I haven't had any major glitches to contend with. There are some moderate clipping issues with doors, but this isn't a big deal.

Overall, this is a very enjoyable game and well worth its current bargain-cost. I got it as a trilogy pack for less than thirty dollars, and have been very satisfied. A must-have for any fan of shooters who is looking for something a little different.