Hitman: Sapienza

Six and a half weeks after it launched, I've still not done everything there is to do in Hitman's excellent inaugural mission, Paris; so of course, here comes episode two, set in the sunnyAmalfi coast town of Sapienza.

If I didn't manage to rinse Paris yet, I don't think I'll ever see everything there is to see here - Sapienza is colossal. Aside from the villa that acts as a sort of focus for the new Story mission - which itself feels almost a third the size of the Palais de Walewska in Paris - there are winding streets, apartments, offices, a beach, boat docks, sewers, and more to explore.

And of course, there are loads of NPCs to choke unconscious before stealing their clothes.
Treating my first run as a kind of recon mission, I swapped out 47's fiber wire for a lockpick, and spent a good half hour or so just wandering the back streets, breaking into closed shops and apartments, and just looking around, stumbling across a few of the new disguises along the way, as well as a couple of hints for how to access the targets' villa.

Eventually, I decided that I really ought to get on with the job, and headed up into the villa, disguised as kitchen staff. About fifteen minutes later, both targets were down, but 47 was bleeding out into a very expensive-looking rug; let's just say I wasn't going for Silent Assassin, Suit Only.

Attempt number two was successful, but no less messy; target #1 was dispatched with silent professionalism, but by the time I made it to the third target, subtlety was largely forgotten, as I legged it out of the villa and fled Sapienza in a battered old car, unlocking a few new starting locations and drop-off points along the way.

It's becoming increasingly clear with each attempt that Paris was very much the third training level; Sapienza is a very different beast. Every area seems to have a scattering of NPCs who can see through some of 47's various disguises, meaning that just trying to explore is fraught with peril. Even with Opportunities turned all the way off, however, I've found a few openings to exploit, which hint at some wonderful assassination opportunities.

Next run: exploding golf ball kill.

There are a couple of relatively minor issues that carry over from the first episode; although IO have added some ambient background audio in Italian, anything addressed to 47 is in English - with a strong American accent. When an Italian padre finds you lurking in the belltower, a Californian-accented cry of, "what the hell are you doing back here?" doesn't exactly maintain suspension of disbelief.

It's something that wears off with time, though, and I'm already starting to just accept it. The fact is, spending time wandering the streets, alleys, and corridors shows a depth and variety of approach that borders on the mind-boggling. I've only briefly scanned the Challenges list, but working some of those out is going to take time.

And I have a feeling I'm going to enjoy every second of it.

This review is based on the PlayStation 4 version.