Friday, September 23, 2016

newdarkcloud plays Hitman (2016) - Episode 3 - Checkmate

Today, we finish the tutorial.



There's some dispute over whether or not this section can be treated as part of the tutorial. I lean on the side that it is part of the tutorial, because it makes sense if you treat like a further escalation on the Freeform Training.



At the start of the training, the game focuses purely on the mechanical aspects. It introduces the mechanics in ways that make sense and guides players through their first attempt.

Once that's complete, the player, armed with their knowledge of the first attempt, is given a set of basic tools and told to try the mission again on their terms. Further, they are allowed to reattempt the mission over and over until they are comfortable working on those terms.

This can thought of as another step in that chain. The player has been guided through the level, and then told to go through that same level Freeform-style, but with the knowledge they gained. Now that they have been indoctrinated in the mechanics and thought patterns, the game removes the guardrail of knowledge from previous runs. You know the mechanics. You know what to do. And now it is time to apply those skills in a new, unfamiliar scenario.

However, this is still a relatively small area compared to an actual episode's map, so it's not a full-fledged mission. It's Hitman in miniature, so the game designers still haven't thrown you to the wolves yet. By the time you're done with this mission, you should be more than ready to head to Paris for Episode 1...

...which we'll do in the next episode.

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