Although he may not be a household name outside of the gaming world, Agent 47 is certainly one of the industry’s most recognizable figures. The assassin’s bald, aerodynamic dome (complete with barcode) and calm, cool ways of dispatching enemies are hallmarks of Eidos’ popular Hitman series. The series violently exploded onto the PC in 2000 before making the leap to consoles with Hitman 2: Silent Assassin, the game that rocketed the series into gaming’s stratosphere. After a brief, disappointing detour (Hitman: Contracts), Agent 47 is back in Hitman: Blood Money, but he’s gone from being the hunter to becoming the hunted.

If you’ve never played a Hitman game before, this is a perfect place to start. Although playing the previous games in the series is not a prerequisite, longtime fans of Agent 47’s work will be happy to see that there are some allusions to what happened in the other titles. However, first-timers will be rewarded with what amounts to the most polished game in the franchise, one in which there’s actually a solid, engaging storyline to tie all of the missions together. It seems that a rival agency is trying to rub out our bald friend and his associates, and Agent 47 will begin to unravel the mystery as he makes his way through the game’s dozen missions.

For the most part, the core gameplay has remained the same for the duration of the series, and Blood Money features the same type of stealthy combat that you’ve seen before. You’ll be briefed before your missions, which will give you a chance to find out who your targets are, where you can expect to find them, and any other little informational nuggets that might make your job easier. Once you’re in the thick of the action, you’ll be able to use your nifty GPS-style overhead map to see everything from the movement of your enemies to any points of interest in the expansive levels. The game primarily takes place in the United States (a first for the series), in locales ranging from a Northern California rehab clinic and a Las Vegas casino to a Mississippi riverboat and the streets of New Orleans (during Mardi Gras, natch).

Part of what makes the game work so well is the sheer size of these levels, which allows the player to plan his hit in a number of different ways. As was the case with the previous games in the series, you’re much better off taking the time to plan your assassinations, as running and gunning will likely get you killed before you can even reach your target. Instead, you’ll be well-served by scoping out the area, finding those places where, through some sort of elaborate sequence, you can make your mark’s death look like an accident. While this sort of play definitely requires some patience (such as when I had to spend 10 minutes sitting in a closet), the payoff is definitely worth it. You can crush your enemies with chandeliers, blow them up with their own BBQ grills, and even cause them to fall into a shark tank.

The best way to go about this is to grab a disguise, as it’s the perfect way to slip past unsuspecting guards and bodyguards. After taking out a foe, you can stand over him and select whatever outfit he’s wearing to put it on. A nice addition is the ability to drag bodies around, tossing them into dumpsters or throwing them into the sea, meaning it’s a little easier to go through missions without leaving any bodies around. The game’s A.I. is a bit of a mixed bag (at least on the normal difficulty level), as there are some times when they’ll inexplicably notice your actions, while you’ll be able to get away with some stuff right in front of their eyes. The game does get pretty tough as you progress into the later levels, and increasing the difficulty will challenge even veteran Hitman players.

Another new mechanic in Blood Money is the Notoriety system, which will actually grade you (on a scale from 0 to 100) after every mission. If you leave custom-made gear behind, kill civilians, get spotted on security cameras, or do a bevy of other things, your notoriety will increase. After your payment has been tallied (taking away money for some of the aforementioned indiscretions), you can use the cash to essentially buy your way out of trouble, lowering your notoriety in the process. These options range from paying off witnesses to completely changing your identity, but we didn’t have to spend very much to get it back down to zero. While the Notoriety system is certainly an interesting gameplay mechanic, it doesn’t work nearly as well as we had originally hoped. You’ll still have plenty of funds to buy pre-mission intel or upgrade your weapons and gear.

So, by now you’re probably asking "But Will, which version should I get?" Well, that kind of depends on a number of variables. The Xbox 360 version is the best-looking of the console games, but it’s also far more expensive than the Xbox or PS2 versions (by about $20). Of course, it’s also got achievements, if that’s your thing. When compared to the other games on their systems, the Xbox and PS2 versions look great, while the Xbox 360 looks like exactly what it is: a higher-res port. Since the game is the same (content-wise) across all platforms, you won’t go wrong with any of them. Did that answer your question? No? Well, too bad.

While it’s definitely got a few issues when it comes to A.I. and the disappointing Notoriety system, Hitman: Blood Money is still the best game in the series. The gameplay has remained largely the same, with a few nice additions to make the proceedings more believable (and entertaining). The storyline is surprisingly engaging as well, with an exciting grand finale that takes place in a well-known location. All in all, the game features enough choices and entertaining kills to have you playing some missions more than once, striving for that elusive Silent Assassin rating. Plus, how can you not love a game that lets you bludgeon your unfortunate victims with a hammer while dressed in a chicken costume?