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Any and every video game news rag worth its salt is awash with speculation as to whether Hitman: Absolution would live up to the sheer euphoria of expectations that the trailers  have aroused. Before we proceed, we do categorically state that we simply loved Hitman: Blood Money, the previous iteration, and the chronological successor to IO’s coming offering.

What We Know So Far of Hitman: Absolution

It seems that Diana Blackwood, 47’s handler in the previous games, went rogue after the events of Blood Money / Contracts, purging all existing data on her from the ICA systems before doing a vanishing act. The sanction on her life was issued to 47 and that seems to be the premise of Hitman: Absolution.

Gameplay in Hitman: Absolution

The details are fuzzy so far as regards what the gameplay enhancements in Hitman: Absolution may be. However, what’s emerging apparently is that while stealth is still a part of the game, all out carnage may have just been made easier than earlier games. More on that later.

What has been clarified so far is that there is greater environmental interaction, with the ability to use various objects as improvised weapons or decoys. This was introduced in Blood Money with the coin feature and Hitman: Absolution looks all set to explore the possibilities further.

The new throttling mechanism takes a page out of Deus Ex, giving you an option to quickly break a victim’s neck as against the slower and more brutal choking. Also information has been revealed that 47 can utilize a given hiding place for both himself and a dead/ unconscious victim at the same time. This should add a whole new level of realism to Hitman: Absolution.

Better situation awareness has also been reportedly introduced in the form of what’s being called the “Super-Assassin-O-Vision”. This takes the form of an ‘instinct’ resource that helps ‘see’ enemies through walls or predict their paths. The ‘instinct’  resource means different things at differnt points; for instance, another use of it is to make disguise more effective. The resource gets used up and has to recharged, kind of like “bullet time” in Max Payne.

Is Hitman: Absolution a Departure from the Silent Assassin Stealth Gameplay Approach?

New gameplay elements such as cover mechanics have reportedly been introduced, making it possible for 47 to dig in for a firefight if required. Consequently, you may just earn that “mass murderer” rating without using a cheat-code if only you use the gameplay elements right. This action-hero style of gameplay could be an interesting variation and would lend the game more replay value (something for which the Hitman series is famous anyway).

Previous games had a problem that breaking the identity cover eventually led to a heavily outnumbered 47 being gunned down no matter how many he killed. The developers say that that is remedied by introducing another manifestation of the ‘instinct’ resource: Point Shooting, sort of like the quick-draw in some western-themed games. This could not only add a more cinematic experience to Hitman: Absolution but also offer a more viable alternative (as against previous games) to the sneaking around of old. Of course, that’s fun in its own way.

The game is due out this year, and this gaming news blog can’t wait for some more semi-sandbox murdery fun that’s coming our way in the shape of Hitman: Absolution. 

Those of you who’ve been following the Counter-Strike tips on this video game blog would be pleased to note that we’ve finally come up with the long-promised advanced tips and tricks for Counter-Strike, a video game that very few people belonging to the post-80s generation can claim to not playing. So now that you have mastered the basics, we bring you the real-deal tips that you expect from any respectable video game blog.

Video Game Blog: Compensate for Recoil

Assault rifles can be deadly accurate or mere spray-and-pray weapons, depending on your trigger discipline

One of the major attractions of Counter-Strike has always been the realism of its weapon physics opposed to a video game such as, say Unreal Tournament. Weapon recoil makes your aiming reticule/weapon sight jumps rather quickly. If you’re not compensating for it, your aim will be badly thrown off. Once again, it’s hard to compensate on full auto, so use this with the burst fire technique already described. Any video game blog will tell you this.

Keep Secondary Weapon Ready

Counter-Strike is one video game that gives you a specific control to switch between any two weapons and that makes it much easier to switch to your pistol when you’re under fire than it is to reload your primary weapon. It might not always be a case of ammo either; a handgun is often more suitable for close-quarters combat if your aim is top-notch.

Video Game Blog: Use the Good Old Tap-Double Tap

For those who like to lean on the left-mouse button and just sweep through enemies ala Serious Sam, however, it also has two unfortunate side-effects: the realistic recoil of the weapons would mean that you end up hitting very little that’s worth hitting and secondly, you run out of ammo very quickly, exposing yourself to certain ‘death’. Unless you’re at point-blank range, in which case you may by all means let loose the full-auto, you must fire in short bursts of three-four rounds; this is particularly effective when using the SMG. With an assault rifle like the M-4, you could also use a technique that real-life military operatives call the tap-double tap. As the name suggests, you tap the trigger once, followed by two quick squeezes. Result: three precisely aimed shots.

Use Grenades to Good Effect

Any video game blog would tell you that grenades, in the right hands, are effective for softening up large groups of enemies. There are three types of grenades: frag grenades can injure or kill a number of enemies, depending on how many are in proximity to the blast (and how close) while a flash grenade temporarily blinds and disorients those caught in the blast radius, rendering them open to attack. Flash grenades have to be used with particular care, as one can end up blinding their own team: this happens even if friendly fire is off. Smoke grenades are used to form a smoke screen; this may come in handy to block the vision of enemy snipers so they have to move in closer, as a cover for retreat or even as a distraction.

Video Game Blog: Try to Work as a Team

Lone action heroes do not last long in CS. If you decide to go Rambo on your teammates and your enemies, you’re likely to run into a hail of gunfire (and snickers) without any backup at all. Also, team members would do well to carry a variety of weapons to give the team evenly balanced firepower. On a personal level, try to master one weapon, but only after you’ve had a go at most of them. The machine-gun, for instance, is heavy but can be used to deadly effect.

Practice, Practice, Practice

Practice makes perfect. Need we say more?

These are all the individual gameplay tactics that you can use to triumph in CS. Naturally, there are a number of class-specific, weapon-specific and map-specific strategies and tips that are best discussed with somewhat advanced Counter-Strike gamers.

So do you have any gaming tips and tricks to share with the readers of our video game blog?

Perhaps the single most successful user-created mod in video game history, as any video game blog will tell you, Counter-Strike (CS) has a cult following; in fact, even that word doesn’t do it justice.

Those of you who remember your college dorm video game days would recall how pwning everybody else at Counter-Strike on the LAN was one way to get some serious respect among your peers. Of course, so was being on the football team or being able to chug more beer than everybody else — depending on which crowd you ran with — but let’s not digress.

Anyway, in case you’re still living those days instead of reminiscing about them, or are considering graduating from LAN gaming with familiar players to proper tournament play, here are a few tips that should improve your game; some of these are of course universally applicable to the FPS video game category.

Follow Video Game Basics: Crouch & Walk

A crouching stance steadies your aim and makes for a smaller profile to offer to your enemies; this applies to other tactical shooters as well. Also, walking is silent in CS. Crouching and moving at the same time may seem slower, but increases your surprise factor as you can approach the enemy position stealthily.

Plan Your Reloads & Take Cover

These seemingly unrelated factors go hand in hand. You carry a finite amount of total ammo in this video game but more importantly, like real-life weapons, you have a weapon clip that must be reloaded (as long as you have spare ammo); as an aside, you’d do well to keep an eye on clip ammo levels as well as total ammo being carried. Remember that Counter-Strike is a video game that is unforgiving on those who play carelessly. So while you must reload regularly instead of risking the chance of getting into a firefight with half-a-clip, you can’t afford reloading in the open either: for that 3-second interval, you’re totally vulnerable.

Also, in a tactics-heavy video game such as CS, making a mad dash down a corridor is… well, plain mad. Just so we’re clear, so is camping in one obscure corner. Of course, it is fun taking some of your opponents by surprise but guess what your biggest disadvantage is once enemies wise up and gang-up on you? Surprise… you’re cornered! And then there are online video game servers, especially the ones for organized tournaments that routinely kick campers. So you must keep moving, but be aware of your terrain (and surroundings) and plan your cover stops in advance. When in cover, you may reload to make up for any ammo you may have expended.

Do the Zig-Zag Video Game Swagger

There would be many a time you’ll find yourself in a man-a-mano close-quarters shootout; the trick to surviving is being quick on that trigger finger and making yourself a hard target to hit at the same time. A good way to do that without throwing off your own aim (that’s why jumping is a bad idea) is by alternately hitting the left and right strafing keys, shooting at the same time. It might look funny to observers, but your enemy won’t be laughing when you kill him and come out tops.

Here ends our first post on basic Counter-Strike tips and tricks. We’ll be back again pretty soon with more advanced tips, pertaining to better fire control and efficient weapon usage. Until then, keep following this video game blog and keep practicing!