I thought about Weapon sellers: There should be something after you’ve killed them. Either you get Mercers, a weapon – or the opposite, next one won’t sell you anything or be even an enforcer etc
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It’s interesting that originally there was a base payout, but for the campaign as a whole (And it was really low)
They also got rid of the ability to choose difficulty
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I disagree. It’s just classic Hitman gameplay. It’s been the part of Freelancer that I have enjoyed most. A lot of Hitman-players will never play like that anyway. These bread and butter missions are good for immersion, and IO themselves said that this mode was an attempt to maximize to the roleplaying elements.
I would disagree. I consider it mindless filler. Because in normal missions the player is a godlike figure with cheat codes enabled that can decide what he wants to do, and if the plan fails, he can shoot his way through 50 guards and get out.
That would be like playing COD singleplayer with cheat codes enabled. Or Splinter Cell with the AI not reacting to the player.
The mode is pretty much done. No reason to get too disappointed in January.
I would disagree on that too. They can still tweak this without changing many things:
- Add fail conditions and fleeing targets to normal missions
- Add stealing item objectives from npcs (not the optional courier stuff)
Freelancer I feel can not be a fun game mode if only 20% of if is a hardcore roguelike stealth experience and 80% is cheat-code enabled quicktime events.
Or IOI could add a difficulty setting to simply make all missions syndicate takedowns or cut out the filler missions, so the campaign is only 4 missions long.
And it is not just the difficulty. If you examine the filler missions closely, you may notice that the filler mission targets are just preplaced npcs wandering a very small area. For example a very common target on Paris in filler missions is one of the guys handling the light rig on the second floor.
And the more players play freelancer, I think the more this will be apparent. Look at various topics of players saying “freelancer is just a stealth shooter” or “freelancer is boring”. Because they are experiencing that drop in excitement after syndicate missions where you just run through a deterministic scenario.
And consider how long it takes to win a normal mission. 3-4 minutes average for me. 12-20 for syndicate takedowns. And every minute of that syndicate takedown is fun.
And the best argument I think is: How many maps are fun for you as a normal map? And how many are fun on syndicate? I think ALL maps are fun on syndicate.
For example I did not like mendoza that much as a normal map. It is a great map for the base game when you find all the different ways to play it. However after that it is very deterministic. However on syndicate? Amazing fun every time.
I wonder what got you into the Hitman franchise.
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I would disagree. The game is too easy almost even with them. Only they actually add hard fail conditions that make the player fear getting spotted. If they are toned down, the missions would turn into deterministic quicktime events.
And I don’t want to brag, I think that this could be difficulty setting. This is a single player game so IOI can afford accomodating a wide range of difficulty settings. I would like all npc guards in all missions to shoot as fast as assassins. Not everyone wants that, however IOI should offer difficulty settings for both extremes.
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I’m not sure that this analogy is very fitting. But fair enough, that’s your opinion. Just know that a lot of players love standard Hitman gameplay, and it’s very nice to have it now with the added progressive and economic intensives. It’s gonna be the way of playing Hitman for a lot of us going forward.
Well, that’s ok, but you’re disagreeing with IO’s words. Not mine.
Of course, I like a lot of the suggestions that people are posting here, and I would hope that IO can implement some of them. But IO are, in their own words, mainly doing XP balancing and testing out their technical infrastructure. I was just quoting the blogpost to remind people to temper their expectations.
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Because difficulty is now added overtime as campain progress and this is in my opinion a good decision.
Only one thing which could be enhanced is to add some more penalty for those who make too much mess. I mean - when you’ll be spotted makeing a illegal action or cautght on murder - next time when you’ll visit this same location - there should be few levels of alert. 1st level - more enfoncers, 2nd level - reaction time of guards is shorter, 3rd level - they will shot you on sight instaltly.
I don’t like typical requiments for making everything as Silent Assassin, but that could be a good way to add a penalty for player who don’t care about stealth approach.
I wonder, in the alpha, were there potential objectives shown when you opened the folder? When playing the CTT, I found myself pretty much estimating the potential difficulty based on a combination of the featured locations (strictly personal preferences oc) and the objectives that would be included (also subjective oc).
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Well, that’s ok, but you’re disagreeing with IO’s words. Not mine.
That’s not the case. The suggestions I wrote can still be fitted into the game. Also the exact quote of IOI was:
Full transparency, we won’t be making major gameplay changes. We’re looking primarily at economy/ XP balancing, enjoyment and testing our technical infrastructure.
I think the current watered down deterministic filler missions (14 out of 18) are a drag on the gameplay experience and that is an issue which I feel is important enough to fix.
I also suggested various easier to implement fixes, like a shortened campaign, where there is only 4 take downs or making all 18 missions takedowns. These could I hope be arranged without having to change much of the in-map gameplay. Just let me skip the filler missions, I do not need an achievement or xp systems. I just feel they are too boring compared to the takedown missions.
And I think IOI may possibly agree with some of the points. If they track gameplay metric values, like how much time players spend on maps, then it could possibly show that the filler missions are completed in 3-4 minutes, while the syndicate missions take 15-20 minutes. And that should indicate where most of the player enjoyment is.
Because if someone completes miami in 3-4 minutes, that indiates the person wants to get through it as fast as possible. As the map is so large, it can almost not be completed faster. So, if there is a lot of 4 minute miami metrics showing up, that may be an indication that would support my suggestion
I don’t want to discount your view. I just think players have wildly different difficulty expectations for the game, and because it is a single player game IOI can afford accomodating all extremes.
It’s the last day of the Freelancer CTT. Unfortunately I have work, so I can’t experience the end of it. Level 18 Mastery, gonna look forward to redoing that in January. The safehouse is a great concept for a 47 Roleplayer’s Dream.
Anyway, here’s my official, long feedback I wrote 2 days ago, but it still holds up.
Feedback for XP/Mastery/Merces
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Biggest XP Issue : We should be able to earn XP for normal actions, much like the Main Game (Collecting Keys, Unlocking Doors, Changing Disguises, Hiding Bodies, Silent KOs, etc.) This is the same style of Hitman Gameplay, in a longer, more complex format, I don’t see why XP should be bottle-necked in such a small way as it currently is.
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Biggest Mastery Issue : Lower the amount of Mastery required for Level 1, maybe a bit for the other levels. It would be nice for the player to get a better sense of satisfaction and progression upon completing their first mission by letting them customize their first piece of decoration. The first level only got about 60% of the way there for me, had to do a second mission to just barely get to Lvl 1. The rest of the Mastery Levels progress fairly well, usually gaining a level every 1.5 missions or so, I was fine with that. Though, they could be shortened a bit (or, the added Basic XP Actions mentioned above would also help that progression in a small way.)
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Change the “Mission Payout” amount to a default Zero (0), then Add Merces based on objectives completed. It should improve readability and confusion on the matter currently. Quite a few players have expressed confusion at not receiving any Merces due to this awkward listing.
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Biggest Merces Issue: Each mission should have a Base Payout. Currently, the only way to get Merces is through Optional Objectives, a small amount from Couriers and Safes – and, thankfully, 100 per Syndicate defeated – however, some players may have a very hard time doing so and keeping it, especially when money gets cut in half, or further, it can be very hard to complete Optional Objectives, due to lack of funds. Either make it 3-5 per Syndicate Member, or, 5 Base Payout for Level 1, 7 for Level 2, 10 for Level 3, 15 for Level 4, or whatever else may work best.
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MASTERY MERCES Recommendation: The Mastery Track has points where Merces can be earned for free. However, Merces is easily lost, making those Mastery Points redundant (especially so if they’ve maxed out the Mastery Track), if the Player fails time and again – a certainty in the very-hard Freelancer Mode. The Mastery Merces should be used as a “Minimum Mastery Threshold” counter – a Base amount of Merces that the player can fall back on, if they lose multiple times.
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The GOAT Challenge should be reduced to at most 2000 Syndicate Members. I get you want to incentivize grinding, longevity, or getting people to play your game, but asking your players to complete 1000 Missions is one thing (even if just ~300 Level 1 Campaigns), but doing that 10 times over? No thanks.
Feedback for Item/Tool System
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Biggest Item Issue : Many of the Random Crates in the level only offer 3 of the same types of weapons – Breakable Distraction, Non-Lethal Melee, Lethal Melee (or very rare Merces or Bartoli Sawed-Off Shotgun). They provide very little help in missions, or back at the safehouse as they are basic items. So, they cannot be taken back to the Safehouse, and aren’t much more useful than items already on the Map.
For players who may be missing a few items or funds needed to acquire/complete the Syndicate challenges, there should at least be a very small chance for those crates to carry a small Pistol or Melee Weapon with Rarity attached, or a slightly bigger chance to hold a Tool item (even if it’s a duplicate the Player already has) so that they may be able to Poison, Kill, or Kill/Pacify someone with a Rare item needed for a challenge they can’t complete, don’t have funds for, or Vendor isn’t offering what they need. -
Small basic items in the Safehouse should cost less Inventory Space. Things like the Stethoscope, the Banana, are useful, free basic unlocks that are unlocked through Mastery progression. They regularly interfere with Inventory management at lower levels, usually exceeding the limit by one point. It’s a bit frustrating for such small items, when there are other items with little inventory difference, yet more deadly+”useful”. Also, a tiny Emetic Mushroom is takes more space than a Rusty Crowbar? A Breakable Rusty Nail is more than a Lockpick?
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You should be able to skip or interact with Suppliers during their “conversation-starter” dialogue. The few seconds of un-interactivity can be annoying when you just need to get an item, or are under a Prestige Time Limit.
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Keep Free Empty Briefcases in each Level . I’ve noticed they’ve gone missing (like the Sapienza Lawyer’s Office). It would greatly help to carry around larger illegal objects, when we don’t have a briefcase ourselves – let us use our Map knowledge from the Main Game!
Other Bugs/Issues
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Massive Merces Bug! When quitting to the Menu from the Safehouse, there’s a chance that upon your return (either from the Main Menu, or a Cold Boot) your Merces will be Cut in Half from what you previously held. I have no idea what is causing it – but it’s a massive issue that I feel has severely impacted how I’ve experienced the Merces progression system in the Test, and, something that should be fixed for launch ASAP.
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Quite a few spelling mistakes in the Intel/Objective/Tutorial Descriptions. Hope that gets ironed out.
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Challenges have issues tracking and staying tracked . Every time I enter the safehouse, or begin a level, the stockpiling Challenges (Spray & Pray, Up Close & Personal, This is My Rifle, Gunslinger), all notify me of a progression either up, or of no change at all from before. Sometimes it even notifies me of a “2/10” and then “3/10” meter update in one go, when it should just be the latest number. It’s very annoying and should be fixed…
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Complications – they should be easy to understand by the Title alone.
“Silent Takedown” should be Pacify Targets (it wasn’t clear that it was to Pacify, and it wasn’t clear that it was to be used on Targets)
“Use Poison” should be “Poison Targets” (it wasn’t clear that it should be used specifically on Targets)
“No Missed Shots” should be “Perfect Shooter” like how it is in Contracts Mode.
“Don’t Pacify” should probably use an icon other than the Peace Sign. -
Issues with Weapons disappearing from the Safehouse upon failure (it should only be Tools), Mastery Unlocks in the Safehouse being incorrectly Locked, Lighting issues in the Safehouse, among many others reported by players so far.
Quality of Life Changes/Mechanics that are probably more work.
- Syndicate Leader Missions are too cluttered. Either reduce the number of Assassins and Lookouts, or offer missions without them, or just one or the other.
- Also, Lookouts should report a crime to a Guard before Targets are alerted. Their telepathy to ALL Targets, real and fake, is extremely annoying and shakes up too much chaos. It becomes a race to kill as many as possible, in public areas, usually resulting in Death or Failure, because the Real Target is at an Exit on the other side of the Map.
- OR, Only the REAL Target should run towards an Exit. This should prevent confusion and mitigate the amount of time the Player is under combat in a public area, being torn to shreds by guards and Assassins.
- Ave Maria not being included in the Classical Playlist is a crime.
- If not already included, add a Wardrobe Feature to the Bedroom. There are already ways to exfiltrate to the next mission when walking around the Safehouse, there should also be a secondary, above-ground way to change 47’s Starting Suit.
- Buff 47’s Weapon Damage. Reduce Guards’ damage. Combat is extremely punishing, you can die much too quickly – this makes Leader Missions too difficult when things break into chaos. Maybe reduce Suspicion Meter build a little as well.
- Remove Main Game Targets from each level . This might break things, I don’t know, I’m not a developer, but if this is framed as a “Post Hitman 3 Mode”, it really breaks the immersion to see them walking around.
- Give maps different Times of Day . Current PC mods have shown it to be possible, with different lights able to be turned on/off. It would be much more work than planned, but would breathe so much new life and aesthetic into each level that have stayed pretty stagnant over the years.
- Have an option in the Safehouse to manually change the set Time of Day . Players are going to want to show off and take interesting pictures of their Safehouses. Letting them unlock an option to choose Night, Morning, Midday, is only a good thing.
Very excited to see what the mode might shape into come January – and what IOI still has hidden behind the curtains for now!
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Sorry for language - but F*CK no! That isn’t a World of Warcraft or other MMO, this is 47 and he is non-empathetic looner and that how it should be. He works alone. This make me laugh hard. This isn’t a hub with NPCs but a hideout for an assassin. But funcionality what you mention can be replaced with other way like boxes, laptops etc.
It’s that same stupid idea like these Knight & Stone added in H2 for Sniper Assassin. Nevah! That thing would destroy fundamental idea of 47’s character.
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I took the enjoyment-part to just mean that the CCT was partly also released for the enjoyment of fans. Maybe I’m wrong though.
Thanks, and I don’t want to discount yours either. I know people play this game very differently, and that’s cool.
I would disagree on some parts.
I think the game should reward being a silent assassin by default.However there should be no default payout just for completing it. And the game should be withholding reward money more, because once you have money to buy lockpicks and suppressed weapons, money has no value beyond that.
I think a lot of the request for more payout come from the 14 out of 18 missions being filler missions that are so easy that players only find excitement in collecting money. However in the 4 out of 18 takedown missions, just surviving it without the AI escaping is so rewarding money does not matter.
Basically to me it feels like the suggestions for more payout are trying to fill the hole left by the overly easy filler missions
Allow me to explain a bit more about difficulty.
In the above screenshot you can see me close to what I think was the target in Whittleton, the last campaign mission 18/18. I pulled the gun, shot them all, and it caused an alarm and the real target escaped the map. There was a crazy amount of gameplay intensity that you just do not get in the filler missions because there is nothing really to lose. And for me that drop in intensity is so big, the filler missions feel like a chore.
And the current difficulty in the game only offers this because there is a hard failure condition. You spook 12 possible targets, and they run for the exit, you can almost not win. This creates a fear of loss that intensifies gameplay. And the normal game can not provide that because of how slow normal guards react and low little damage they would do.
That is why I think IOI should consider squeezing in some extra difficulty settings and/or modifying the filler missions to have more of that.
Well, you made your case and I still disagree.
Also with this part. It’s Freelancer’s big strength that SA is not a factor by default. It really opens up the gameplay. You have the main game for the SA-incentive.
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I was often really close to the suspect’s face trying to see if they had those small earrings. The camera had trouble detecting suspects in general for me, but especially that close. Maybe after the first time I pressed RT and it did nothing I didn’t try again. 
Making the camera take pictures any time seems like a decent fix for that.
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“Assassination” syndicates tend to have a lot of sniping objectives so maybe you played those a lot? Each syndicate type is based upon some specific gameplay elements such as using poisons, accidents, not getting caught etc. IMO it’s a good idea and it goes well with the H3 playstyles, I just wish there were a bit more objectives per syndicate type to avoid redundancy and / or some objectives being exclusive with each other.
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Bug:
I had a ‘new decoration’ popup here next to the clean surface prompt. I pressed it, nothing happened, camera changed slightly, I now can’t enter instinct or press G on anything
I then in this state found another ‘new decoration’ prompt and got this bug lel
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I need to get back to the CTT while I still can, but you just reminded me of something I wanted to add:
Please give us a camera to use in the safehouse. It’s such a beautiful place, and I’d love to be able to take decent pictures of it once I’m playing Freelancer on console and can’t use Ansel anymore.
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I´d like that too and was wondering if they can implement it, given that the camera is essentially treated as a “weapon” and you can´t aim weapons outside of the shooting range here…
Yeah, this mainly happened to me when they were standing next to another suspect 
Anyways, I´m all for the camera being able to take pictures any time 
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