Hitman 2’s storyline begins in a Sicilian monastery. His attempt to distance himself from his violent past is detoured as he is discovered by a Russian crime lord and tricked into returning to his trade. Caught in the middle of a ring of deception, Hitman soon discovers that he has been manipulated and is now a target himself - of a highly trained ex-Spetsnaz assassin.
 
Hitman 2 has an outstanding list of new features, including: a choice of 1st and 3rd person viewpoints; mid-mission save options; a revised and enhanced inventory system allowing gamers to acquire and carry weapons and equipment from mission to mission and ending pre-game “shopping”; a new ranking system; multiple play styles allowing missions to be accomplished with the primary target as the only casualty or “blast-your-way-through,” and variations in-between; and finally, an advanced level design and engine dynamics providing gamers with open levels and no set path.