Blend in

A Blend-In Spot, or Safe Spot is a feature introduced in Hitman: Absolution and used again in the World of Assassination trilogy. These spots allow the player to evade detection by imitating an innocent bystander consistent with whatever outfit he is wearing, thus temporarily allowing him to escape suspicion. The spots are static placements. Some of the more unusual spots even allow the player to impersonate an inanimate object, such as a statue.

Description

47 Blending in as a guest in Paris; note the enforcer in back whose ability is neutralized

Blend in locations are scattered throughout the map and are typically work stations that are associated with a particular disguise. For example, a cook disguise may enable the player to blend in at a spot in the kitchen, where the player's character will busy himself washing the counter or some other job-related action. A technician's outfit will require the player to pretend to be fiddling with electrical equipment, while a clerk's outfit may have the player examining a clipboard, and so forth. A blend in spot may also be available to the player's starting suit; here the player will simply pose as an ordinary member of the public, such as a store customer or a tourist, examining the store's wares, or sitting on a public bench reading a conveniently placed newspaper. A blend in spot can be as simple as a chair, where the blending action may be nothing more than sitting. While blending, any carried briefcase will be automatically set aside with no chance that it will be noticed and retrieved by an NPC, and will be automatically picked up when blending stops.

While the player's character is blending, no one will be able to see through his disguise, even if they normally would be suspicious. Enforcers will assume that the player's character is an ordinary member of the staff or public. However, if guards are investigating a murder, or if there has been a major disruption nearby such as a bomb or gunfire, guards may still be able to see through a disguise even while blending, or the blend-in spot will be inaccessible. In these cases, the spot's interaction button will be greyed out and the words "Too Suspicious" will display. Certain carried items also may render a blend in spot unusable; for example, firearms slung across the back will prevent the player from using a meditation spot to blend in. Blend in points occasionally serve additional purposes. Blending in as a waiter, cook or food server will allow the player to offer food and drinks to passersby. Such food can be poisoned while blending in.

Blend in points can also be arranged as part of a mission story. For example, while disguised as the Hotel Staff in the Himmapan Hotel, the player character can lead one of the mission targets to the luxury suite. The blend in spots here are dirty areas that the cleaning crew missed; the target will instruct the player to clean these, and doing so repeatedly will eventually result in an assassination opportunity.

Hitman: Absolution

In Absolution, the Blend-In feature (initially unnamed) could be used at the cost of Instinct. Chameleon levels 1 and 3 of the Assassin Techniques will enable 47 to recover a little bit of instinct while using these, with 1 adding the ability to recover a little bit of instinct and 3 boosting the max amount, while this isn't as useful on higher difficulties, it could potentially make a useful difference.

Appearances

• The King of Chinatown** Reading a restaurant menu in any disguise except Market Vendor.
• Terminus
  • Mopping the floor disguised as a Janitor.
  • Fixing an electrical panel disguised as an Electrician.
  • Reading brochures disguised as Hope Goon.
• Run For Your Life
  • Eating donuts disguised as Chicago Police Officer.
  • Playing electric piano disguised as Chicago Police Officer.
  • Standing by a toy machine in any disguise in the train station.
  • Reading brochures disguised as Chicago Poice Officer.
• Hunter and Hunted
  • Stirring the food disguised as Store Clerk.
  • Reading a restaurant menu in any disguise except vendor or Chipmunk.
• Rosewood
  • Looking at orphanage brochures disguised as a Henchman.
• Welcome to Hope
  • Staring at jukebox in any disguise.
• Shaving Lenny
  • Eating donuts disguised as Hope Police Officer.
• Dexter Industries
  • Standing by a portable computer disguised as a guard.
• Death Factory
  • Standing over a microscope disguised as a Researcher.
  • Standing by a portable computer disguised as a guard.
  • Mopping the floor disguised as a Scientist.
• Fight Night
  • Kicking the sandbag disguised as The Patriot.
  • Fixing the punching bag disguised as Patriot's Entourage.
• Attack of the Saints**Hanging on wooden cross disguised as a Scarecrow.
• Operation Sledgehammer**Sitting on the chair pretending to be restrained dressed in 47's suit.
• Blackwater Park
  • Mopping the floor disguised as a Blackwater Custodian.
  • Standing in the armor display disguised as a Samurai.
  • Eating donuts disguised as a Blackwater Interior Guard.
• Countdown
  • Checking the explosive disguised as Blackwater Tactical Team.

Notes

• Some maps have a similar "Lean" point that simply allows the player to lean over a railing or balustrade high elevations, such as balconies, and peer below. These do not share the blending mechanic and therefore enforcers will still see through 47's disguise. On occasion, these points are starting locations that can be unlocked with mastery, but at other times they seem to serve no function.