After almost 100 hours in this game (definitely will add many more after this review), I can safely say that HITMAN 2 is not only the best game in the stealth genre, but also the best game in the entire HITMAN franchise.
Yes, I know that there's still people out there who believe that Blood Money is the best one, but let's be serious here, the amount of content and improved mechanics is enough to make you reconsider this assumption.
This is a third-person stealth-action game in which you play as Agent 47, an assassin sent to eliminate various targets around the world. The levels are huge, open, filled with opportunities and there's thousands of ways to kill each and every target. Repeating missions is key, as each locations has challenges which, upon completion, grant players with new items, suits, guns, starting locations for the level and more, so keep experimenting!

I was never an ACTUAL Hitman fan back when I was a kid. I did what everyone back then did and refuses to admit: went around shooting everyone and killing my way to the target, essentially playing it like a Call of Duty of sorts. Things changed with the release of Hitman: Absolution in 2012. I was hooked. The game provided an actual tutorial on how to properly play the game, and before you know it I was on my way to becoming a very skilled "Silent Assassin" of sorts.
In 2016, IOI released the official sequel, titled just "HITMAN". I wasn't really interested in buying the game at the time, because the game was to be released via episodic content. You would buy the game with just the tutorial and one level and then each and every month new locations were added. I wasn't really fond of this especially since the devs wouldn't offer any info on ACTUAL size of levels, story, content etc, and seeing that Absolution had very short levels, I was very skeptical.
Anyway, things went ok in the end, bought the GOTY for Hitman and played the crap out of it, and in 2018 I got HITMAN 2 as a gift for Christmas, and I haven't stopped playing ever since.

So where does HITMAN 2 improve?

-First of all, Gameplay . Now this is an important aspect as mechanics in the first game have been enhanced. Enemy sight range is slightly improved, mirrors now properly work as enemies can now see their own reflection in the mirror as well as yours, so make sure you're crouched before killing anyone in a bathroom. Enemy AI has also been improved, gunfights are now harder as guards throw flash grenades (a new addition), take better cover and use flanking maneuvers, encouraging players to go for a stealthy approach or seek a way out of conflict.
-Next, Graphics . The GLACIER engine has received a major upgrade in this game, reflections look amazing, anti-aliasing is improved with less jagged edges, water looks phenomenal and some textures have been improved. I kind of wished for a Ray-Tracing implementation since 2018 is the year I bought my RTX card and I really would have liked to see this technology in here, but maybe the next game will satisfy my nitpicking.
-Also, Locations . Most of the locations in HITMAN 2 are larger, more open, more varied, filled with more NPCs and with more story related to them. From the sunny Miami to the bleak and dirty Mumbai and even the Colombian jungles hunting down Cartel lords, you will bask at the beautiful and incredibly detailed environments while figuring out ways to efficiently kill your targets.
- Elusive Targets . This is something people don't touch on, but the ET's in this game are more diverse, they have better stories and are more detailed than the ones in the first game. They don't feel like random NPC's just put in the world now, they actually have a purpose (the general wishing to start a major revolution in Colombia is one example) and I think IOI did a great job implementing them.
- Two new modes . Sniper Assassin and Ghost Mode are the two new modes in the game, the first of which gives you the chance to take on your targets from afar, scoping out the environment and cleverly eliminating everyone without stepping into the danger. These are incredibly well made, with lots of details and secrets scattered around the levels.
Ghost mode is the game's multiplayer mode, in which both players try to assassinate a target in random areas in a level. Whoever kills more targets without getting spotted wins. A very fun mode, and surprisingly people still play it today, however it's much more fun with a friend rather than a complete stranger.

That's it for the things that HITMAN 2 does incredibly well. Owners of HITMAN 2016 and the GOTY edition will get access to all levels within HITMAN 2, so if you don't own the full game you can still play the first one. IOI also gave out Hawke's Bay, the first location of HITMAN 2, for free, so good luck assassinating!!!

Things I wished they improved/are genuinely bad:

-I will start with Online Connectivity . I get that we're in 2020 by now and everyone should have access to the internet. I'm not judging this decision. What I AM judging however is the lack of cross-saves. Challenges completed in HITMAN 2016 will not carry over to HITMAN 2, so you will have to do everything all over again. This isn't a bad thing for me since I love most maps and keep discovering new things every time, but completionists who spent hundreds of hours doing everything will be disappointed in this decision.
-Next, optimisation . The game was poorly optimised when it came out, with frequent CTDs and frame drops everywhere, even on my 2080ti. After a DirectX 12 update and many more patches later, the game still has moments where it just gives up. Hopefully they figure it out in the sequel.
-Last thing I think they should improve on is escalatations . They did improve since the first game, but most are still boring and provide less of a challenge. I REALLY wish that these get better in the next game, since this is a mode with a great idea behind it, but with a poor implementations in-game.
-Last but not least, SPECIAL ASSIGNMENTS . Wow, what were they thinking? The first ones included in the silver edition were just bad, pure bad. Only a handful of opportunities to take them out, no real backstory and no real change to the levels except for the weather. Did we ask for permanent ETs? I don't think so. What we wanted was something similar to the bonus levels in HITMAN 2016, like The Icon or even The Author. Something to spice things up, change the level a bit. Nothing like that here. The final two are SLIGHTLY better, as they have connecting stories and a few more opportunities, but they're still dissapointing. Wishing to see improved ones in the next installment.

Despite a few setbacks, HITMAN 2 is the best game in its genre and the best game of this franchise, what I can genuinely say is this is a must buy, especially for the amount of content you get, the improved mechanics, graphics and bigger, bolder locations. Keep in mind that the Silver and Gold editions of the game give you up to 4 new locations, including 2 sniper mission and 2 major locations, a bank (small map) and an island resort (large map) which have their own targets and challenges and their own stories.
That's it, good hunting, agent!

MAKE THE WORLD YOUR WEAPON