When Hitman Absolution footage was shown back in 2011 E3, there were concerns that its gameplay and stealth mechanics were going to be dumbed down, especially with its ‘Eagle mode’; however, Art Director Roberto Machese assured everyone that Hitman: Absolution will feature a hardcore stealth mode making the stealth mechanic much more difficult and complex.
Good news, everyone!
In the above interview, Marchesi states that players will be able to turn off 'Eagle mode’ in these harder difficulty modes and, going even further, players will be able to hide the entire GUI in the 'purist difficulty mode'. There will be no indicators for health, armor, or otherwise. I'm sure there's a lot of Hitman enthusiasts that will be happy about this announcement!
Roberto also indicated that despite the action-heavy E3 footage, the game will still be largely stealth-based.
The release date is currently set for sometime 2012.