Dishonored 2, the ambitious sequel.
There are multiple high concept ideas explored throughout Dishonored 2. Many games would be content with only one.
There are the much talked about Clockwork and Stilton mansions. The formers level design is wonderfully confusing at first as it centres around altering the layout, it's up to the player how best to utilise the changing environment.
The latters timeshifting mechanic shines, letting the player jump between time periods and crucially having access to a window into the opposite. This sets the player up to exploit both enemies and the architecture.
In both instances it must have been a major development hurdle, not only functionally but to get it all working so seemlessly.
Level design generally is top notch.
Even more traditional levels throw curve balls like the Dust District which sets up two warring factions you will have to manouver between and potentially side with one or another.
Interweaving and multi-layered levels let you gradually build up a mental map and leave open multiple approaches. All wrapped up in the classic imsim tradition of internally consistent rulesets. The items on sale in the black market shops really are just sitting there and you instantly get the sense that there are ways behind the counter to literally steal them. Heavily context sensitive triggers exist but are largely shuned in favor of simply letting the player work within the playspace.
One moment that encapsulates this player driven problem solving was when I decided to try attaching a stun mine to a bloatfly and turned it into an effective drone.
Playstyles are enhanced by the games skill shop, by picking up runes scattered throughout levels you can spec into a variety of roles. It quickly became evident that I had no use for pistol upgrades (went for powers, stealth no kills playthrough) but it is clear there is a wealth of options if the player wants to mix things up and I look forward to trying a more combat focused approach. Even though I always aimed for no kills or detection I tried to not rely on save scumming too much and embraced "screw ups" as much as possible and this was rewarded with some dynamic events such as barging into a guard who discovered me, sending him tumbling over a railing as I snuck away from the scene of the crime.
Thankfully a "no power" run is contextually acknowledged by the game as you can pass up the Outsiders Mark. I can imagine this would be tough but satisfying as the player will have to rely more so on other elements like gadgets and distraction techniques, whether for stealth or offence. Just more playstyles on the table.
I was surprised how invested I got in the world of Dishonored 2. The art style is stunning and vividly, almost literally paints a harsh yet beautiful world. Details regarding power generation via wind and whale are very much felt but so are the more personal details like finding the workshop of the person who sculpted most of the statues you find throughout the Karnaca and of course one of the main antagonists (Jindosh) inventions are never very far away.
My only real issues being that of many guards operating in very small routes, a few more longer routes could really have put the player, especially those looking to go undetected under pressure to observe and learn their routes. Interrogation options are conspicuously absent which could have alleviated the need to find and read so many documents to find clues. Thankfully guards do seem to sometimes look for their strangely absent collegues but more often than not a perpetually knocked out guard will never be found. Non lethal options being practially identical to lethal is a bug bear with me and Dishonored 2 falls into this trap although at least there are options for longer activation time for sleep darts and you always have the option for attempting maximum avoidance anyway. Other than that there was a fairly frequent graphical glitch that caused green lights to flicker on screen.
In terms of the narrative, it really hinges on the machinations of the big players you are tasked with taking down one way or another and they do not dissappoint. Each has a unique personality and motivations, they are (mostly) mortal so operate under the same rules as any guard so taking them out can be done any which way. Narratively though there is always another approach beyond a kill which has far more steps, yet also provides more satisfying plot repercussions in my opinion. Still, a creative kill is just as valid.
I played as Corvo on this run. While he plays a fairly standard role of protector/saviour, he also has a more direct connection to Serkonos as he was born and brought up there. This sells the depth of the game world where it is clear how much exists outside the famous Dunwall. The fact that the plight of Karnaca which has been suffering under the new Duke is partly laid at the feet of Corvo and Emily was a nice touch. It adds an element of realism to the institutions and prevents Corvo and Emily coming off as squeky clean protagonists. I look forward to playing as Emily and seeing how things play out differently.
Overall I was thouroughly impressed by Dishonored 2. It combines rich level design and scenarios with sandbox player driven mechanics, all wrapped up in a compelling narrative and beautiful artsyle.
There are multiple high concept ideas explored throughout Dishonored 2. Many games would be content with only one.
There are the much talked about Clockwork and Stilton mansions. The formers level design is wonderfully confusing at first as it centres around altering the layout, it's up to the player how best to utilise the changing environment.
The latters timeshifting mechanic shines, letting the player jump between time periods and crucially having access to a window into the opposite. This sets the player up to exploit both enemies and the architecture.
In both instances it must have been a major development hurdle, not only functionally but to get it all working so seemlessly.
Level design generally is top notch.
Even more traditional levels throw curve balls like the Dust District which sets up two warring factions you will have to manouver between and potentially side with one or another.
Interweaving and multi-layered levels let you gradually build up a mental map and leave open multiple approaches. All wrapped up in the classic imsim tradition of internally consistent rulesets. The items on sale in the black market shops really are just sitting there and you instantly get the sense that there are ways behind the counter to literally steal them. Heavily context sensitive triggers exist but are largely shuned in favor of simply letting the player work within the playspace.
One moment that encapsulates this player driven problem solving was when I decided to try attaching a stun mine to a bloatfly and turned it into an effective drone.
Playstyles are enhanced by the games skill shop, by picking up runes scattered throughout levels you can spec into a variety of roles. It quickly became evident that I had no use for pistol upgrades (went for powers, stealth no kills playthrough) but it is clear there is a wealth of options if the player wants to mix things up and I look forward to trying a more combat focused approach. Even though I always aimed for no kills or detection I tried to not rely on save scumming too much and embraced "screw ups" as much as possible and this was rewarded with some dynamic events such as barging into a guard who discovered me, sending him tumbling over a railing as I snuck away from the scene of the crime.
Thankfully a "no power" run is contextually acknowledged by the game as you can pass up the Outsiders Mark. I can imagine this would be tough but satisfying as the player will have to rely more so on other elements like gadgets and distraction techniques, whether for stealth or offence. Just more playstyles on the table.
I was surprised how invested I got in the world of Dishonored 2. The art style is stunning and vividly, almost literally paints a harsh yet beautiful world. Details regarding power generation via wind and whale are very much felt but so are the more personal details like finding the workshop of the person who sculpted most of the statues you find throughout the Karnaca and of course one of the main antagonists (Jindosh) inventions are never very far away.
My only real issues being that of many guards operating in very small routes, a few more longer routes could really have put the player, especially those looking to go undetected under pressure to observe and learn their routes. Interrogation options are conspicuously absent which could have alleviated the need to find and read so many documents to find clues. Thankfully guards do seem to sometimes look for their strangely absent collegues but more often than not a perpetually knocked out guard will never be found. Non lethal options being practially identical to lethal is a bug bear with me and Dishonored 2 falls into this trap although at least there are options for longer activation time for sleep darts and you always have the option for attempting maximum avoidance anyway. Other than that there was a fairly frequent graphical glitch that caused green lights to flicker on screen.
In terms of the narrative, it really hinges on the machinations of the big players you are tasked with taking down one way or another and they do not dissappoint. Each has a unique personality and motivations, they are (mostly) mortal so operate under the same rules as any guard so taking them out can be done any which way. Narratively though there is always another approach beyond a kill which has far more steps, yet also provides more satisfying plot repercussions in my opinion. Still, a creative kill is just as valid.
I played as Corvo on this run. While he plays a fairly standard role of protector/saviour, he also has a more direct connection to Serkonos as he was born and brought up there. This sells the depth of the game world where it is clear how much exists outside the famous Dunwall. The fact that the plight of Karnaca which has been suffering under the new Duke is partly laid at the feet of Corvo and Emily was a nice touch. It adds an element of realism to the institutions and prevents Corvo and Emily coming off as squeky clean protagonists. I look forward to playing as Emily and seeing how things play out differently.
Overall I was thouroughly impressed by Dishonored 2. It combines rich level design and scenarios with sandbox player driven mechanics, all wrapped up in a compelling narrative and beautiful artsyle.