This standalone expansion is a fairly dramatic downgrade from a gameplay perspective when compared with previous Dishonored content. The broad array of powers present in the base game is trimmed down to just three here, and they aren’t as useful as previous Outsider abilities. The unfortunate result is that stealth / non-violence feels a lot less viable (the removal of the chaos system also eliminates any consequences for just killing everybody throughout the level). I spent a lot of time here just straight-up fighting dudes. I’ve always thought of the basic sword-and-gun play of Dishonored as a fallback plan for when you didn’t have the mana to remain undetected or wreak absurd chaos with the Outsider powers, so operating frequently in shoot-and-strike mode was a bit of a downer.
With that significant caveat out of the way, here’s where I should mention that Arkane’s ridiculously dense level design and stellar world-building acumen kept me hooked throughout the game. In any normal video game series, the wonderfully complex bank heist mission, for instance, would be a towering, singular achievement. However, because this is Dishonored, it will have to be content competing with Jindosh’s Mansion and Aramis Stilton’s Manor from the base game for the title of best level of the past console generation. Such is the level of quality we are talking about here.
The world-building here continues the Dishonored tradition of being extremely creepy and evocative. Bizarre rituals, malevolent cults, languages that can only be spoken by the dead - these are just a few of the tropes expertly deployed to maximum effect. If Edgar Allan Poe and HP Lovecraft had collaborated, this is the sort of world I would’ve expected them to create.
Our protagonists, Billie Lurk and Daud, are arguably the most interesting characters this series has produced. The writers at Arkane have definitely not received enough credit for the ballsy way they have gradually transformed their supposed antagonists into complex antiheroes. The interplay between these characters consistently feels real and engaging, aided by the superb voice acting.
The removal of most of the outsider powers and the chaos system notwithstanding, this is pretty much everything I hope for in a Dishonored game. It may not stack up gameplay-wise to the best in the series, but there is more than enough quality content here to compensate.
With that significant caveat out of the way, here’s where I should mention that Arkane’s ridiculously dense level design and stellar world-building acumen kept me hooked throughout the game. In any normal video game series, the wonderfully complex bank heist mission, for instance, would be a towering, singular achievement. However, because this is Dishonored, it will have to be content competing with Jindosh’s Mansion and Aramis Stilton’s Manor from the base game for the title of best level of the past console generation. Such is the level of quality we are talking about here.
The world-building here continues the Dishonored tradition of being extremely creepy and evocative. Bizarre rituals, malevolent cults, languages that can only be spoken by the dead - these are just a few of the tropes expertly deployed to maximum effect. If Edgar Allan Poe and HP Lovecraft had collaborated, this is the sort of world I would’ve expected them to create.
Our protagonists, Billie Lurk and Daud, are arguably the most interesting characters this series has produced. The writers at Arkane have definitely not received enough credit for the ballsy way they have gradually transformed their supposed antagonists into complex antiheroes. The interplay between these characters consistently feels real and engaging, aided by the superb voice acting.
The removal of most of the outsider powers and the chaos system notwithstanding, this is pretty much everything I hope for in a Dishonored game. It may not stack up gameplay-wise to the best in the series, but there is more than enough quality content here to compensate.