DISHONORED 2
The stealthy fantasy sequel from Arkane Studios
We’re often told to be wary of boarding the hype train too early or too enthusiastically. It makes sense, I guess — sometimes a game will buckle under the weight of expectations.
There are other times when you just know you’re going to love something…
The first time I saw Dishonored? I most definitely felt that feeling! I had to play this!
It was the art design, the interesting setting, the unique gameplay mechanics, and the sense I hadn’t experienced anything like it before. I jumped on that hype train and never looked back!
Dishonored lived up to the hype on release, easily becoming one of my all-time favourites.
Sometimes you just know, huh?
I’ve played lots of amazing games this year, some I felt were real Game of the Year contenders.
As the credits rolled, I would think:
“It’s going to take something pretty damn special to beat this.”
In my mind, I knew there was something on the horizon that definitely had the potential.
I was on the hype train again and this time it was for Dishonored 2. I had a good feeling.
Just days after surviving a bloody palace coup, it was time to get to work…
An unassuming ship called the Dreadful Wale had granted us safe passage out of imminent danger and would now serve as our base of operations. We reached our destination over night and were anchored just off-shore, ready to follow-up on the few leads we managed to acquire.
The conspirators had been tracked to the coastal city of Karnaca, far from Dunwall where all this unpleasantness went down. Unravelling their plot and taking out the key players would be the only way to reclaim the throne and save the people we were forced to leave behind.
Dishonored 2 is set fifteen years after the events of the first game and the assassination of Empress Jessamine Kaldwin. Her now grown up daughter rules in her place… or did…
It seems trouble has once again found Dunwall’s royal family.
While the first instalment was seen exclusively through the perspective of Corvo Attono, the sequel gives you a choice — assume the role of our returning protagonist or step into the shoes of the Empress herself. There’s plenty of motivation to justify a playthrough with either, too.
While both share objectives to save the other and unravel the conspiracy that led to the coup, their unique points of view frames the story in a slightly different light. It’s a tough choice.
I furrowed my brow and stroked my beard in silent contemplation as I pondered the two…
Emily Kaldwin — Corvo’s daughter and the Empress of Dunwall — would find her training put to the test, as she’s forced to flee her home and venture out into the unfamiliar world. I liked that she was tasked with protecting Corvo, just as he protected her in the previous game. Seeing the world through this perspective most definitely made sense on a thematic front.
Corvo, on the other hand, would be driven by his desire not to have a second Empress die on his watch, especially one that happens to share his blood. He would have to once again put on the mask and live up to the title of Royal Protector — as well as a father — to make things right.
Our returning protagonist is also from Karnaca, so this would be a homecoming of sorts. He would most likely have insights into our new found surrounds that could prove interesting.
While it was a predicament and both options had their appeal, I ended up choosing Emily…
It’s safe to say that I’ll be making another run through Dishonored 2 as Corvo eventually.
Story aside, there are some notable differences in how these two characters actually play…
After fleeing Dunwall and setting sail for the shores of Karnaca, we’re visited by the Outsider. This figure occupies an otherworldly realm known as the Void and has the ability to imbue us with the ‘Mark of the Outsider’, that provides a unique skillset of the supernatural persuasion.
These powers manifest differently, depending on if you assumed the role of Emily or Corvo.
No matter your choice, though, the newly acquired abilities will change how you move through the world or deal with the obstacles in your path. We’re given a wide variety of options that complements both stealth or combat heavy playthroughs in ways creative as they are useful.
I don’t think one character can be considered better than the other on this front, they’re just different. This ensures character selection is not just a superficial one — making a series already defined by replayability even more so. It’s always good to have options, right?
There’s no other stealth game that plays like Dishonored, either…
The way it mixes its world building and lore with the gameplay mechanics is a thing of beauty. These abilities are what elevates and differentiates the series from its genre brethren.
Dishonored uses an RPG-like system to pick and choose what skills you want to focus on. There are runes scattered through your environments that are necessary to collect in order to unlock the more powerful stuff. It will mostly come down to preferences on how you build your character. This ‘leveling up’ ensures you always have new tools at your disposal. Always good.
You’re probably sensing by now that Dishonored 2 is built on the foundation of choice. The mission design is no exception, offering a whole lot of freedom in deciding how things unravel.
Each level is focused around a specific objective related to the conspiracy to take Dunwall’s throne. How you accomplish your goal can assume a number of forms, but there will be consequences somewhere down the line no matter what. There’s no right or wrong way to approach things, but people aren’t going to forget if you cause a whole lot of mayhem.
The game’s environments will reflect how you make your way through the world…
I went for a ‘low chaos’ playthrough, where I’d avoid trouble as much as I could and do my best to go undetected. This was going to be slow and methodical. If I was forced to deal with a guard, I’d knock them out and hide their bodies. I would bypass checkpoints, stick to the shadows, and take the road less travelled. I honed my abilities around this approach, too.
I decided my incarnation of Emily would be merciful, so I would look for less lethal means to deal with the conspirators, once it was time for the inevitable confrontation. You could easily justify Emily being out for revenge and taking a less-than-subtle approach. They’re both valid.
For me, it was incredibly satisfying to complete an objective without anyone knowing I was there, but things don’t always go to plan and there will be times you will have to course correct.
It’s safe to say that stealth games can be frustrating under certain circumstances, particularly if the mechanics aren’t intuitive to use. That’s not the case with Dishonored. When you mess up, it’s almost always your doing — usually a result of being careless or not having enough patience. These stealthy games are always better when you go in with the right mindset.
I told myself that I wasn’t going to worry too much about playing through the levels perfectly. I would try to be as stealthy as possible, but it wouldn’t be the end of the world if I was detected and had to change my plans on the fly. Dishonored is designed with flexibility in mind. There’s no stealth related fail states or portions of the game that force you to use stealth.
If you mess up. you’re not going to be punished and there are always ways to salvage things.
While I knew all this stuff in theory, I found myself a bit riled when I messed up initially…
I completed an early mission and got to the stat screen that chronicled my progress. I was shocked when it said I had accidentally killed someone. This wouldn’t do. I decided to replay the entire chapter. I would learn from my mistakes and approach things more carefully. (It’s not like I wasn’t careful the first time.) I got to the stat screen again: two people this time.
After the riled up fist shaking stopped, I remembered how I set out to approach the game and decided to implement this plan for real this time. I could accept a mistake every now and then and the playthrough didn’t have to be flawless. Once I took that pressure off myself, I found I was having more fun, as well — though I’d be lying if I said I didn’t load a save every so often.
The game has found the right balance between challenging and forgiving. If you’re struggling with the stealth, there’s ways to make it easier for yourself through your abilities, too. Though who says you need to play stealthily, any ways? Play the game however you like, friend!
Be warned, you will spend a lot of time in these levels, especially if you embrace the game all stealthy-like. That’s not even remotely a bad thing, though — they’re truly a thing of beauty!
Like the first instalment, Dishonored 2′s world is stunningly brought to life…
The locales are filled with intricate detail that makes the city feel lived in. There’s interesting sights and sounds to take in around every corner and you’re constantly rewarded for exploring. The attention to detail is pretty damn mind blowing and the art direction insanely beautiful.
Karnaca doesn’t feel like another iteration of Dunwall. The climate is different. The culture is different. The technology is different. There’s some truly impressive world building here. I would routinely spend two or three hours in just one of these environments, only to realise that I still hadn’t seen everything there was to see or uncovered all the secrets yet.
I never felt bored once while playing, despite spending so long here. It’s safe to say that my imagination was captured and I fell in love with how exotic the world was. There’s so much visual storytelling happening in the environments, too. Strangely enough, the actual graphics of Dishonored 2 are fairly muddy, but the design makes up for the technical limitations.
Karnaca plays backdrop to some spectacularly diverse and creative missions, too…
There’s two chapters in particular that I’ve got to single out on the grounds of being next level amazing in a game full of next level amazing: The Clockwork Mansion and A Crack in the Slab. If you have any intention of playing, you should probably skip ahead to preserve the surprises.
The Clockwork Mansion takes us to the unusual home of Kirin Jindosh, Grand Inventor. We’ve got multiple objectives here: investigate Jindosh’s role in the conspiracy and track down a missing ally. Two relatively straight forward goals, but things get a whole lot more complicated once we actually step foot into the mansion. Turns out, this entire place is one giant puzzle…
The Grand Inventor’s mansion is mechanical and the floor plan changes dramatically with the pull of a lever. Then there’s the little matter of the hostile robots patrolling the corridors, too.
This place is level design at its best. It’s a thing of beauty to watch the walls and floors seamlessly change, revealing a labyrinth of secret rooms and different configurations. We’re constantly kept on our toes as we attempt to navigate such an unusual environment.
Then there’s A Crack in the Slab, which takes us to a dilapidated mansion in the Dust District.
In order to investigate what happened in this strange place — that drove its owner to madness — we must explore the surrounds in two timelines that are playing out simultaneously. Once again, this place is really just one elaborate puzzle that requires us to move seamlessly back and forwards through time in order to progress. Believe me when I say it’s a whole lot of fun.
No two missions in Dishonored 2 are alike. While they might not always have as interesting hooks as these two specific examples, they’re all immersive and dripping with atmosphere.
You know the game is good when you want to replay all the missions again straight away…
It’s worth noting that a whole lot of people are having trouble with Dishonored 2′s performance in relation to the PC version. While I personally had no issues, I seem to be a minority on this front. It might be worth waiting until a patch is released before jumping in.
Otherwise, I can’t recommend this game enough…
Dishonored 2 was a hype train well worth boarding and easily a Game of the Year contender.
Written by Dan Clarke. November 22, 2016.
Originally published at dcpresents.tumblr.com.
