Dishonored

The storyline is a perfect blend of linearity and freedom. Yes, you're going to get to the same point in the end, but you get to choose how. Are you going to rampage? Or slip through the levels unnoticed, killing only when absolutely necessary? Or a mix of the two? The level design is amazing. and while 2012 animation looks a bit dated now, the game is still beautiful. Definitely worth a playthrough, well worth $9.99. Only bad thing I can say is that it is disappointingly short.

It had been a long time since I'd played a good story-driven FPS. 'Dishonored' designed & developed by Arkane Studios and published by Bethesda caught my attention from the word go. It had been doing rounds with gameplay & cinematic trailers for some time now. I don't know what exactly caught my attention; was it the unconventional graphic style/art direction? Or the name Bethesda, who gave us the ever-amazing 'Skyrim', attached to it? Or was it the very Bioshock inspired gameplay? I just had to see for myself; and "SEE…I DID!"

The first thing you'll notice about the game is that it felt a lot like Bioshock and I'd like to quickly add that it's not a bad thing. A few minutes into Dishonored and you'll know that the gameplay only remotely resembles Bioshock. There is a good chance that you'd find the design and art direction more akin to Bioshock though, coz Arkane studios did previously work on the same in Bioshock. Comparisons aside, Dishonored puts you in the shoes of the royal assassin 'Corvo Attano'. Framed for the Empress' murder, a rage-impelled Corvo is propelled through a plethora of brilliantly designed levels for getting revenge armed with both mordacious arsenal of guns/arrows/grenades & supernatural powers. The plot really drills forward with enough twists and turns to strangle yourself in. "Set in the fictional industrial city of Dunwall, modeled after Victorian London, Dishonored follows Corvo Attano, a legendary bodyguard to the Empress who is framed for her murder and forced to become an assassin to seek revenge on those who conspired against him. Attano is aided in his quest by the Outsider, a powerful being who imbues him with magical abilities." – Wikipedia

On another note, I don't understand why all FPS games are going the RPG way these days. Even veterans at id adopted some role-playing elements for their last IP 'Rage'. I do understand nobody prefers just run-n-gun FPS games now and even I, myself wasn't so thrilled playing Serious Sam 3! Recently almost all FPS games are ridden with RPG elements. It's a boon to games like Dishonored and I promise I'll get back to that, but I miss those story-oriented linear games of the yesteryear, ala 'Return to Castle Wolfenstein'.

I have to say the graphics is stellar, courtesy of a modified Unreal Engine. The amount of textures and special effects floating around is impressive to say the least. It almost feels like a living painting: the sunbeams, the water, the caricaturistic character models, everything seem to just liven the Dishonored world beyond anything. It just screams how gorgeous a game could be rendered using the Unreal engine. I was very impressed with the load times especially when it renders the whole of a mission in just one load. There are usual flaws like minuscule texture loading issues and invisible walls but it never hinders the experience. It is not a sandbox game and hence the invisible walls but consider Dishonored a playground where you can play according to your choice. You can either go guns blazing in all 9 missions and kill everybody in sight which will cause a 'High Chaos ending' or go about stealthily and cause a 'Low Chaos' ending. The sheer number of alternative routes to complete a mission in this game will boggle your mind and here Dishonored shines. The game encourages you to play without killing a single NPC/Enemy. Yes, it seems it's possible to complete the game without any fatalities but it was tough for me to use those immensely satisfying powers and weapons. My fingers were almost twitching to use a spring razor or an explosive arrow. At its core Dishonored is still an FPS/RPG, just like Bioshock. Instead of Adam and Plasmids you have Runes and Bone Charms and yes it changes the way you play the game drastically.

The music and ambiance added plentiful to the already gratifying experience. From the eery 'Drunken Whaler' theme to the grim sewer ambiance everything rocks.

Clocking at 9+ hours I played and reveled in Dishonored and yes I am happy to say that it deserves the best new IP awards this season. Dishonored promises great and varied level design as well enemies, an interesting plot, good gameplay innovations and gorgeous set-piece moments. Revenge as it seems can be very satisfying. All thanks go to Arkane Studios for this sweet sweet game. This is exactly how a good game should be!

Story: After being framed for the murder of the Empress and the disappearance of Emily, you and and group of loyalist set out after the people who framed you.

Sound: Music fits perfectly. Enemies make sounds when being knocked unconscious or when being killed. Great sound.

Graphics: Adds a unique feel to the game. Some textures are lacking. Water effects look great.

Gameplay: You can kill people with either a sword, a gun, or a crossbow. You also can purchase grenades and upgrades. You can collect runes to get or improve your powers. You can summon rats to eat people, or slow down time. There are several creative ways you can kill people. You can freeze time when someone fires a bullet at you, you can possess that person and move them in front of their own bullet. Only downside about doing this is both possession and freeze time need to be level 2. Some blood splashes on your screen when killing somebody. You can either go balls out and kill everybody, or you can play the game without killing a single soul. There are also some mini missions inside the major mission.

Length: Varies. You can rush through, or take your time and explore every nook and cranny.

Replay value: Moderate. You can either play a whole game killing everybody, or you can play a whole game without killing anybody.

Overall: A very fun game with a good story and moderate replay value. Worth buying.

I've never really liked the concept of stealth games. Sneaking around, trying to avoid attention… probably with frequent reloading of quicksaves until you make it through the more challenging sections unnoticed. It just seemed like a chore.

But I really enjoyed Dishonored. In the past, I've equated stealth with a sense of fear. But in this game, you feel deadly and powerful from the shadows. I loved studying the brilliantly designed levels from stealth- watching patrolling guards and scanning for alternate routes to your objective. Deciding how to approach the obstacles before me.

This game is filled with choices, after all. There are large choices- deciding the fates of prominent Dunwall citizens- but you are constantly making small choices as you progress through the game. I started out intending to be a ruthless assassin, but after murdering the high overseer and Pendleton's brothers- and being rewarded with extremely satisfying slow-motion kill animations- I found myself gravitating toward the non-lethal options.

This is probably a reflection of how invested I was becoming in the city of Dunwall. And let me make it clear that this is the game's biggest strength in my view- the setting. A dirty, plague-ridden, early industrial city with a dose of occult magic thrown in- all of it beautifully imagined. And there's this undercurrent of sorrow brought on by heavy reliance on whale oil, along with a general uncertainty about the future. This is great world building… it may not have quite the depth of the first Bioshock or Mass Effect, but visually, it is unforgettable.

My only real complaint is that the characters themselves were less than memorable, and the game's twist was a bit weak. But this isn't an RPG, and I'm glad it didn't try to be one.

All in all, Dishonored offers great stealth-based gameplay, elevated by one of the most memorable settings I've experienced in recent years.

Dishonored is a solid and satisfying game. The game play is absolutely brilliant and the environment is awesome. This game is a testament to the faith of hardcore gamers waiting for a game that will never disappoint.

Dishonored tells the story of Corvo, the Lord Protector of the Empress of a huge plague ridden empire and her daughter. When the Empress is murdered and her daughter abducted, Corvo is framed for her murder. Now he must fight, with the help of his new found allies, against the very men who framed him and with deadly stealth, prevent them from taking over the empire.

So everything in this game was great although I think it would have been better if it was a third person game like Assassin's Creed or Prince of Persia. However that is only my view. Finally, the guards seem to be everywhere and the problem with that is if you're trying to sneak past one guard the odds are that you will be spotted by another guard who suddenly appears behind him. It seems trivial but trust me it can be f***ing frustrating at times.

So to wrap up this is a game well worth buying as it has a fulfilling story and shows that video games will soon overtake Hollywood movies completely.