I can't shut up about Dishonored! NO SPOILERS!
Confession (to the few who may not know this already): I suck at action games. I get insta-killed in shooters, crash my vehicle into walls, take a ton of damage in fighters, misjudge range on platformers, waste ammo, become overwhelmed by too much visual input, and generally get lost. I experience a steep learning curve before I start to get good at the game (assuming I ever do). This is a large reason why I don't use multiplayer often, I feel like I would be bringing the group down with my incompetence.
This is why stealth and combat-avoidance games appeal to me. They encourage being slow and careful, and looking around at the environment to plan. The downside is that in most of these games, the character is too squishy to survive drawing attention. Imo, Thief remains the best stealther, but if Garret is spotted, he's dead. Deus Ex: HR was okay for stealth - I kept messing up and went for going down in a blaze of glory in a hail of bullets. I kept forgetting which button did what. My biggest complaint about Assassin's Creed is the glaring lack of good stealth mechanics - seriously, aren't skilled assassins supposed to be inconspicuous and sneaky? Aren't the best hits supposed to be the ones nobody notices? However, the AC protagonists are buff enough to survive extended battle. My second complaint is the UI - the map was confusing, and the health meter intrusive.
And then we have Dishonored. Everything about it is so elegantly streamlined and smooth and LOGICAL. Corvo starts with only a few basic abilities - shoot with one hand (LT), slice/stab (sword) in the other (RT), block with (RB). Lean out from cover to take a peek (Y). RB can also be used to knock someone out with a choke hold. X to interact with environment. Press LB for a simple wheel menu for weapons. THAT'S IT. No getting bogged down with item menu and bewildering gadgetry. Early on, Corvo will learn a short-range teleport (mapped to the same wheel menu as the weapons). This is the only spell he MUST learn. Everything else is optional. There is an achievement for beating the game without any supernatural abilities besides that initial teleport. That basic toolkit is enough. Even killing is completely optional - there is another achievement for not killing anyone, including the assassination targets. There are achievements for not being detected. The implication here is that you don't need to upgrade Corvo, if YOU are skilled enough, if you can master his basics, then Corvo is ready-to-win, right out of the box. So many games are now about the gear, and not the player, so this was refreshing. So ... what happens if the player sucks? Is this game playable?
In terms of gameplay, this results in some fantastic concepts that I have yet to experience in another game. Although the game's advertising claims that Corvo is an assassin, and NPCs refer to him as such, I completely disagree. This man is a *bodyguard*. He's a defender. He shouldn't be on a murderous rampage. He shouldn't be leaving piles of dead guards who are just doing their jobs. He's skulking around the city looking for his charge, the heir to the throne. I think killing dozens of arguably innocent people would be a poor start to her reign. Hence, I am aiming for minimal kills in my playthrough. And this game encourages that, and not simply with achievements. The NPCs' reactions and dialogue make me feel that anytime I have Corvo resort to killing, *I've messed up.* That there was a better way, and I either failed in its execution or I wasn't clever or observant enough to figure out the alternate path.
Brilliant. Absolutely brilliant.
And this is the best part of the game - working out those options. There are so many different ways to solve a problem. I am playing 100% spoiler free, no walkthrough. I keep coming up with more ideas after I've completed a particular objective. Could I have avoided detection by climbing up vertical chains? Can I use my power over rats to get out of this jam here? Can I infiltrate this area using a waterway, or should I rooftop hop instead? Can I possess someone and simply waltz in? Where should I place this trap? Can I rewire this electrical fence? Oooh, CAN I POSSESS MY ASSASSINATION TARGET?!!! I just thought of that!!! I must try that out!!!
And don't think the nonlethal routes are wimpy or "nice". I have completed two target missions so far. I killed the first target. Over a few attempts, in two different ways. (The first tactic was a Pyrrhic victory.) I actually had wanted to do the nonlethal option, which I thought would be more fitting, but I was too impatient to devise a strategy that wouldn't kill bystanders and that didn't rely on sleeping darts. (I had run out of darts.) While I was pleased with how I dispatched the target (he never knew I was there!), I would have been extremely proud of myself if I had been able to pull off the nonlethal. For the second target mission, the nonlethal path turned out to be ... exceptionally cruel. I actually feel guilty for it. I also feel guilty for helping out a certain creepy old lady. This was early on, when I was still in "complete-this-checklist-of-quests-regardless-of-what-it-asks-you-to-do-mode." Later I saw the consequences of aiding her and I felt grimy. Those actions were immoral. If I were to do it all over again, I don't think I would. I even felt bad for looting a safe, despite the video game justification of "I need the money to buy upgrades!" Well done, game. Well done.
And before you think nonlethal is easier, and the path for those who suck at combat or games in general - it's more challenging. It requires more patience and planning. It requires remembering who is still walking around and where. There is less room for error. Save often!
I haven't even praised the environment yet. Corvo is not equipped with a city map. There is no "you are here dot" within the UI. I have come across only one map posted to a wall, and I couldn't take it. I should be getting lost constantly. Yet I am not. ME. This is incredible. I am able to navigate this city on ground level, the tunnels, and the rooftops. ME. The only directional hint the UI provides are small icons indicating the general direction and distance of sites. This is enough to keep me oriented without being handheld. In fact I find myself comfortable enough to not even need those icons. ME. This environment deserves thorough exploration, there are so many secrets to uncover, ranging from easier means of getting around, runes for spells, to the sad tales of individual citizens struggling to survive in this dying city. Some of these are learned through reading graffiti, journals, and letters. Others are told silently from the remains within a room.
In one room, I found three wrapped bodies, with flies buzzing around them. Two were small. Then I find their mother's journal, and read about her anguish as her family perished one by one. I didn't find her body. I wonder what happened to her. I found a solitary man dead on a reinforced awning. He had apparently camped out there. He had a shelter setup, along with food and blankets. He had no wounds. He didn't appear sick. Yet he was dead. What killed him? Oh! Maybe I should have used a certain item! Maybe it would have told me!
I am going to assume this game has very high replay value. I have not even beaten it yet, and I am planning alternate playthroughs. I have noticed that after completing each mission, it can be re-started from scratch. I don't know what this means in terms of Corvo's abilities and equipment. Would his stuff later in the game carry over to a re-start? Essentially a New Game +? One way to find out ...
This is why stealth and combat-avoidance games appeal to me. They encourage being slow and careful, and looking around at the environment to plan. The downside is that in most of these games, the character is too squishy to survive drawing attention. Imo, Thief remains the best stealther, but if Garret is spotted, he's dead. Deus Ex: HR was okay for stealth - I kept messing up and went for going down in a blaze of glory in a hail of bullets. I kept forgetting which button did what. My biggest complaint about Assassin's Creed is the glaring lack of good stealth mechanics - seriously, aren't skilled assassins supposed to be inconspicuous and sneaky? Aren't the best hits supposed to be the ones nobody notices? However, the AC protagonists are buff enough to survive extended battle. My second complaint is the UI - the map was confusing, and the health meter intrusive.
And then we have Dishonored. Everything about it is so elegantly streamlined and smooth and LOGICAL. Corvo starts with only a few basic abilities - shoot with one hand (LT), slice/stab (sword) in the other (RT), block with (RB). Lean out from cover to take a peek (Y). RB can also be used to knock someone out with a choke hold. X to interact with environment. Press LB for a simple wheel menu for weapons. THAT'S IT. No getting bogged down with item menu and bewildering gadgetry. Early on, Corvo will learn a short-range teleport (mapped to the same wheel menu as the weapons). This is the only spell he MUST learn. Everything else is optional. There is an achievement for beating the game without any supernatural abilities besides that initial teleport. That basic toolkit is enough. Even killing is completely optional - there is another achievement for not killing anyone, including the assassination targets. There are achievements for not being detected. The implication here is that you don't need to upgrade Corvo, if YOU are skilled enough, if you can master his basics, then Corvo is ready-to-win, right out of the box. So many games are now about the gear, and not the player, so this was refreshing. So ... what happens if the player sucks? Is this game playable?
In terms of gameplay, this results in some fantastic concepts that I have yet to experience in another game. Although the game's advertising claims that Corvo is an assassin, and NPCs refer to him as such, I completely disagree. This man is a *bodyguard*. He's a defender. He shouldn't be on a murderous rampage. He shouldn't be leaving piles of dead guards who are just doing their jobs. He's skulking around the city looking for his charge, the heir to the throne. I think killing dozens of arguably innocent people would be a poor start to her reign. Hence, I am aiming for minimal kills in my playthrough. And this game encourages that, and not simply with achievements. The NPCs' reactions and dialogue make me feel that anytime I have Corvo resort to killing, *I've messed up.* That there was a better way, and I either failed in its execution or I wasn't clever or observant enough to figure out the alternate path.
Brilliant. Absolutely brilliant.
And this is the best part of the game - working out those options. There are so many different ways to solve a problem. I am playing 100% spoiler free, no walkthrough. I keep coming up with more ideas after I've completed a particular objective. Could I have avoided detection by climbing up vertical chains? Can I use my power over rats to get out of this jam here? Can I infiltrate this area using a waterway, or should I rooftop hop instead? Can I possess someone and simply waltz in? Where should I place this trap? Can I rewire this electrical fence? Oooh, CAN I POSSESS MY ASSASSINATION TARGET?!!! I just thought of that!!! I must try that out!!!
And don't think the nonlethal routes are wimpy or "nice". I have completed two target missions so far. I killed the first target. Over a few attempts, in two different ways. (The first tactic was a Pyrrhic victory.) I actually had wanted to do the nonlethal option, which I thought would be more fitting, but I was too impatient to devise a strategy that wouldn't kill bystanders and that didn't rely on sleeping darts. (I had run out of darts.) While I was pleased with how I dispatched the target (he never knew I was there!), I would have been extremely proud of myself if I had been able to pull off the nonlethal. For the second target mission, the nonlethal path turned out to be ... exceptionally cruel. I actually feel guilty for it. I also feel guilty for helping out a certain creepy old lady. This was early on, when I was still in "complete-this-checklist-of-quests-regardless-of-what-it-asks-you-to-do-mode." Later I saw the consequences of aiding her and I felt grimy. Those actions were immoral. If I were to do it all over again, I don't think I would. I even felt bad for looting a safe, despite the video game justification of "I need the money to buy upgrades!" Well done, game. Well done.
And before you think nonlethal is easier, and the path for those who suck at combat or games in general - it's more challenging. It requires more patience and planning. It requires remembering who is still walking around and where. There is less room for error. Save often!
I haven't even praised the environment yet. Corvo is not equipped with a city map. There is no "you are here dot" within the UI. I have come across only one map posted to a wall, and I couldn't take it. I should be getting lost constantly. Yet I am not. ME. This is incredible. I am able to navigate this city on ground level, the tunnels, and the rooftops. ME. The only directional hint the UI provides are small icons indicating the general direction and distance of sites. This is enough to keep me oriented without being handheld. In fact I find myself comfortable enough to not even need those icons. ME. This environment deserves thorough exploration, there are so many secrets to uncover, ranging from easier means of getting around, runes for spells, to the sad tales of individual citizens struggling to survive in this dying city. Some of these are learned through reading graffiti, journals, and letters. Others are told silently from the remains within a room.
In one room, I found three wrapped bodies, with flies buzzing around them. Two were small. Then I find their mother's journal, and read about her anguish as her family perished one by one. I didn't find her body. I wonder what happened to her. I found a solitary man dead on a reinforced awning. He had apparently camped out there. He had a shelter setup, along with food and blankets. He had no wounds. He didn't appear sick. Yet he was dead. What killed him? Oh! Maybe I should have used a certain item! Maybe it would have told me!
I am going to assume this game has very high replay value. I have not even beaten it yet, and I am planning alternate playthroughs. I have noticed that after completing each mission, it can be re-started from scratch. I don't know what this means in terms of Corvo's abilities and equipment. Would his stuff later in the game carry over to a re-start? Essentially a New Game +? One way to find out ...