Dishonored

[CrownSlayers Shadow]

What do you get when you cross Assassin's Creed, Bioshock, Thief, and Deus Ex, and mix it with Victorian London Steampunk? You get this game.

Release Dates:

NA - 10/9/12

AU - 10/11/12

EU - 10/12/12

I've been keeping my eye on this game since before E3 when I saw it through one of the side videos while browsing around Youtube. This game is a first person stealth action game that from the gameplay videos allows you to play in completely unbelievable ways to complete your objective.

For those of you in the dark, the story is about a man named Corvo who was a bodyguard for the Empress and gets framed for her murder. You probably guess that much from the video. So a man called "The Outsider" gives Corvo supernatural powers so he can set right what went wrong. Some of those abilities Corvo will have are stoping time, short ranged teleportation called "Blink", possession of animals and people, and summon animals like rats to kill your foes. In addition to that, you have guns, knives, and swords.

Seeing a game like this in action must be seen to be believed, because it goes to show the amazing amount of work that is put in this game that I don't think I've seen in very many video games. Possessing a fish in the water to swim into a building, possessing a rat to go through a vent undetected, and from what the developers have said they've seen someone do you could get into a gun fight with someone, stop time, possess that person, walk him in front of the bullet he shot and make him kill himself.

Don't take my word for it, look at these videos:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vmOogPD2ROI

While there are general ways you can play the game as designed by the developers, they've said that people in the test runs of the game have surprised them in doing things that they never expected, like sprinting from on top of a building, double jumping, and blinking a long distance to get past a spotlight without being detected. And considering the number of powers that I see on the videos but haven't been featured yet, it would be amazing to see what else is in store for this game.

What about you guys? What do you think of it?

Here's more videos, but I can't show them due to the media tag limit.

Edited June 18, 2012 by ChaosSupremeSonic

[Lady Soniko]

been waiting on this game forever, can't wait for release

[smogfog]

The Level designer is Antonov, previously the designer of Half-Life 2.

[Solkia]

When I saw the name of the thread, I thought this was going to be in personal discussion.

[Jacky]

this game is going to be fucking rad, rat possession suicide bombing, walking guards into their own bullets yeah son.

[Speederino]

What, THIS is the only thread on this game? A 5-post count pre-release discussion? (And yes, I did a forum search. If there is another thread that's been buried, then I apologize for missing it) The eff is wrong with you people? Dishonored has been getting all kinds of praise, and...well, I actually haven't played it yet, though it's on the tip-top of my Christmas list.  Basically, it's a first-person stealth game made by BETHESDA (*salivates*) whose

strongly reminds me of another certain stealth franchise that I'm sure no one will ever guess in a million years. Hell, you know what? I don't even need trailers, gameplay videos, and the Bethesda logo to convince me. Just listen to this theme music.

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ww0sZrwl7Ck

 

I'm sold on that alone.

Edited December 17, 2012 by Speederino

[Speederino]

Got it, finished a Low Chaos playthrough. How was it? I'll tell you, but first you should tell me WHY NOBODY HERE IS TALKING ABOUT THIS GAME!!!

 

*ahem* Sorry. But really, Dishonored is damn good. The amount of freedom the game gives you is astounding, which is shocking considering that the game is divided into self-contained levels. You can play it as a gung-ho mercenary that obliterates every guard in his path, a silent specter that is as silent as he is deadly, or a mixture of the two. But what really impresses me is how many options you have when approaching an assassination target. Yes, you can just barge in and have a one-on-one duel with them, and of course you slice their throat from behind or air assassinate them from above. But the game nearly always offers more...subtle ways to do things. Switch his wineglass with a poisoned one while he's away? Turn his own security systems against him? Cause an unfortunate "accident" with the pipe pressure while he's in a steam-room? Hell, there are even non-lethal methods to take down a target, which can range from having them kidnapped to stripping them of their power through public humiliation. With so many choices the game is just begging for multiple replays.

 

Of course, you also have a lot of freedom on how to upgrade Corvo. There are multiple magical abilities to choose from, from summoning swarms of rats to attack enemies to manipulating the flow of time. There's a good variety to choose from, and odds are you'll be ignoring some of them on your first playthrough. For example, since I favor the stealth approach and rarely ever get into combat, I never once made use of the adrenaline upgrade or the combat-oriented bone charms (artifacts you equip that grant you various perks). Instead I built up my teleportation and acrobatics, which let me stick to rafters and rooftops.

 

I could say a lot more about the game's atmosphere and top-notch level design, but I don't really want to write a full review here so I'll just leave it at that. What matters is that Dishonored is amazing and deserves to be played, particularly if you're a fan of stealth games.

Edited December 30, 2012 by Speederino

[CrownSlayers Shadow]

Actually, I've been playing the game recently. And damn is it quite challenging to get a hang of on the first time through, but a stealth veteran like myself didn't have too much trouble with it.

 

I'm currently on the second level, and just got the Blink and Dark Eyes, so excuse me if I haven't been saying much on the game. But it is fun to fuck with enemies with the blink: they see a glimpse of you from one position only for you to teleport elsewhere and they have no clue you were actually there.

 

Enemies feel rather automated and robotic when they're in their idle phases, and the NPC just tell you whatever dialogue the programming has stored at random when you try to talk to them, so I can understand what Yahtzee meant during his review of the game. Still, it's an entertaining piece nonetheless.

 

And if nothing else, its aesthetics got me into looking up Victorian era fashion, archetexture, and other associations with it.

[krazystitch]

The thread for Dishonored is seriously this short? Jeez, this is unbelievable.

 

Funny thing for this thread to come back to life today as this is the day I decided to get back into the game after putting it aside for a while. I'm on the third mission right now and haven't killed a single person yet, not planning to either. I'm taking a very stealthy approach, trying not to get seen by anyone. I've actually noticed that this mission is more difficult than the last, which makes sense, obviously, but they've really upped their defenses and there are these assassins trying to kill me, which I'm not sure how to avoid. Any ideas?

 

I also need some suggestions with Powers, as I have 7 runes that I've done nothing with. I have one point in Dark Vision, Blink, and Possession. If any of you guys think there's something I should level up for stealth purposes specifically, please let me know.

[turbojet]

I was actually waiting for a price drop before getting this game. I looked into it and I appreciate the depth it has in every mission despite having a small amount of missions. It reminds me of Megaman Zero a bit.

[CrownSlayers Shadow]

The thread for Dishonored is seriously this short? Jeez, this is unbelievable.

 

Funny thing for this thread to come back to life today as this is the day I decided to get back into the game after putting it aside for a while. I'm on the third mission right now and haven't killed a single person yet, not planning to either. I'm taking a very stealthy approach, trying not to get seen by anyone. I've actually noticed that this mission is more difficult than the last, which makes sense, obviously, but they've really upped their defenses and there are these assassins trying to kill me, which I'm not sure how to avoid. Any ideas?

You're on the mission to kill the Pendleton brothers? Yeah, kinda in the middle of that, but for those assassins, you're either gonna have to put them to sleep with sleep darts, kill them, or blink away whenever possible and hope they don't follow.

 

Aside from that, you're on your own on the approach, but...

I also need some suggestions with Powers, as I have 7 runes that I've done nothing with. I have one point in Dark Vision, Blink, and Possession. If any of you guys think there's something I should level up for stealth purposes specifically, please let me know.

I'd say Blink would be much more useful if you upgrade it to its second level so that you can teleport longer distances, and then invest in Possession for extra stealth that you can use on rats or other animals.

[krazystitch]

You're on the mission to kill the Pendleton brothers? Yeah, kinda in the middle of that, but for those assassins, you're either gonna have to put them to sleep with sleep darts, kill them, or blink away whenever possible and hope they don't follow.

 

Aside from that, you're on your own on the approach, but...

I'd say Blink would be much more useful if you upgrade it to its second level so that you can teleport longer distances, and then invest in Possession for extra stealth that you can use on rats or other animals.

I actually just finished the mission with the Pendleton Brothers. I ended up going up onto the roofs and silently taking down each assassin before they got to me.

 

As for the powers, I did end up leveling up Blink to the second, the new amount of range it gives you is pretty ridiculous. I already have possession leveled up once, but the level two is 5 runes, which I have, but it's very costly. Not to mention, possession jut eats up your mana, so I don't want to level it up to the second.

 

(Also, Chaos, I couldn't help but notice your signature and the fact that you're a League of Legends fan. Much respect to you as I love playing that game myself.)

Edited December 31, 2012 by krazystitch

[CrownSlayers Shadow]

As for the powers, I did end up leveling up Blink to the second, the new amount of range it gives you is pretty ridiculous. I already have possession leveled up once, but the level two is 5 runes, which I have, but it's very costly. Not to mention, possession jut eats up your mana, so I don't want to level it up to the second.

I've had a number of screw ups with misjudging the distance of blink: I was about to do the non-lethal mission on the High Overseer, and picked up his body to take to the interrogation room, only to blink to the edge of the chandelier I tried to get on above the guard and fail to land...thus falling in front of the guard, having him alert his allies, and needed to blink several times to lose them. That was a fun screw up.

 

Then when I upgraded the Blink while doing the optional missions in the Pendleton Brothers, I tried to blink onto a lightpost only to fall down without even touching it (again like the chandelier) and having guards on my ass.

 

But blinking is definitely the most useful of the powers.

 

(Also, Chaos, I couldn't help but notice your signature and the fact that you're a League of Legends fan. Much respect to you as I love playing that game myself.)

Well we have a on the forums, but like this one only a few have made any activity in it.

 

I hope you're a friendly player and not anyone I keep clicking the punish button in the Tribunal for being a jerkass.

Edited December 31, 2012 by ChaosSupremeSonic

[krazystitch]

I've had a number of screw ups with misjudging the distance of blink: I was about to do the non-lethal mission on the High Overseer, and picked up his body to take to the interrogation room, only to blink to the edge of the chandelier I tried to get on above the guard and fail to land...thus falling in front of the guard, having him alert his allies, and needed to blink several times to lose them. That was a fun screw up.

 

Then when I upgraded the Blink while doing the optional missions in the Pendleton Brothers, I tried to blink onto a lightpost only to fall down without even touching it (again like the chandelier) and having guards on my ass.

 

But blinking is definitely the most useful of the powers.

I've actually only messed up with Blink once, and it wasn't even anywhere extremely dangerous with guards or anything, it was just at a high point, so I took some falling damage, but that was all. It was completely my fault though, since Blink lets you know exactly where you're going to land, and even lets you know if you're going to end up on top of whatever it is you're Blinking to.

 

You're right though, it's definitely a useful ability for so many reasons and it's worth having the second upgrade for it.

 

 

 

Well we have a on the forums, but like this one only a few have made any activity in it.

 

I hope you're a friendly player and not anyone I keep clicking the punish button in the Tribunal for being a jerkass.

Yeah, I noticed that a while ago, but there was no discussion going on at the time, so I didn't do much. That's pretty unfortunate with a game that has so much to talk about.

 

Nah, believe me, I'm not one of them, definitely a friendly. However, we should probably stop this here before we get carried away and go way off topic in a Dishonored thread 

[Speederino]

I've actually noticed that this mission is more difficult than the last, which makes sense, obviously, but they've really upped their defenses and there are these assassins trying to kill me, which I'm not sure how to avoid. Any ideas?

 

Well, the good news is that you'll never see these assassins again until much, much later, so don't stress out over them too much. As for dealing with them, well, they spotted me so I ended up just fighting and killing them. Their perception isn't really any stronger then the average guard, it's just their damn Blinking that makes them harder to keep track of. So all I can say is to camp out in a good hiding spot and observe their movements for a while.

 

And if you're still looking for upgrade recommendations, I would go for Bend Time level 2. Completely stopping time has serious advantages. The only problem is that it costs 8 runes, so...yeah. Just remember that you have to HOLD IN L1/LB to use it, simply tapping it only activates the level 1 ability. I don't know if you actually need that advice, but since I didn't realize that until after much trial and error I figure it can't hurt.

[krazystitch]

Well, the good news is that you'll never see these assassins again until much, much later, so don't stress out over them too much. As for dealing with them, well, they spotted me so I ended up just fighting and killing them. Their perception isn't really any stronger then the average guard, it's just their damn Blinking that makes them harder to keep track of. So all I can say is to camp out in a good hiding spot and observe their movements for a while.

They spotted me too, but I'm trying to do this whole thing without killing anyone, so I just went back and found that I could get rid of them before they found me, so I did just that. But yeah, their blinking during fights is extremely annoying.

 

 

 

And if you're still looking for upgrade recommendations, I would go for Bend Time level 2. Completely stopping time has serious advantages. The only problem is that it costs 8 runes, so...yeah. Just remember that you have to HOLD IN L1/LB to use it, simply tapping it only activates the level 1 ability. I don't know if you actually need that advice, but since I didn't realize that until after much trial and error I figure it can't hurt.

I'll definitely look into this. If anything, I'll probably save and try it out, see where it gets me and what it does for me. If it works out, then I'll just stick to it and, if not, then I'll just go back to a previous save file and not get it. This may be a silly question, but if you walk in front of a guard while time is stopped, do they see you?

[Speederino]

I'll definitely look into this. If anything, I'll probably save and try it out, see where it gets me and what it does for me. If it works out, then I'll just stick to it and, if not, then I'll just go back to a previous save file and not get it. This may be a silly question, but if you walk in front of a guard while time is stopped, do they see you?

 

Nope. But they will if you only use level 1, which is why it's so important to make sure you activated level 2. Level 1 is best for making getaways.

[krazystitch]

Nope. But they will if you only use level 1, which is why it's so important to make sure you activated level 2. Level 1 is best for making getaways.

Oh wow, that's great. In that case, I'll be sure to try it out next time I'm on a mission and see how it goes. Thanks for the tip!

[Patticus]

I've been playing this game a lot lately (switching between it and Assassin's Creed Revelations), and finished it for the first time last night. It is a fantastic game. Yes, it is a bit short, and I would eat up a sequel in an instant if one were provided, although I'm not sure if they can bring back Corvo without screwing over the parts of the fandom who preferred x or y's ending unless they do Mass Effect-style plot adaptations.

 

Anyway, yes, a great game; I completed it with almost no kills*, always opting for the non-lethal alternative (I always had to put everyone to sleep, except those damnable Tallboys), and I had great fun doing it. I loved the powers granted me too; Blink, obviously, Dark Vision, Possession, Bend Time, Agility - all the great non-lethal powers really. I think I'm going to do another covert run, this time without even touching City Watchmen, Thugs, Assassins or Overseers, unless they have keys or pouches to hand and are vulnerable to my wily powers, or unless putting them to sleep makes dealing with my targets that much easier. Then a High Chaos run may be in order, unless I get Dishonored Fatigue and decide to move on to something else.

 

The game's music is lovely, and I was really drawn into its setting; it's obvious that the developers initially intended to set the game in mid-17th century London, and as great as that game would have been if it were made, I think that I might like this one better. I'd just love to be able to see more of this world, more of Dunwall, Gristol's various provincial cities (perhaps one inspired by Edinburgh in the same way as Dunwall was inspired by London?), even Pandyssia and the Void, through Corvo's or other eyes. This is a game world I give a toss about. Other games, though I enjoyed them, failed to draw me into their worlds like this; notably, Gears' world can rot for all I care, despite my love for those games.

 

I really enjoyed this game and hope to see more of this colorful, vibrant, dank and watery world beyond the Dunwall Trials DLC soon.

 

*

Lord Shaw bit the dust in our duel, and Granny Rags just 

had to go after she tried to cook Slackjaw.

[CrownSlayers Shadow]

You know you could have just

 

Shot Lord Shaw with a sleep dart instead of the gun during the duel, right?

[Patticus]

You know you could have just

 

Shot Lord Shaw with a sleep dart instead of the gun during the duel, right?

I... I didn't know that. Damn. Next time. Next time.

[krazystitch]

*

Lord Shaw bit the dust in our duel, and Granny Rags just 

had to go after she tried to cook Slackjaw.

Funny thing about this moment in the game..

 

Even if you use a sleeping dart on Granny Rags, it still counts as a kill for you, despite the fact that it doesn't tally on your results screen for the mission. Many people encountered this problem when they were trying to get the Clean Hands achievement. The only way to get passed this without a kill is to stop time, take the keys off Granny Rags and get out before she notices you, leaving Slackjaw to whatever fate Granny Rags decides for him.

 

Even if you're not going after the Clean Hands achievement, I thought this was an interesting piece of information, kinda sucks for people who didn't know at the time and were going through a no kill playthrough, though.

[FourCartridge]

Funny thing about this moment in the game..

 

Even if you use a sleeping dart on Granny Rags, it still counts as a kill for you, despite the fact that it doesn't tally on your results screen for the mission. Many people encountered this problem when they were trying to get the Clean Hands achievement. The only way to get passed this without a kill is to stop time, take the keys off Granny Rags and get out before she notices you, leaving Slackjaw to whatever fate Granny Rags decides for him.

 

Even if you're not going after the Clean Hands achievement, I thought this was an interesting piece of information, kinda sucks for people who didn't know at the time and were going through a no kill playthrough, though.

 

If you don't encounter Granny Rags during Cambell's mission(and presumably House of Pleasure), her lair in the sewers is blocked off and the gate opens without a key.

 

Anyway, my thoughts after a Low Chaos run;

 

It's Bioshock meets Thief in more ways than one. The former constantly kept popping up in my mind as I played the game, comparing the gameplay to this or that, The magic powers are Plasmids, Bone Charms are Gene Tonics, the weapons had alternate ammo just like it, the targets were like Little Sisters in a weird kind of way, you ate food instantly and had health and EVE meters with separate potions, and the knife was the Wrench. Speaking of Powers, if you're good enough at stealth, for all the things they were hyped up, the only really useful ones were Blink and Bend Time, MAYBE Possession. Just get some Sleep Darts and you're golden. Not that it's bad thing, Bioshock was my favorite game I had on the 360, so if you're going to ripoff a game, ripoff a good one. =P Fun if repetitive, though that could be said of most games nowadays.

 

Dunwall is a really interesting setting, especially because it's my favorite type of setting; the city on the brink of ruin. =V Viktor Antonov did a great job with the art style of the game and I hope he does more work in video games, Half Life 3 not the least. It's held down by lackluster characters/plot, mostly cause it's predictable

5 missions in and I'm killing the Lord Regent already? damn this game was short! You can also catch an audiograph in the Hound Pits that all but says "Havelock's going to steal the title and take control for himself". The was a big opportunity for a YouTube worthy speech when you were poisoned, but alas no. the dialogue in general strikes me as a missed opportunity.

.

Don't get why they made Corvo silents; he has a history already with the world, and I fell that we don't get to be introduced properly to the city, like in Bioshock where Andrew Ryan had that "sweat of his own Brow" thing while you were in the bathysphere.

 

Also, DLC! The Dunwall City Trials is here!

Edited January 31, 2013 by FourCartridge

[Speederino]

Knife of Dunwall DLC to be released April 16th.

 

- Play as Daud

- Experience 'key events' from his perspective, including assassination of Empress

- New powers and weapons, including a concealed wristbow, stun mines, and summoning whalers in combat

- Levels still retain their open-endedness

Edited March 13, 2013 by Speederino