Dishonored - Definitive Edition

This is an excellent stealth action title that gives the player multiple different ways to accomplish their goals. I recommend checking it out before the sequel drops.

I played through this game and felt underwhelmed when finished. The storyline is somewhat interesting, but predictable, and nobody (not even the main character) gets fleshed out very well. To get the good/best ending you are encouraged to leave as many people alive as possible which is at odds with a lot of the weapons and other gameplay options offer you (one non-lethal takedown weapon and several lethal methods at your disposal). I'm not sure if I'm going to play any of the expansions - the main campaign was interesting enough, had a lot of potential to be better.

This is definitely the best assassin game I've played. Ever. The mechanics are fun and the powers are amazing to use. A must buy for anybody who likes to skulk in the shadows.

Bethesda has an interesting history of games it does not make, but publishes. They tend to be usually first person based, not open world and often times are shooters. RAGE comes to mind as well as DOOM and Wolfenstien. However, Dishonored sits head and shoulders far above them. Many games say that they offer a variety of different ways to achieve certain goals and complete certain tasks but mostly they mean you get to pick which gun to shoot the bad guys with. This game actually delivers on that promise. Dishonored presents a level and just tells you get to the end of it by whatever means you want. You can choose stealthy-nice, stealthy violent or just go all out violence. And Dishonored has worked out all the ways to do that. On top of this, the story in this game is incredible. Characters are complete and rounded. Your actions end up having consequence to how the game unfolds. Many times I found myself completing a mission without having killed anyone only to have the final target turnout to be such a bad person that I felt I had to kill them. Which to me at least, is a sign of a great game.

Dishonored is the return of a true stealth simulator to gaming. We haven't seen a game with this kind of depth with regards to stealth since the golden age of Thief. This game has a vibrant world, great lore, interesting characters, and many elements to reel you in to the world of Dunwall. Unfortunately, some poor design choices hold this game back. One of the coolest aspects of Dishonored is the fact that your choices do matter and how you approach enemies will affect the final ending of the game. Sadly, this is where the game also falls flat on its face. This is a stealth game in which most of your tools are built for killing. If you want to get the morally good ending, however, you can't kill ANYONE. That's right. NO ONE can die. Not even trash mob enemies. You have to go through the ENTIRE game not killing anyone, as you will get bad karma for each kill you commit. While the non-lethal playthrough is certainly appreciated, as I shouldn't be forced to kill, there aren't enough tools in your arsenal to make it compelling and fun. More or less, you have to get behind an enemy and knock them unconscious every single time. It's just far more easier to kill with all the tools you have than to not kill. My only major criticism. Other than that, it's a great game. Although, the sword fighting could be polished and more engaging than it is. I can only hope Dishonored 2 gives me more tools so I don't have to kill and get the best ending, assuming the game works like the first one.