Dishonored was one of the best received games of the last generation, as it mixed stealth, assasination, and a good story to create a particularly rewarding experience. Players were encouraged to try out different paths, both in play style and reaching targets, with these decisions having an impact on how the city of Dunwall would react. Bloodthirsty players would find themselves facing more swarms of rats and zombie-like Weepers, while those who went for finesse would generally have less to cope with.
Bethesda’s announcement of Dishonored: Definitive Edition came out of the blue, with all the focus on the Dishonored 2 annoucement, but a Dishonored: Definitive edition for the latest generation does make sense. There’s a lot of story present that will give those who may have missed the game the first time round some context for a sequel set several years in the future. In particular, it will introduce to you to both Corvo and Emily.
All the DLC is included in this package as well, giving you even more story and different protagonist’s eyes to look through, that helps to really flesh out the events that consume the decaying city of Dunwall. The main game gives you the view that protecting Emily is all important and that whoever shoved the blade through the body of her mother is evil. The Knife of Dunwall and The Brigmore Witches let you actually play as that person and learn not everything is as it seems. As an entire package this Dishonored: Definitive Edition is a great value package for newcomers.
Arkane built an excellent game and should you be picking up Dishonored for the first time then you’re in for a treat. There’s a great challenge to be had as you decide how to approach a mission, be it running in with sword drawn to slice through any resistance, or to sneak and use the Blink ability to teleport past obstacles and guards. Combat can and will be challenging, as Corvo won’t instantly win every sword fight and will be facing properly trained fighters. They’ll dodge, parry, and maybe even knock you off your feet. If you get surrounded, the best idea is to escape as a small group can easily overpower Corvo, especially as these guards aren’t afraid of attacking together.
However, Dishonored: Definitive Edition isn’t really for those who have already played the original game and its DLC, unless you feel like revisiting Dunwall on PS4 or Xbox One. While the graphics look slightly improved over PS3 and Xbox 360 visuals with higher resolution, there isn’t anything that really separates it from playing Dishonored on high settings on a decent PC. Don’t expect a bump in frame rate either, as the game runs at a locked 30fps.
Some of the graphics do look a bit strange compared to the last generation. The character models appear to be quite waxy in design with sallow skin. On occasion I couldn’t really focus on what a character was saying, purely because of how strikingly odd they looked. Piero is the one that stands out most in this regard, looking ghoulish in appearance. Load times could also be a bit of an issue, especially nearer the end of the main campaign,
Dishonored: Definitive Edition is a game that will be great for those yet to experience the game, since it brings one of last generation’s best to PS4 and Xbox One. If you’ve played Dishonored before then it might be worth picking up closer to the release of Dishonored 2, whenever that may be, as a refresher course, but there is nothing that really shouts “must have” for people who have already skulked in Dunwall’s sewers, drank in the Hound Pits pub and blinked across the city’s rooftops.
cam_manutd
I love the art style, atmosphere and chaos gameplay. But I find the game tailors the game to pure stealth rather than allowing some focus to anarchy. The enemy ai can get real annoying. Another one in the backlog.
MadBoJangles
It’s in my backlog too.
I picked it up in a steam sale last year
Not tried it yet :(
beeje13
A memorable game that I might have picked up if there were a shortage of games.
Tomb Raider, The Last of Us released at very appropriate times last year and did really well.
TSBonyman
I really enjoyed this game on PS3, even traded it in for the goty version later on but given the minor ‘upgrade’ i’m in no rush to pick up this version.
Funny thing is, as much as stealth was a big part of the game i never really thought about it as a stealth game due to the amount of abilities etc that you could use. Dying just meant an opportunity to try another, different approach.