Game Review Name Dishonored Genre First Person Stealth Action Player(s) 1 Multiplayer N/A Platforms PC, PS3,

PS3, Xbox 360 Developer Arkane Studios Publisher Bethesda Softworks Reviewed on - PC

What will we do with the drunken whaler Early in the morning Put him in a sack and throw him over Feed him to the hungry rats for dinner Shoot him thru the heart with a loaded pistol Slice his throat with a rusty cleaver Early in the morning This is a song from one of the most anticipated title of the year 2012. Yes, its from Dishonored. The studio which gave us Dark Messiah is back with a bang with this wonderful game. Story The title itself serves the baseline for the story of the game. The story has a great foundation to it. You play as Corvo Attano, the legendary bodyguard to the Empress Jessamine Kaldwin in the city of Dunwall. Returning from a voyage to a far off land in search of solutions to end the plague thats ravaging Dunwall, Corvo meets the Empress who is with her daughter Emily to discuss the message where all three are attacked by mysterious assassins who appear out of nowhere. Despite Corvos efforts to fight against them, they bind him magically and assassinate the Empress right in front of Corvo. They also abduct Emily and vanish into thin air. The Empress pleads to Corvo before dying to find her daughter. The Spymaster arrives just in time to make matters worse. He accuses Corvo to be a traitor for killing the Empress and kidnapping Emily. Six months later, the Spymaster has taken control of the city and is now Lord Regent. He informs Corvo that he was the mastermind behind the assassination of the Empress and framing of Corvo. Before his execution the following day, Corvo receives a letter from friends who call themselves Loyalists and escapes the prison of Dunwall. Now, being a wanted murderer and a traitor to Dunwall, Corvo, who is left Dishonored, joins the Loyalists and dons the mask to uncover the truths. Though its a solid story line, as you progress through the game it becomes pretty predictable. Also the story leaves you to hang around with few questions that can cloud your mind (For ex: who is the Outsider?) as there is no background given to it. A little more story depth would have done justice to the game. Gameplay Even though the overall story looks linear, the player is given the freedom to approach a mission the way he/she pleases. This piece of information is given to the player in the beginning of the story. Another interesting aspect of this game is that the game gives you the choice to play it the way you want in dealing with your enemies. You can be a shadow in the dark and take out all opponents one by one or go swash buckling and gun swinging. The interesting part is that the storys ending shapes itself the way you play it. Yes. You read it right. Every mission you play has its chaos

level. Play like a shadow and your chaos level remains low. Increase the body count and so increases your chaos level. More chaos also means drastic changes in your environment like more alert guards, more plague spreading rats, more lepers and even people act differently to you. Towards the end, you will either end up having a normal ending or a grittier and darker ending. One can actually end up finishing the game from start to finish without killing anyone. The game gives you primarily three choices when it comes to decision making in dealing with the target. Kill directly with your own hands. Use your environment to kill. Perform a different optional mission so that your target is eliminated by someone else so that you dont dirty your hands. The gameplay is the greatest plus point of this game. The levels are dynamically designed and gameplay is extremely varied. You can run, jump, climb and slide but the true joy of this game comes from Blinking. Blink is the first power that you are bestowed upon and it allows Corvo to traverse short distances. You will almost have the feel of apparition from one place to another when you blink. There are five main components to the gameplay namely stealth, sword combat, two ranged weapons, powers and bone charms. The ranged weapons include sword and crossbow. Both are wielded using a single hand (left) and your right is always at the ready with a sword. The controls are easy to grasp and work fluidly. There is a radial menu which shows you the list of powers and weapons you have acquired and the player can choose the weapon or power easily. The game has one of the most excellent power systems that Ive ever seen and it has been designed beautifully. There are two categories in this. One The powers like Blink, Time Bend, Possession, etc. These can be unlocked by collecting Runes which are scattered throughout the city of Dunwall. You can also earn Runes by completing side missions. There are two levels to each power. For example in Blink level II youll be able to traverse more distance. In case of Time bend level II you can actually freeze time. The sheer joy of shooting at others when they stand still frozen in time and watch them instantly die the moment timer gets over is so cool. Second level of possession allows you to possess humans for a short duration too. But not all of these powers are free to use. Everything has a cost to it and so do these powers. There is a mana bar which depletes for powers and so planning is needed as to when you want to use what power. The second interesting category of the power system is the Bone Charms. Initially Corvo can equip himself with three bone charms at a time and this can be upgraded to carrying six bone charms. They are also scattered throughout the city of Dunwall. Feeling too lazy to explore and find both the Runes and Bone charms? Fear not. The game provides an excellent mechanism in finding these artifacts. A tool which is in the shape of a magical heart is presented to Corvo early in the game and every time you equip it, the heart will show where the rune or bone charm is present. The heart beats faster as you approach an artifact. Point it over an enemy and the heart will tell you the background of him. On a whole there are only a handful of powers in the game and each one affects your gameplay significantly. Upgrades to weapons can be bought with money that can be obtained by looting enemies or collecting them from the surroundings. There are also unique weapon upgrades blueprints scattered over Dunwall. You can hack into systems like Wall of Light (Entry points which are blocked by electric mechanisms that turn you to ash if you pass by) and rewire them using tools thus causing it to allow you and eliminate enemies.

The combat system is fairly simple. You can attack and block. When the enemy is hit well and staggers, your next attack can be deadly. A question arises as to why one cannot equip a ranged weapon and a power as the game only allows the combination of powers along with sword and sword along with ranged weapons. The combat can become little clunky if you are surrounded by multiple enemies. But still you can use your trusty Blink to escape the situation. Though these minor issues prevail, the combat is designed to be fast, bloody and it is indeed satisfying. I would seriously encourage you to play this game in a stealth manner as it is more engaging than just killing and progressing. From start to finish this game is completely fluidic. Graphics and Visuals Dishonored is one of the most creatively designed games in recent times. Dunwalls setting is a hefty combination of Victorian Era and cyberpunk. Dunwall is both beautifully bright and dangerously dark. The artistic design of the game really deserves to be lauded. The color schemes used in the game are captivating. Things change visually if the chaos level is more and it can be seen with darker shades being predominant. The game slightly suffers from frame rate issues but it is hard to notice as things are moving in a flow. The character animations are good and it is really awesome to see when you use blink. The entire screen vibrates visually and it really creates a sense of reality. Sound design Backing up a wonderful story is a very poor soundtrack for the game. Except for the one track that almost keeps playing repeatedly for all missions, there isnt much variety in the score that has been composed for this game. But the sound design for powers, weapons and voice acting is very good. When you take a very stealthy approach and try to remain perfectly silent, the sound effect which comes when an enemy spots you gives you the creeps. Guns and crossbow sound as they should. Even the Runes and Bone charms emanate distinct sounds through which you can locate them if you are near to them. Playing time the time you would take to finish this game depends on the way you choose to play. Follow a stealthier approach and it would take a rough 12 hours plus to finish the game. Follow Rambos play style and youll be done in around 8 hours. The game allows you to save any number of times as one wants and this sure comes in handy when you take a stealthy approach. USP The USP of this game lies in the freedom of choice the game gives you. Designing a game in which you can play from start to finish and not kill a single soul is so good. The game literally urges you to play it multiple times. Choose a different method of play style for the same mission and believe me you wont get disappointed. ILL factor There are very few games in the market which gives you a satisfied feel when you want to play a game using stealth. Dishonored has done a very fine job in living up to its hype. The game does have a few shortcomings but overall gives u a very good experience in living the life as Corvo. As a gamer I personally would recommend this game to anyone who wants to enjoy a unique experience in gaming. So go ahead, wear your mask and draw your sword. Its time to change the way Corvo got Dishonored.

Ratings Reviewer Rating (on scale of 10) 7 8 9 9 6 8 9.5 9

Attribute Storyline/Plot Physics Gameplay progression Graphics Sound Challenge USP IllFactor

Final Score Tagline

8.7 illGaming certified