Hunting Game(s): Dishonored Review

First, stop by my post last week which, among other things, contains my initial reaction to Dishonored. Read on if you want to see a slightly more in detail review!

I say slightly because I have yet to finish the game. This is due to being busy and the setup of the levels -- each mission can be quite lengthy (especially if you're trying to be at all stealthy), so I do either a mission or half a mission in one sitting.

WARNING! For you achievement hunters, I STRONGLY suggest you check out the achievement list and plan how you want to play from the get go! It will take at least two complete play-throughs to 100% the game, and it uses a strange system for keeping track of your stats. If you plan on going through the game without killing anyone  or alerting anyone, you MUST do so from the get go -- if fail to do one of them on level 2 and figure you'll just do it after you finish the game, it doesn't work like that, you'd have to play level 2 over AND the rest of the game in the same manner to unlock the achievements.

Sometimes it's just more fun to use the pistol...

I'm personally playing stealthily with a goal to keep a "low chaos" ending, which is the "less dark" for the endings provided. This means that I try to kill as few people as possible, though I'm not afraid to cut folks who stumble upon me. Also, I'm killing all the assassination targets by indirect means. Also, I'm getting all the collectibles referenced in achievements, though they are honestly easy to come by just by being thorough.

It makes for a fun play-through, but I think I'd almost rather blast through the game and just deal with the "high chaos" difficulty spikes.

The story... is nothing special, and I say this because it lacks a coherent logic:

You (Corvo) are framed for killing the Empress and kidnapping her daughter. Then you are imprisoned. A group of "loyalists" free you so you can save the daughter and kill off the usurpers. On a completely unrelated note, a mystical being of some sort, known as The Outsider, gives you magical powers. Basically, he wants to see what you'll do with them on your missions. Back to the Loyalists, they send you on a bunch of missions to kill or capture VERY high profile enemies. But don't worry, they give you a mask and a cool sword with which to do it.

My problem is that, without the Outsider (and, unless there's an upcoming plot twist, the Loyalists know nothing about him), there is no reason Corvo should be able to complete ANY of these missions or, at the very least, not any better than the next guy. And the next guy wouldn't require an elaborate prison rescue, either.

I'm assuming there will be a plot twist where the Loyalists stab you in the back, it tends to go with this kind of thing, but there really is no reason to choose Corvo for the job -- we don't see ANY of his past actions that might qualify him, and, to be honest, most of these missions would be especially difficult without powers -- conceptually impossible, I'd argue, though maybe I'm wrong.

Ignoring that (not that I personally can), the characters are interesting enough. And you have an item (a heart...) that you can use to learn secrets about them. The story is well crafted around all of them, though the art style does sometimes make it difficult to remember who is who...

What did I tell you? Creepy.

Note: about the art style -- it's bleak. There are bleak images, locales, and the overall design is dingy and dark. I enjoy it, actually, but can see people not enjoying the almost lifeless design of some of the areas and the lack of any real bright spots (there is a party, but it's more creepy than anything).

On to the good stuff, however: the powers!

The main powers are:
Dark Vision - allows you to see through walls and see where characters' line of sight is. This ability is needed, in my opinion, and should be on pretty much all the time... Except it makes everything an annoying shade of yellow.

Blink - a short range teleport. Another one to get an upgrade ASAP, though it can make the game FAR too easy. I kind of wish it was more limited (my high chaos play-through will skip it altogether)

Possession - first you can possess larger animals (dogs), then you can possess humans for a short time. Seems awesome and useful, but I've yet to upgrade it.

Bend Time - useless until the upgrade, which is VERY expensive. I did upgrade it and it is another over-powered ability. I can literally stop time (for a short span of time). No one can see me when I do this, so it allows me to run through heavily populated areas. My favorite use for it, however, is to line up shots with my sleep darts on multiple guards that refuse to split up and be taken down with a choke hold.

Yeah, I'm NOT doing that...

Devouring Swarm - I really don't get this one. You can summon rats to kill people. Which I could do with a gun, a crossbow, grenades, a sword, etc... without costing me precious runes. I assume that enemies devoured by rats can't be discovered, but there's a passive skill that automatically makes this happen, without costing mana... Needless to say, I haven't taken it -- it would be especially useless for my stealthier character.

Windblast - this is Dishonored's version of Force Push. I don't have it on this character (not really stealthy if I'm blasting everyone away), but I REALLY look forward to this ability next time.

There are an equal amount of passive abilities you can spend runes on... But I have found no reason to do so.

The powers make the game that much more fun, but they are more tools than weapons (for the most part), which is where comparisons to Bioshock fall through. I'd still suggest this game is closer to Deus Ex: Human Revolution, though I'm enjoying Dishonored more. I'd give the game an 8/10, though I must repeat I have yet to beat the game. I'll edit this post when I do with a revised rating (and any addendum that seems pertinent . For now, even with my lack of completion, I'd say the game is worth picking up. If that's rental vs buying, that's up to you, but I honestly think this could be finished successfully with a rent.

Finally!

For next week, I will be writing about... wait for it... Baldur's Gate! I've dusted off the old discs in an attempt to FINALLY install and play the damn game. As soon as I pick up the expansion "Throne of Bhaal," I'll be able to play all the way from the beginning of the first to the end of the second (and expansions) in one game, which I'm really looking forward to. I'll post some thoughts on the game, the mods I'm using, and if I think it actually scratches the itch I'm having for some tabletop gaming...

Breaking News! "Superior Spider-Man"

I'm interrupting my normal Wednesday routine with this nerd-emergency.

Amazing Spider-Man will be ending after issue 700 and will be replaced with Superior Spider-Man under the Marvel NOW initiative.

This Spider-Man is stated to no longer be our "Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man." Instead he will be a much darker character.

My reaction is something close to Sheldon's in this clip from Big Bang Theory:

Just replace the "Morlocks" with "Superior Spider-Man."

Slott explained he'll be going into his reinforced bunker once issue 700 hits. I'm pretty sure this is the same phrase used when Brand New Day hit.

Oh no!

(Exception: If it turns out they are SOMEHOW bringing Ben Reilly back and he's finally taking the title, I'll accept it. Otherwise, see the video. And I still hate the title.).

Update: Just saw this second image and read some even worse news:

First, it's not Peter Parker anymore. They already did this with Ultimate and, while that's working for them, they need to cut that crap out (again, only ok if Ben, though the second cover seems to argue against that).

Second, that cover looks like a sexual assault to me. We already had a villain Spidey during the Dark Avengers. You can't replace one of the most famous super heroes with a villain/douche. Just don't do it.

Third, Brand New Day (their last big change) broke up MJ and Pete. This big change shows an interaction between MJ and New Guy -- are they trying to bury themselves?

Fourth, ARE YOU KIDDING ME!? A black and red costume? COME ON! We just did this with Scarlet Spider and Miles Morales, try something new. Hate this so much.

I saw a theory that Doc Ock somehow managed to switch places with Peter, since he apparently knows Peter is Spidey. That'd be fine for an issue or two, but the onset of a new series doesn't seem like it's going to be a minor thing. I hope that theory is bunk.

Unless they REALLY pull something amazing (yes, I'm using that as a pun) with this transition, I fully expect to see a mass exodus away from Spidey again (which happened around the time of BND). I'll probably be joining them if it's as bad as I'm expecting. It will go to show that they don't learn from their mistakes and don't care about fans at all.

It's a bit sad. For a fan boy, anyway.

-----

In other news, I haven't played much of Dishonored. I'm halfway through my second, harder playthrough of XCOM and have a hard time pulling away. I did play the the opening and first assassination mission, and I have to say, I'm impressed:

I enjoy the Steampunk setting, and I'm also getting a touch of an unspoken Lovecraft feeling. It's not horror, per se, but it is dark and there are mysterious things beneath the water, apparently.

In the first mission, I saw three major ways to complete my mission -- brute force (barge in, kill everyone and my target), indirect (use poison), and non-lethal (the most difficult sounding, though probably the most rewarding). I went for indirect, because it allows me to be sneaky, but not to the exclusion of a couple good fight scenes during my escape (because I'm terrible at being sneaky).

The levels remind me of Deus Ex: Human Revolution, in that, while the missions are linear, there are other quests/objectives on your way to the target. I helped a creepy, crazy old lady poison a distillery belonging to a bunch of thugs, as an example.

I also saw plenty of paths to use for getting from A to B. I chose to take the high road, teleporting across rooftops and the like.

You have access to all of your powers from the beginning, it's up to you to choose how you level them up by spending runes you find during missions.

I'm not far at all, but at the very least my first impression is positive. I'll do a further review when I finish the game.

Hunting Game(s): Upcoming Dates

Howdy Folks,

Sorry if my slightly late posts have been an issue for anyone who really looks forward to my MWF schedule, this has been a bit busier of a week with grad classwork and the like. Hopefully next week will slow down a bit!

For this week's Hunting Game(s) post, I wanted to give a calendar for what releases to expect in October, November, and December:

10/7: Pokemon Black 2 and White 2 release this week, though I'm going to have to pass (GASP!) if I want to hit the other two titles I want this month. It's nice that they're the first story-following sequels, but I don't see any other reason to pick them up, and who the hell plays Pokemon for the story?

10/9: Dishonored and XCOM: Enemy Unknown - I'll be picking these both up, thanks to selling my soul at GameStop, and at least one of them should be featured in next week's Hunting Game(s).
---Dragon Ball Z for Kinect also comes out, but I don't have a Kinect (... and I assume it will be terrible, but that's neither here nor there).

10/23: Killzone HD is out!

10/30: Marvel Avengers: Battle for Erath (another Kinect title) comes out, but, more importantly, so does Zone of the Enders HD Collection! Oh, and Assassin's Creed III comes out too, for those of you into that...

11/6: Dragon Ball Z Budokai HD Collection and Halo 4 hit stores on this day. I'd suggest skipping Budokai (it only has the first and third games, apparently), and I think I'm personally skipping Halo. Mass Effect Trilogy is another notable release.

11/13: Call of Duty: Black Ops II comes out -- I'm looking forward to this, though I say that every CoD lately and am let down...

11/20: Persona 4: Golden is released on the Vita! Finally! I actually thought this was coming out in October; now I'm a bit sad I have to wait. Also, Playstation All-Stars Battle Royale comes out (you know, the Super Smash Bros. knock off with a terrible name).

12/4: Far Cry 3 is out, which looks interesting, though I never played the first two.

On a side note, the 3DS has NOTHING coming out all year that interests me. Nintendo REALLY needs to support their next gen device and stop developing so many DS games (which they may be, since the list I'm working off only has released into November...).

If you notice a lack of Wii or Wii U titles, that's because I have no intention of picking them up and couldn't really suggest and decent titles on their upcoming list -- I've done at least a little research or am otherwise familiar with the above.

Next Tuesday is XCOM and Dishonored (you know, as I wrote above), and I can't wait! I'm going to try and find a store with a midnight release (and, since GameStop doesn't seem to have my back on this, will probably be Wal-Mart), and I have Tuesday off so I can play to my heart's content!

Alright, see you Friday with a post on... well, I have no idea!

Hunting Game(s): Upcoming and Now Playing

I know I posted a bit about the Vita yesterday, but that was more of a random update that I found interesting. This week's rendition of "Hunting Game(s)" (which I'm thinking of re-branding. At first it was pun-ny, not I'm not enjoying it) is about upcoming items and what I've been playing.

Titles on my Radar
X-COM: Enemy Unknown


Yes, that is an hour of game play footage. And yes, it is awesome.

Pros: It looks like the perfect game for me. Literally, when I think of a dream game, it is apparently X-COM (which I've never played anything related to before). It is a gorgeous, interesting, story-oriented strategy game with SO. MANY. OPTIONS! I'm really looking forward to this title, which drops October 9th.
Cons: I'm torn between getting it for 360 or PC, and I've NEVER had that issue before...

Dishonored


Shorter video this time, but still awesome.

Pros: This looks like a mix between Bioshock and Assassin's Creed, and I love the idea. It has several different approaches to each mission, interesting abilities, potential for a good story, and is set in a steampunk world. It drops... on October 9th.
Cons: It comes out the same day as X-COM! I've cut back my gaming expenses in light of other things, and only one of these games will make the cut, the other will be something I avidly await a price drop for. I'm tempted to choose this one SIMPLY for the fact that the pre-order bonus is an actual set of Tarot Cards...

Maybe I'll play the lottery this month...

Call of Duty: Black Ops 2

I'm not posting a video, check back to last week's post for a good one!

Pros:The release date is November 13th, which means it won't have any other competition (that I can think of) for a November purchase. I'm looking forward to the changes and it will be nice playing a game that I know most of my friends (who all live far away) will purchase as well.
Cons: As a series itself, I only like CoD for the multiplayer, and usually only when I'm playing with friends. I'm concerned that, for all its changes, it will just be more of the same old show we've seen before.

Now Playing
360: CoD: Modern Warare 2. I've been picking this up and playing it to scratch the FPS/multiplayer itch and it's one of the only games I have in common with my brothers (for now). As good as I remembered (knifing especially), though often frustrating due to NoobTubes and Campers.
Spider-Man: Edge of Time. Picked it up on super sale from Amazon awhile back with the intention of selling it. Apparently everyone and there mother bought it at the same time and wouldn't buy my copy. So now I'm replaying it to test out some of the new things release via HeroHQ (costumes and arena) while getting achievements (I played the PS3 version last time).

PS3: Nothing! My brothers (a couple states away) have it for now. Which is unfortunate, because I need to to download Final Fantasy VII to my Vita. CURSES!

PC: Nothing serious, atm. Interested that The Old Republic is going free to play -- I'll feel less guilty about not making much time for it -- I'm waiting for the next big expansion, then I'll try to navigate the new server I got moved to.

3DS: Picked up Devil Survivor 2 again, playing it here and there. Still not as good as the first one, but I was able to get past the level that was irking me. Will eventually finish it.

Vita: Still picking up and playing Mortal Kombat. Not too often, but I'm glad I have it for the next time I get a fighting game urge.

PS2: Speaking of fighting games, I've been thinking of playing through Dragon Ball Z: Infinite World again. Haven't started yet, but it's somewhere on my to-do list.

That's it for now, no clue what next week will bring!