It has been a long (like really really long) time since I have reviewed Dishonored, at the time we had not really established a standardized rating system so I suppose I will be doing it’s DLC Knife of Dunwall from scratch. I admit that after a while of being away from Dishonored and it’s challenges I felt VERY rusty and found it difficult to keep up on the higher difficulties… I know, shameful!
Just a note to any readers, this DLC is for the most part more of the original game. Do not expect radical changes just what I consider enough of a twist to make it worth its price!
Story: 8/10
Yeah, I know some people didn’t like how things where left slightly unfinished but I can honestly say I am impressed with the change in story. From the more mundane revenge based story, Knife of Dunwall takes a turn to mysterious and ever so slightly more magical. More is provided in regards to the bearers of the Mark that the Outsider provided to Corvo and Daud including their current numbers. Also diminishing the Illusion that they are overly special as quiet a few more have access to similar Abilities although there is an obvious difference between the users of the Mark it seems, with each using it slightly differently and possessing slightly or sometimes even drastically different abilities. The plot overall progresses nicely and goes hand in hand with moving along the game! The decisions this time feel a little more weighty to me as its not a solid choice between being a pacifist or being a blood thirsty fiend. To be honest, the consequences of the decisions I had to make felt significantly heavier than the original game and while that factors in to the gameplay mechanics it is a direct result of the story telling and suspension of disbelief that was factored into how the plot was presented to me as a player. I am very Impressed (Can’t honestly say everyone will be but that’s generally how I feel).
Gameplay: 9/10:
Like the the main game Dishonored, Knife of Dunwall does a great job with gameplay allowing for a great deal of options in approaching the objectives ensuring that the player really gets the opportunity to complete objectives however which way they like. Sure they can always run in charging like a maniac and complete the objective much faster than if they chose to sneak around (though death is also a valid outcome of a direct attack!) but what the game does best is provide incentive for every type of approach and allows for a great deal of leeway (I wouldn’t say freedom as I am still more or less guided towards the target, just without the leash!). The abilities as I mentioned previously make me feel and I mean REALLY feel elite! The abilities are balanced in consumption of what Magic or whatever it was called in the game (I tend to be bad at remembering what I find to be arbitrarily named things), the upgrades allow for different builds that each allow the player to approach the game with a different style. Plus, I may have forgotten to say this during my first review but haven’t you even considered how cool it is to slow time or freeze it just as your opponent fires a gun at you only to pick up the bullet mid-flight and then stab him in the neck? Ok maybe not everyone is as disturbed as I am but I am SURE some of you are!
Right back to the point, the game has had just a few tweaks in game-play that really give you the feel that you are indeed playing another character. Daud for one is not nearly as nimble as Corvo feeling quiet a bit more sluggish at first even when sprinting. The more apparent differences are the abilities. For one, Daud does not have a mechanical heart that sounds like the late Empress given to him by a floating black-eyed man with a fetish for drama. Instead, he has an ability much like Corvo’s dark-vision that allows him to locate bone charms and other creepy things, this can be upgraded to see living beings past walls. Also, Daud’s blink ability allows him to time-stop whenever he is not moving allowing him to practically blink past corners or save himself from falling if he stupidly jumped off a high ledge. He can call his own assassins to help him out, as well as grant them some of his abilities. No more rat swarms or possessions which does make Corvo sound as if he was the more powerful one, but honestly Daud’s blink in itself makes Daud a better character to play with in my eyes as I can simply abuse the time stop mechanic to plan my strategies and cancel the blink if I would rather not use it afterwards. One more change was the improved jump which feels much smoother now. With Corvo it felt like a “double jump” whereas with Daud it just feels like I am a high-jump gold medalist (who happens to run really slow).
One more thing, In regards to the melee combat and I actually remember reading this sentiment in another blog (can’t really remember which one but I really thought it needs to be shared)Dishonored (AND its expansions) have what I consider to be the most enjoyable first person melee combat that I have experienced as far as I can remember and it REALLY is a shame that no spin-offs of the Elder Scroll series have been done using this mechanic because it REALLY is quiet kick ass!
Graphics and Audio: 8/10
Ok, the graphics aren’t all that to be honest, but they aren’t exactly bad either. They where right for the game but not as visually stimulating as some of the other games out there. The non important non player characters all look fairly the same with rank slightly altering how they look. But the level of detail used to give the setting depth and the sounds that came with it like the buzzing flies in an abandoned apartment containing the dead bodies of plague victims really made me feel as if there where flies crawling up my leg nearly every time I went in. The continuous announcements and ambient noises really gave Dunwall an authenticity I rarely find in most games of the genre.
Overall I highly recommend this expansion of Dishonored, anyone who has not even purchased Dishonored as well should really do! Anyone who is looking for more of Dishonored will be greatly pleased as it offers the same feel with slight changes that keep things fresh and new. The only REAL issue I had was how short the expansion was. If you are playing on harder Difficulties though you might take more time to complete it though negating the issue… But then again you could very likely be better at playing the game and breeze through it in a few hours even on the higher difficulties so just keep that in mind.
