I'll be getting it for sure. I absolutely loved the first Dishonored and played through the entire game twice.

Hey, that trailer is really very well done.

The first game did a lot of things right. Now if the sequel could improve on the things the first one did not get right, it could very well become a great game.

My only minor complaint with Dishonored was the lack of a cooperative mode for multiplayer. It would have been nice to have some dedicated coop missions where one guy plays as Corvo and the other guy plays as a fellow member of the resistance.

I was one who liked the pastel/water color painted look that they rendered their engine with. I was hoping they would do the same or with some variation but this makes it look like they went another route. However it still seems to have the unique look and feel of the first game.

I liked the water color look, but it had to grow on me. I prefer a more realistic look. The big hands got on my nerves too. LOL
Still, Dishonored is one of the best games of recent years. I'm glad to finally see another. It was a really cool alternate world they created.

Ah, so it will be Emily you play as.



The Jedi Master

Like the Steampunk, but first one was a tad too steahlty for me (and a bit too esoteric).

Nice to see the series continue.

Damn i haven't finished the first one yet!!

Well get moving! What are you waiting for, the trilogy GOTY edition?!?! Move move move!



The Jedi Master

I finished everything except Brigmoore Witches DLC. And the trials DLC which is totally uninteresting and immersion breaking in my opinion. Great universe. Hope there's more whaling lore.

I don't think I finished the dlc either. I wanted the same character and powers in it. Made it harder to get into.

I liked playing as Daud though. I don't know who did it but I also really enjoyed his voice actor. Kind of reminds me of Nick Nolte. I like when game stories let you bump into characters that you've played as before in the past. I thought it was so cool when I first played Half-life Opposing Force and opening that door only to see Gordon Freeman jumping into the portal which is what you do as Freeman in the first game.

Yes, the idea of being in the same story but playing it from a different POV is appealing if done right.



The Jedi Master

Aliens vs. Predator by Monolith did that quite well imho. The way the alien, predator and marine stories all intertwined was well thought out.

Pulp Fiction: The Game.



The Jedi Master

Will be interesting to see whether the game let's you carry over any of the decisions you've made in the first game regarding the "tone" of the backstory.

The Witcher 3 has an elegant and nicely done in-game solution with the questionaire at the end of the tutorial "prologue".

And make it more challenging at higher character levels. Once the player "unlocked" the teleport capability, the game became too easy. Playing without using it was an option, but not an ideal one.

Hope it's an open-world game. It kinda begs to be. And I remember reading an interview with developers of Dishonored 1, they said they would like to do an open-world follow up.

Ok. Now I need to finally go ahead and play the DLC's I bought LAST Steam summer sale. :P

You know, I think I did play the final Brigmore Witches DLC, but in retrospect I never played the Bright Lord DLC for Shadow of Mordor.



The Jedi Master

The Brigmore Witches DLC was good but I thought the Knife of Dunwall was even better.

Gameplay -

Wow, that looks absolutely great!!! Can't wait.

Shall we gather for whiskey and cigars Nov 11th?

Can't wait! 2 playthroughs: one as Corvo, one as Emily.

Pre-purchase available. http://store.steampowered.com/app/403640/

I will wait a bit for more info, but looks good.

I think most everyone already has a copy of the first dishonored so giving away the Dishonored Definitive Edition for free with preorder seems like a poor preorder bonus.

I really enjoyed the first one though I didnt ever finish the DLC for it. I'll probably wait for this one to go on sale. Unless it has coop or something 60 bucks for a game ill play through maybe once is pretty high.

Indeed we will!!

To be released tomorrow for pre-orders and on Friday for everyone else.

Early reports from Asia and Australia seem to point to performance issues on the PC version.

Is it sad that this trend is now an expected thing and patches are needed for the most part on new releases?


Still, on my list for the Steam Winter sale (hopefully).

Poor performance doesn't stop a game from working, so naturally they will leave that optimization for post-release patching.



The Jedi Master

What? Yet another Denuvo-protected game with performance issues? I know many believe this alleged correlation to be in the realm of conspiracy theories, but this seems to become a trend.

I really don't know if there is a connection (there is absolutely no direct evidence), but it does look weird.

Or there is a completely unrelated reason why pretty much every multi-platform title lately has performance issues on PC (apparently the latest COD as well).

I guess I'll wait for a couple of patches.

It's a PC game. Someone is always going to have performance issues. On top of that, what constitutes a performance issue is often subjective.
I'll find out for myself and my rig tomorrow!

I can't wait to get it too though it will have to wait as I have zilch monies. I look forward to hearing what you day one players have to say though about it and screen shots.(No spoilers though please if you can help it)

I've been having an internal showdown between a 20% pre-order discount and Bethesda's idiotic review embargo policy.

Am away tomorrow for the weekend which has helped with the decision.

It's not like the game will be going anywhere, nor is there a limited number of copies.

Yup. I'll definitely be getting Dishonored 2 but I'm in no rush. Heck, I haven't bought the latest Deus Ex yet because I'm pretty sure it will go on sale for Christmas. I'm also pretty sure that several patches have already come out for Deus Ex.

So between patches and sales there is no rush anymore for me to get any game.

Same here PM. The only game in the past few years that I've bought at release is Stellaris. But I really liked Dishonored so probably won't wait too long on this one. Just enough for some player reviews, a patch and a hotfix most likely. Was surprised to notice that I only have 40 hours in to Dishonored and its DLC. Seemed like it gave me more gameplay than that.

I was completely out of gaming from 2009 through 2012 or so. That created a backlog of games that keeps me far enough behind that I don't buy games at release anymore. It's worked well and has saved me quite a lot of money. Buying two year old games at $15 is rather economical

Considering the state which most games these days are released in, with the need for "day-one-patches" - in Dishonored 2's case 9 GB!, drastic performance problems, parts of the game cut out to sell them later as "DLC" (as opposed to great DLC that enhances the game, like Witcher 3), different versions which are not compatible in multiplayer (Steam customers and Microsoft Store customers can not play together) - as seen with the latest COD - I have absolutely no problem waiting a while longer. Especially since no upcoming title has "must have immediately" status for me.

As I get older, I find that occasions where I used to say "can't wait" are getting rarer...apparently, I can wait.

Especially with the latest trend to hold back review copies until release date or after for everyone but the publisher's (paid) YouTube "fanbois" (Bethesda is just honest about and openly admitting it).

If most customers would neither preorder nor buy straight on release day, the publishers would instantly change their ways and release finished, more polished, and probably all around better products.

Yep. Too many damn games...


Fortunately, out of my last 10 games added to my accounts, 7 have been completely free, thanks to remakes/re-releases, special editions and free offers. One bought at full price, Mafia III, and that got returned with less than 2 hours played, but hoping to buy at discount in the future again.

I started the game last night, no issues. I only got about 30fps, but that was over Steam Link, so not bad for a new game on my system. I used my usual mix of high textures, low shadows, med most everything else.
The look of the game is a little different, but it's hard to put my finger on how. The characters still have that slightly cartoonish shape, but the art style is more on the side of realistic but retains some of that water colored look as well. I'm playing as Corvo first. You can play as Corvo or as Emily, this is 15 years after the first game. I'm still in the intro, I didn't play but about 30-45 minutes, but it's also different in that Corvo has a constant inner dialogue narrating. I can't say I care for that, but I assume I'll get used to it. It's less mysterious, for lack of a better word.
I'll update as I get into it and will mention any glitches I run across.

Did you experience the massive FPS drops in the Throne Room? According to preliminary reviews, these FPS drops are unrelated to system specs and graphics settings. On several systems.

Also, when they happen, neither GPU nor CPU are really taxed.

The tester had his FPS drop from 60 to 15.

During the intro cutscene? Or when getting out of the castle to the city?
I didn't notice anything, but I could rerun it later. I do have steam link showing fps.

I just read a benchmark that at ultra texture settings, the game can require up to 6.8GB of VRAM.



6.8 Gigabytes! 6.8 GIGABYTES!!?!?



First time the investment in an 8GB GPU seems to pay off.

It's getting ridiculous. I'm going to have to upgrade soon. The game set me to med on textures and most settings, I just bump up one manually.

IIRC, the voice of Corvo is the same actor who did the voice of Garrett in the original Thief trilogy?




The Jedi Master

Yes, same guy. They've got a good cast of voices:
Rosario Dawson...she's the ship's captain that totes you around in the boat to your missions.
Vincent D'Onofrio...bad guy...he's channeling Kingpin from Daredevil.
Sam Rockwell...haven't met him yet.
Robin Lord Taylor...Penguin from Gotham, he's the Outsider. Not as good as the original IMO. I just hear Penguin. This guy is everywhere these days.
There's no Brad Dourif! Come on man!

The game runs fine. Since it was mentioned, I have noticed 2-3 "spots" where the fps dropped to about 18. It's odd because they're literally spots in the game, not areas, rooms etc. The last one was a 20' stretch in the middle of a rooftop. Then it was fine. Otherwise, I'm running 45-65 fps on higher settings than the game recommended for my rig (I drop to about 30-40fps playing on steam link). I can't complain. It runs fine. I've had one CTD, but I blame Win10 since it happened with a notification. That's the only crash I've had. I'm on the 4th mission area, and the missions are pretty long. 11.4 hours of game time. I'm on the Corvo play through.

As for impressions of the game, I'd say it's noticeably harder this time. The AI is smarter, more aware and more numerous. You have fewer "perches" to take advantage of. Unfortunately, I'm finding fewer alternate routes, but that could be because it's my first play through. Maybe I'll notice more later. I still don't like the inner monologue for some reason. You know how in the first game you heard "The Drunken Whaler" played all over the place and although repetitive, it didn't really get old and added to the atmosphere? It's not here. There is a song I hear from time to time, but not the same and doesn't add to the atmosphere.
So at this point the game isn't as atmospheric, it's more difficult (not a bad thing) and not quite as enjoyable. It plays like dlc you don't get into as much as the main game, if that makes sense. That still makes it better than most games coming out these days, but not on par with the original game, which was of course ORIGINAL at the time. You can't duplicate that.
Performance is not a reason not to buy. Again, it's better than most new games these days. Holding off because it isn't quite as fun as the original...that might be a reason to wait for a few bucks off. This is better than a $30 game however, so don't feel you've got to wait for a rock bottom sale. I don't feel bad about paying full price.
Just my 2�.

Should mention it's SLOW to load at start up. I don't have this game installed on a SSD, so that might help. After that it's not bad, but initially very slow.

This seems to be a culprit:

https://www.reddit.com/r/pcgaming/comments/5c85gy/dishonored_2_performance_problems_game_sets_cpu/

https://steamcommunity.com/app/403640/discussions/0/217691032429547004/

I checked it when it was running fine and it could be on normal or low. Windows will change that as needed. I wouldn't worry about it.
Too much fuss about nothing.

This is a very good stealth game. A much better "game" than the first Dishonored. Much improved mechanics. More interesting locations.

But not as good a Dishonored story as the first one. A little too unfocused and scattered. maybe because it has to sustain 2 different story+timelines depending on your choice of character.

The game is harder than Dishonored and, depending how you play, shorter.

I started playing the game straight to goals, and I was in the Addermire institute in Karnaca in around 1.5 hours, doing some looting and exploring, but not focused on it.

Then I decided to start again, but to find 100% locations and secrets as I go. That took me around 5 hours to get to the same spot.

Secret locations are scattered, and while some valuable loot is in there, they are not essential to the story. They only add if you are a completionist.

I feels there are too many bone charms and runes this time. Yes, you get more powers to choose from, but they really do not add anything to the story. If anything, they add to the variety of a replay.

Trying to do a low chaos run is very difficult. You have to hide your unconscious enemies very well, and doing a kill instead of a knock out move is too easy. The AI is very alert. Most upgrades help you in high chaos situations. There is the option of playing with no powers. That would be a challenge for me.

Game+ was added where you can combine both Emily and Corvo's powers. I will try that at least once, but I am more interested in what coming DLC might bring.

I got lucky and I can run this at ultra with no significant FPS loss or stuttering. I have not checked with an FPS counter, but I rarely do if the gameplay is smooth. If there were issues before, from my perspective, the patches did their job.

I would say this exact same thing for Deus Ex: Mankind Divided.

its a great game but I am finding it way easier. Mostly because how overpowered Emilys powers are.

Domino...link up go 4 enemies. Drop them all with one sleep bolt in an instant.

Rune and Bonecharm crafting is seriously overpowered. You can stick 4 abilities per bonecharm and wear up to 10 bonecharms. Ridiculously awesome.

I'm enjoying it so far and the level design is great. I decided to play as Corvo first.

A free demo will be released on Thursday (4/6)

http://steamcommunity.com/app/403640/discussions/0/133261370009828978/

I liked the game so much I played it through 3 times! lol


However, I'm a bit concerned that there doesn't seem to be any DLC planned for this game. I looked everywhere on its Steam store page and there is no mention of any future DLC.

Sadly, looks like Arkane's resources were diverted to Prey. The rumor is that Dishonored 3 is more likely than new DLC.

Thanks for that info. I will say that I was a bit disappointed in how the main storyline didn't really change that much between playing as Corvo and playing as Emily. The differences were really minor/cosmetic. The biggest difference was in the different set of supernatural powers you can use.

I wanted yesterday to treat myself to a new game for father's day. Yeah, well, someone has to do it, these games don't just show up on their own

I was looking at Dishonored 2 and Prey. I hesitated due to the reported PC issues. But I see here that PM played through 3 times so it must be OK, right? What's the current state of the PC version? Still issues? I have a fast box and 30 fps is fine if that's what I get I suppose.

For those who played it on PC, would you buy it again knowing what you know now having tried it on the PC?

As a purely subjective aside, would you choose Prey or D2? I will probably just get both, but it's interesting reading opinions and perspectives.

I don't have a top of the line system by any means and I was able to run Dishonored 2 on mostly high detail settings with no problem. No, it wasn't blazing fast but Dishonored 2 is a stealth game, not a run and gun game so the frame rate I got was fine.

I never experienced the issues reported by some players in the forums for Dishonored 2. I had minor issues creep up while playing Prey (all starting after that last patch, before that it was also flawless).

But I have enjoyed Prey more than Dishonored 2. Mostly because D2 is just more Dishonored (which is a great game). Prey has been a new experience in most gameplay and story elements.

I think if I had to recommend one, it will come to whether you liked Dishonored a lot, or want something new. Both are great games.

Well, I really enjoyed Dishonored. I'm a long time Thief fan and Dishonored scratched that itch. So I am sure I will like 2, just wanted to be sure that the PC issues wouldn't get in the way of enjoying it.

Also in the Looking Glass Studios vein, I was a big fan of the System Shock games as well, and Prey seems to be a spiritual successor.

It most definitely is. I would describe Prey as a combination of System Shock and Half Life. It really is a very unique game and one of the best sci-fi shooters I've ever played.

I read that they have a new patch out that I THINK people are saying it helps. I got the free, very large demo and I spent at least an hour trying to get it to play nice. I finally got it to a smooth, fairly consistent 60fps but once I reached Karnaca all that went down the drain. I don't know if their latest update will ever make it to the demo version they released or not so I don't know on my end if it actually helps or not.

I loved Dishonored and at some point I'll get D2 but going by the demo the optimization is rough in my opinion. I'd like to think that their latest update helped but I don't know. If anything its cool that they are still supporting the game. I can't wait to try Prey myself.

I bought it and played through the first couple of levels and it's all run perfectly for me thus far. I had read that some people suffer trouble once they reach Karnaca but it's yet to affect me, but there's still time.

Really enjoying this one. I had no idea that Stephen Russel did Corvo's voice. Hearing him makes me feel like this is Thief 4 and not the actual Thief 4.

I've played through the game as Corvo and Emily and both experiences were really enjoyable.

PM, have you done the New Game +? That allows you to mix and match both characters' powers correct?

I finished the game as Corvo, and a few thoughts. Playthrough was 30 hours on the dot, which coincidentally was exactly how long it took me to play through Dishonored 1 without the DLC. I tend to view Thief 2 Metal Age as the pinnacle of the stealth/sneaker genre, and for better or worse I tend to compare all new game of this type to it.

Overall, I liked the game. I had the distinct feeling that this was Thief 4 as I mentioned earlier. That was due in large part to Steven Russell's voice work. There's no way you could not have that ingrained in your head if you're a long-time fan of the Thief series. Despite that, I felt at times he perhaps lacked inspiration, delivering his lines with less aplomb than I would have expected. In addition, he was given some rather lame dialog in parts. There were quite a few times that I rolled my eyes at the script. Storyline was not the game's greatest strength.

Clockwork soldiers and Overseers (evolved from Hammerites/Mechanists and their creations) were other things that I felt could have come straight out of the Thief universe. It's easy to see Deadly Shadows becoming close to what Dishonored 2 is.

The Outsider. Hmm, in Dishonored 1 I think he fit. You need a way to show how Corvo gets his powers. But he seemed very much out of place in this one. The voice actor they chose doesn't help any. Perhaps the developers agree and that's why the next DLC is 'Death of the Outsider".

Mechanically, the game works well. Blink is one of the most useful 'talents' in any game. But honestly, most of the upgrade choices aren't for me. I mean, by the third mission I had my Corvo fully upgraded to where I wanted him. I used Blink and a little Dark Vision. I also upgraded the agility tree. Other than that I didn't care about runes the rest of the game. Combat isn't my style, and in the few instances I was forced to do battle, a 'vanilla' Corvo is more than capable. I did invest in Possession toward the end to spend the runes I had, but I didn't end up using it. Overall I found I didn't care much about bonecharms or runes, once I had my essential powers.

I found D2 more difficult than D1 due to what felt was better enemy detection ability. I felt like I was spotted much more easily in this one. But that can be adjusted to. I also felt like it was just too bright. Very little of the game takes place at night or in the dark. I guess it's a design decision to make the player feel more vulnerable, but I like my sneaking in the shadows!

Level design is good. When I play a game like this I always look up. I live in the rafters. Whenever possible I take a perch and observe. There was plenty of verticality in this game, but it felt like less than D1. Blink allows you to easily reach these spots. Who needs rope arrows when you can just Blink there I never resorted to spoilers or guides to play through, so I really don't know how much I missed, how many alternate paths there were. It must have been quite a bit though as I missed a hell of a lot of loot and blueprints according to the debriefs. But I was rarely stuck. I played on the default medium difficulty setting. I only managed to ghost 3 of the 9 levels. I could have reloaded more often to ghost more levels, but that takes something away from the experience. I just play and see where the chips fall, so to speak.

Disclaimer: There was one time I had to consult the internet, in the Crack in the Slab mission where I completely failed to spot a high path through the kitchen.

I had posted earlier with concerns about PC performance. I have a fast box and it ran fine. With vsynch on I maintained 60 fps throughout the game at Ultra settings except for the opening areas of the Clockwork Mansion where it dropped to 30 fps. Speaking of that level, it really is cool. I knew of it from reading reviews, and I love seeing stuff like this. Also the time-shifting in the Crack in the Slab mission was really cool too.

Good game. The two levels I just mentioned were innovative and fun. Overall a really good stealth game let down slightly by an uninspired story (another usurper of the crown), some lethargic voice acting and dialog, and for me at least, disinterest in many of the core features (runes, bonecharms, items).

Thanks for that excellent review Dbond and I largely agree with it. Both the "Crack in the Slab" and the Overseer Mansion levels are absolutely brilliant and creative in my opinion.

I did indeed play the New game + mode but I just stuck with using Corvo's powers. I played the game twice as Corvo and once as Emily.


I'm a fanatic completionist so I searched every square foot of every level so I could find all of the loot and other items like blueprints and ammo.

You found everything? Nicely done. I'm more mission-focused than discovery I guess. Or at least on that run. If I play again maybe I'll take more time to look around

I never did work out how to re-wire Clockwork Soldiers. I tried a few times to get close enough but was spotted each time.

Not really. I found most of it on my own but I consulted the internet to find a couple of the hard to find paintings.

Digging this one out after four years. I had burnt out a bit on what I've been playing, mostly various Total War titles. Had a bash about Steam but came away empty handed, even if a few things I saw caught my attention. So that means having a look down my Steam library and see if anything needs playing, or got passed over. A few yes, but I focused in on Dishonored 2 since I had only played as Corvo. And I thought well why not give Emily a go? Same game, but a different character with a new set of powers. I've always thought that Domino would be fun to play with and this new set of abilities might be enough to support a second playthrough and keep it fresh enough.

Still in the opening level, and a ways to go. My first run only took about 30 hours so not expecting much different. Anyway, who played through as Emily and which powers combo did you prefer?

I know this is a game that everyone has moved on from. But having started it I was instantly reminded of what I like about Arkane games. I'm a big fan of their UIs, how they pulse and flash and fade. Speaking of Arkane, I wonder what's in their pipeline? I had read a while ago that their Austin team was working on something fantasy in Unreal 4 engine, but never caught wind of any other details. I wish this gang were punching them out at least one or two per year. Need some new Arkane games!

I played through as Emily but it's been so long that I don't remember what her unique powers are. However, I do remember that I went totally to the "dark side" as Emily so I could achieve the maximum "chaos". I gave no quarter which meant I killed all enemies on sight and I went in " guns a'blazing". It definitely created a much different game experience from when I played as Corvo (maximum stealth and always knocked out enemies except in a couple of impossible situations).

That's a good idea. I know you and I both approach this sort of game from a pure stealth experience, so to switch it up could help to freshen it up. Emily's powers are

Far Reach.
Dark Vision.
Mesmerize.
Domino.
Shadow Walk.
Doppelganger

Far Reach is probably mandatory for me, even if it works differently from Blink, which is one of the coolest and most useful talents in any game. I'll mess around with them and see which I settle on. Domino surely will be another one and then pick the third to run with. Probably Shadow Walk. In both Dishonored games I mostly ignored everything aside from a couple of essential abilities. And I hardly paid attention to runes and bonecharms, so maybe give them a little more attention this time through?

The runes and bonecharms really add a lot of buffs to your abilities so I think it depends on how much of a difficulty challenge you want. If you get the runes and bonecharms it might make the game too easy for you.

Then again, you miss out on some of the lore of the Dishonored universe if you avoid getting the runes and bonecharms.

I had to uninstall D2 unfortunately as it just runs so poorly. I've literally spent multiple hours just trying to tweak the game to get it to run acceptably and it refuses to do so. The front half dock area and first layer into Karnaca ran okay after tweaking until I hit the internal areas and it became atrocious. Its unplayable for me which is unfortunate as I loved the first Dishonored and played it twice, Knife of Dunwall twice and the Brigmoore Witches once. I think approaching 150-200 hours. I really, really wish Arkane had not used whatever engine this is because its terrible. I've read plenty of posts with people with even better graphics cards than I do who still have a bad time with it. That's the frustrating thing too is that its kind of half and half with this game. People like me who can't make it run well enough to be playable and others that have few issues. This game's engine is notorious though and all you have to do is look at all the bizarre off the wall PC tweaking stuff OUTSIDE of the game people have done to try to make it work. Left me really disappointed and a bad taste in my mouth.

Even more bizarre, Arkane used Cryengine to make Prey. I have never had a Cryengine game run smooth regardless of hardware. It is only now that I can play Crysis maxed and it runs smooth. Crysis 2 was a little different and seemed more optimized at launch but Crysis 3 can be a nightmare. Somehow Arkane made Prey with Cryengine and I can literally max it out with full 60fps and no hiccups. I don't know how they did it but they did. Why could they have not done better with Dishonored 2? I'm of the opinion that I wish they had made the sequel using the same engine as the first and I'd be happy. Maybe one day but D2 just won't play nice for me no matter what I have tried. It should be said that too that there is no reason that I can see for it to run as bad as it does.

I totally lost track of Arkane after they made Wolfenstein: Youngblood which I really enjoyed playing coop.


You made me curious though and I checked online. Apparently they are working on this:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deathloop


edit: I read the Wiki page on Arkane and this excerpt perfectly explains why we saw so much influence from "System Shock" in "Prey".

From the Wiki page,

"Raphaël Colantonio had been part of the French offices of Electronic Arts (EA) during the 1990s, as part of the quality assurance and localisation team for some of Origin Systems' titles including System Shock."

Coot, I wish I could help. It does not help to say it runs really nicely for me.When I played it the first time (on a rig with a 1070) it ran at 60 fps with v synch on at all times aside from the opening of the Clockwork Mansion level where frames cut in half. I'm now playing on a 1660Ti and it runs really nicely on this box too, but I have a long way to go to get back to the mansion. I didn't bother with changing any default graphics settings, and I don't think it defaults to highest. Matter of fact I should look at those, I probably have some overhead to turn some stuff up.

So why would it run so well for one and so poorly for another? Are you still on the same box as before? If it's been a long time maybe a hardware change or driver change in the meantime may have fixed it for you. You don't need my advice I know, but it would be great if you got a chance to play it the way it should be.

So I jumped back in to continue and then started completely over. The last time I played it was 4 years ago and that was a different PC. But I thought what the hell and checked to see if somehow it had saved my old games, which would let me play New Game Plus. And don't you know, it did. So I started over as Emily in that mode. It's pretty cool, because now all abilities are open from both characters, and it looks like it carried over all the unused runes I had from my first run. Didn't realize this at first and played through the opening stages, and got my first two runes. Then I went to upgrade and it said I was carrying 29! Holy moly. So needless to say I am starting the new run as a more advanced character than the first time around haha. Quite nice really to have these abilities and make the second run more fun, with more approach options through the early missions.

Thanks for that info PM. I read that wiki you linked and it sounds in a sense like Outer Wilds, with how the gameplay is on a time loop, where you keep progressing despite constantly starting over. Seems they may have liked the vibe with Mooncrash and thought of other ways to implement that sort of concept.

Dang! I'm actually tempted to reinstall both Dishonored and Dishonored 2 and replay them due to this thread.

Concerning Mooncrash, I didn't like the time constraint AT ALL. I hate feeling like I'm being rushed through a level. That was the major downer for me with that DLC.

I never picked Mooncrash up. And I really rate Prey. One of my favorite games of the past five years.

NG+ is cool, yeah give it a go if you haven't. I'd be interested to know your rune situation. because even though I said it carried over unused runes, how would I remember? Maybe these are all runes recycled, not just ones I hadn't used in the first run.

I am going for Shadow, to play through without being seen. My advanced start in NG+ will make that easier to do. Inspired by PM's post earlier I am also playing it more lethally. I tend to approach these sorts of game with stealth and passivity, leaving some unconscious bodies in my wake, but generally trying to avoid altering the scene. Ghosting missions is how I liked to approach the Thief games for instance. And not just avoiding being spotted, but re-closing doors, windows, and other things to erase any trace of my presence. But this time it's personal lol. I'm approaching it as the empress wronged and out for vengeance and well, people must die. This opens up different paths and game mechanics that I would have left unused the first time. An ability like Domino is game changing coupled with some sort of lethal attack.

So since I could get several abilities right at the start of Karnaca, I went with

-- Far Reach. Sort of like Blink, but instead of instant teleportation to the spot chosen, this ability 'grabs' physical space and pulls you to it. Upgraded, it can also retrieve objects and pull enemies to you to be impaled or other means of murder.

-- Dark Vision. I tend to not use this sort of ability, as it feels like cheating in a stealth game. Abilities that allow you to see through walls, see what you hear and otherwise negate environmental constraints are a bit OP and remove much of the danger from being surprised which is sort of central to the stealth premise. But I think I need it to be more thorough. My first time around I missed a lot, so this ability should clue me in to places I would have otherwise missed.

-- Shadow Walk. This transforms you in to a shadow, that can slip quickly and unseen past enemies and allow you in to spaces that you would normally need to transform in to a rat to reach. It's not entirely undetectable, get too close and you'll still be spotted. But this allows me to quickly navigate open and brightly lit spaces much more easily.

-- Domino. I haven't actually used it yet. But it links targets together so that what you do to one, happens to all. That seems like it will be a lot of fun to play with, and can be very powerful in navigating heavily patrolled and guarded spaces. Having all those runes in NG+ also allowed me some enhancements, one of which is the masterwork Dust Moth Wrappings, which further reduces visibility in well lit areas.

I remember now. Yes, I used Domino quite a lot when I played as Emily. It's especially valuable for those levels where you have several of those lethal robotic guards.

Maybe one day if I can upgrade to a newer card it may help but that can't happen any time soon. I have a GTX 970 4GB it runs most "newer" games that I have just fine. I really like the world and universe of Dishonored. It gets a bit too esoteric and occultic at times for me though, however I do love the dark, Victorian, mildly steam punk alternate universe.

I know you don't use consoles Panzer and I don't know if you do either Dbond but in the future if you do, I can not recommend enough The Order:1886 to you all. Its been one of my favorite games in recent years and in my humble opinion, it is a gem and small masterpiece of a game. So much so that Sir Galahad became one of my favorite game characters. I do not at all understand the bad report it often gets because it is not deserved in the least. It is a little short and unfortunately some of the monster fights don't happen the way they seemed to advertise but its not true at all to call the game a QTE filled movie. It is not all. The graphics rendering to this day are exquisite, the voice acting is tremendous, the story is intriguing and engaging full of conspiracy and betrayal, and the cover-based style gun combat is done RIGHT. Weapon modeling is also impressive. Its a beautiful game much deserving of a sequel. I would love to see a sequel where Galahad is vindicated for the faithful, loyal soldier that he is and perhaps make the game have semi-open world levels. This game has one of the coolest levels in my opinion in "Agamemnon Rising". I would also love to see more spooky encounters and serious battles with the non-human foes in the game's universe which is quite compelling. Though its subject matter is technically fanciful because of the Lycan creatures, at the core it has a unique rendering of the Arthurian Legend but it feels as though its grounded in reality. Sorry I diverted the discussion somewhat but its a game that I wish folks would play if they haven't and one whose developers deserve the chance to create a sequel.

Last one I played was the Super Nintendo while I was in college because I wanted to play the three original trilogy Star Wars games that were made for that console.


That gives you a rough idea of how much I'm into consoles.

Thanks for the recommendation Coot. We have both PS4 and X Box in the house, but I rarely play on them. That's the mini-me's territory.

I'm glad I decided to revisit D2. having a lot of fun with the NG+. Playing through these early levels as a late-game build freshens it up. I'm still missing too much stuff. There's an achievement for finding 60% of the loot, and I am barely holding that level. I feel like I'm sticking my nose in most places, but clearly I am not. I took Dark Vision to help with this but I forget to use it.

However, Domino is awesome. Working the scene to tag the targets, then firing a bolt at one only to have it chain-kill around corners is a lot of fun and very powerful. Spaces that were difficult to traverse in my stealth/pacifist run are now free and clear since the most heavily guarded areas can be easily cleared in a blink.

Speaking of Blink.... when I was reading about Emily's powers and Far Reach in particular I thought I'd still opt for Blink in NG+. But I wanted to try it first, and it's even better. It has all the mobility potential of Blink, but being able to retrieve items from distance is great. If you've played the game you'll know of a spot you come across in town on the way to Addermire station, to take the trolley to the institute. There's a group of guards and citizens standing in the square where one is endlessly preaching a sermon or the laws of the city, whatever he is on about. Right next to this group is a rune and bonecharm and other doodads out in the open in daylight. I skipped it first time. I could have killed all of them, but that wasn't how I was playing. This time, I just got within range and used Far Reach to grab the loot unseen and off I went. A very versatile and useful ability.

Shadow Walk is great too, especially the take downs you do out of it. Gruesome and creepy and awesome.

I've since added Bend Time but yet to use it. This is the only Corvo ability I am invested in for this run. There's an achievement for killing 6 enemies in 1.5 seconds and I reckon Bend Time is needed for that. Maybe stop time, set up one Domino, shoot, then stop time again to do a second one to hit six kills? I'll try to figure out a way to get that done.

Speaking of achievements.... playing this way, with the killing and all, has netted me one I failed to get the first time. Actually several. But there's the one for saving the citizen from being pushed by the guards in to the wall of light. I couldn't see a way to do this with out killing them the first run. But this time I was able to Domino-chain them and hit the closest guard with a bolt to the noggin and saved that dude in the nick of time.

Another one involves saving the newspaper publisher. Not sure I had even found this the first time through, having I guess gone down the other side of the street the first time. And to illustate how I played first time, I didn't even get the achievement for taking down 20 unaware enemies, through the entire playthrough! Got this right off the bat this time through.

So yeah, a different character, a new set of powers and a different approach are breathing new life in to this old game.

You must think vertically at all times. Much of the loot is hidden away in rooms that are several stories high and the only way to get into them is via the window. Always be on the look out for open windows on buildings.

Good advice, which I also use, but apparently not enough.

I won't use any guides as that is not the way I want to play, I'd rather discover it myself. And if that means missing stuff so be it. The upshot is I am finding new things the second time around.

I am focusing on remaining unspotted, which of course takes some reloading to keep going, in order to get the Shadow achievement. So far so good. Dead folks see nothing

I've reached the Clockwork Mansion level, which is the fourth one I think, and am near the end of it. Two things I wanted to mention

One is, this time around I've experienced no framerate issues at all. The first time I played it, having entered the mansion proper, my frames were cut in half, about 30, through the early parts of it. This time, perfectly smooth, pegged at the vsynch limit. I had a look a couple days ago and my settings were default, mostly a mix of high and medium/normal. So I bumped a few of the texture-related ones while turning off bloom and depth of field (always do in all games with those two). I'm running a Ryzen 2600, 1660Ti and 16 gigs o' ram. This game is now four years old and it runs beautifully. I'm hoping Coot might give it another go and see if things are better.

The second thing is, and I commented on it during my run four years ago, is that the Clockwork Mansion level is wonderful. I'm a huge fan of the Thief games, especially Metal Age, and this level, and all of both Dishonored games really, is such a Thief-like experience. This level would have fit beautifully in that series, an extension of the Mechanists, done with gobs of imagination and innovation. The building is really cool, and graphically so convincing in its machinations. It's a huge form-shifting puzzle, with the sinister voice of the antagonist relentlessly egging you on. Highly atmospheric and imaginative.

When I wrote my thoughts upon completion of my first run I singled out this mission and the Crack in the Slab missions as standouts, and it's fun to experience it again.

Both "Crack in the Slab" and "Clockwork Mansion" are among the most creative and unique levels I have ever played in any first person shooter and I've been playing that genre of games since the original Wolfenstein 3D so I have some experience.

High praise indeed Panzer

And this game was released in November 2016, not 2017 as I seemed to have thought.

It's on the Steam summer sale for US$12 if anyone missed this one and wants to give it a go.

https://store.steampowered.com/app/403640/Dishonored_2/

For US$23, you get both Dishonored games and all DLC. A good deal.

For $31, you get Prey too, plus Arx Fatalis and Dark Messiah of Might and Magic. I haven't played the last two, but both Dishonored games and Prey are some of my favorites of all time.

Arx is one of the best CRPGs ever made. This game was made as a successor to Ultima Underworld, but they never could secure the rights and is fantastic with original lore and story.

That was Arkane's first game correct? I know it has a good rep, and it's first person, which is a big plus for me. It may be a little too classic for me, but ya never know. If I didn't already own Prey and both Dishonored games I would probably go for that bundle.

I've always been interested in Arx but never played it.

I was also going to remind folks if they don't remember that Dark Messiah Might and Magic is another Arkane game I believe. I never finished the game though I've always enjoyed its game play and levels over the years. I still have it installed and I think I'm halfway through or so. The story and some of the characters are too dark for me so I don't know if I'll ever finish it but it has that trademark Arkane feel and presentation with the combat. I remember playing the demo way back when and was amazed how they incorporated animations with physics. It uses the Source engine so it still looks great and plays pretty darn well. Not as fluid and smooth as we're used to now with Dishonored and Prey but its good. First person melee, ranged and magic combat and stealth game play with some minor rpg elements. Its very satisfying to run about kicking orcs off of high ledges or into traps.

By the way, this game came out in September to what I'd judge as lukewarm praise. Response is mixed, the trailers look fun, but the gameplay seems limited. Seems like it's more Arkane goodness, but too little of it, with some annoyances, having read the Steam comments. Anyone play Deathloop yet?

It's on sale less than two months after release, which suggests sales have fallen short of expectations, but I really don't know.

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1252330/DEATHLOOP/

I think I've seen ONE of my Steam friends playing Deathloop and I also recall that the majority of reviews were not positive. One of the major complaints revolved around performance. It seems the graphics engine is not optimized for PC's.

Too bad, and I'm honestly surprised if they released a bit of a stinker. Not sure it is, maybe I'd like it. But I have no plans to pick it up on this evidence.

They're now making a game called Redfall, an X Box exclusive.

I doubt the game is bad. Arkane games tend to be avoided by most because they require more conscious effort and thought to play through. They do not simply hand the player directions and tell them what to do, which to me is a huge plus. The last thing I want in any game are forced missions that instruct me on how to play them.

There is some truth to this. "Prey" is an outstanding scifi shooter in every aspect in my opinion but it had very limited mainstream success. Some of the major game review sites that I read also mentioned that it seems "Deathloop" was made for a very specific audience in mind. That's fine unless that specific audience isn't quite enough for your game to end up in the black at the end of the day.

Interview with Harvey Smith, one of the guys at Arkane who worked on Dishonored series, Prey and several other games. It also contains some info about Redfall.
https://www.nme.com/features/gaming-features/boss-level-2022-harvey-smith-arkane-studios-3312368

Redfall looks like a larger open world game compared to their others with coop multiplayer. Looks kinda like L4D with vampires instead of zombies, but with a skill tree. We'll see how it turns out.
But, I'm a sucker for some coop shooters and Arkane makes some interesting worlds to explore.

Here's the trailer


Looks like most X Box exclusives it'll be released on PC as well.

Looks interesting but I'll wait for word of mouth from user reviews before I decide to buy or not. Having COOP multiplayer though is a big plus for me.

I'm still disappointed about D2. Even after a video card upgrade the game still runs like crap. I don't know what it is about that game engine. I know its not only me because there are plenty of forum threads and discussions on this very issue. If memory serves I tried the game again when I got my new video card but that may have been before I also upgraded to Windows 10 as well as upgrading to my first SSD hard drive. I don't know if those would help but I'm pretty much fed up with trying this game over and over again with no favorable results. I loved the first game and played it twice with over a hundred hours but D2 is a frustrating piece of software. Its weird too because Prey uses the Cryengine 3 which is used in Crysis 3 and even in some budget games and it always gave me performance issues however Arkane took that same engine with Prey and managed to make it run buttery smooth unlike any other Cryengine 3 game I've ever played. What's the deal with the Dishonored engine? It seems unnecessarily demanding if not unoptimized and its already a 5 year old game.

Speaking of Prey I never finished my first play through as I have yet to reinstall it on my uprgraded PC. I hope Steam saved my progress.

I seem to recall that Prey uses the Steam Cloud for saves so you should be ok. I played through Prey three times. I thoroughly enjoyed that game.

Thanks Panzer I think you're right as its a pretty new game.