The bloody thing is Steam-only, so it's a no buy for me.

Same with A Game of Dwarves. The only two games I've really wanted all year, both Steam-only games, both games I won't be buying.

Frankly I haven't played a single well-written game that was advertised for having professional writers. :P

I think it's because they bring them in too late to actually affect anything. That or they don't give them the freedom to do their job. I suppose it might take special skills to do video game writing, dunno, but some writers manage it for things like DDO (as well as all the pen and paper writers out there, that seem to need to write in a similar style).

I'm not sure if you're trying to be snide or not, or just indicate that you do like it and we never like the same games.

It's important to note, I'm not saying the game is horrid, or anything, it just isn't anything terribly special and most folks will want to wait for a sale. I do like games like this, but if you were expecting something of New Vegas or Deus Ex quality, this isn't it.

I pre-ordered it despite the rumblings that it was turning out to be ass. As it turns out, it wasn't complete ass, it simply wasn't very good (and I regret pre-ordering instead of picking it up on sale around Christmas time for less than half what I paid). There's a lot of good games out right now, Dishonored simply doesn't manage to be particularly charming in comparison to the other stuff I've been playing.

Actually, I think it should be called "Die Maske des Zorns" ("The Mask of Wrath"). Because that's its subtitle here and I think it sounds better .

Then again, it would make for a rather unoriginal title. Not to mention that it's so close to "Die Maske des Zorro" ("The Mask of Zorro"), that I tend to misread it.

I think hiring screenwriters for this kind of thing is actually a mistake, video games only superficially seem more like movies. In reality you interact with them far more like you would with pen and paper.

I actually wasn't trying to be snide, no. For some reason it struck me as the sort of game you and I might disagree on.

Ok... more of a response, since I got called away:

I think it's less good than Thief and Deus Ex (not sure where the New Vegas comparison comes from) in some ways, namely the stealth and the UI, and better in other ways. It does a better job in terms of its simulation elements, in how smooth it feels to play, and in its combat. To me it's a trade off. And I like the fact that it ends up feeling like Thief or Deus Ex without just being a complete copy. In my opinion, it's a much more successful spiritual successor than Bioshock.

What exactly makes it not worthy of high scores, in your opinion?

I completely agree with all points, and have the same question. The way I see it person can be unimpressed with Dishonored only if they are burnt out on Thief and Deus ex, e.g. played them 5 times or more.

I am only about 8 hours in game, but it already beats DE:HR in every aspect - Gameplay mechanics, level design, atmosphere or setting.


I hope that DE:HR and Bioshock guys are taking notes.

I really like the stealth/nonkill approach options for the game, its a bit annoying that the sleep bolts are pricey

I think of all the Deus Ex like games I've played (including System Shock 2 and the Thief series) Dishonored is the most versatile of the bunch. Stealth and combat both work equally well, and you don't have restrict yourself to either one.

The level design is incredible too, and the blink ability makes it easy to explore every nook and cranny.

I suspected this would be my personal GOTY and after playing a few hours it certainly lived up to my expectations. There's a one or two issues I assumed the game would have that annoys me but they are too few and too minor to ruin the fun.

Head over to Steam forum section if you want some information about the game like fixing issues, gameplay tips or technical tweaks.

Two movies I recorded: Drop, Slash and Bounce and Drop Assassination

It's too expensive for me atm.