Dishonored

 PC
User Score
8.5

Generally favorable reviews- based on 5383 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 4,457 out of 5383
  2. Mixed: 696 out of 5383
  3. Negative: 230 out of 5383
Buy Now
Buy on

Review this game

  1. Your Score
    0 out of 10
    Rate this:
    • 10
    • 9
    • 8
    • 7
    • 6
    • 5
    • 4
    • 3
    • 2
    • 1
    • 0
    • 0
  1. Submit
  2. Check Spelling
view
per page
  1. Seryin
    Apr 27, 2013
    9
    This game is the best fps action game I have played in a long time. I do not understand what made Bioshock Infinite out-score this game. Gameplay, story, and progression are much better here, though Bioshock gets credit for its completely unique world. The only thing I can really complain about, which is minor, were inaccessible rooftops. This game really catered to my roof-hoppingThis game is the best fps action game I have played in a long time. I do not understand what made Bioshock Infinite out-score this game. Gameplay, story, and progression are much better here, though Bioshock gets credit for its completely unique world. The only thing I can really complain about, which is minor, were inaccessible rooftops. This game really catered to my roof-hopping fantasies, so when an inaccessible roof was encountered, I would get annoyed. When I completed the game I was not itching for more, so it will not receive a 10/10 from me, but I am still very eager for a sequel.… Expand
  2. Esthete
    Jan 6, 2019
    8
    Dishonored has 2 big cons:
    - Chaos system. Interesting idea, but realization leaves much to be desired, in any case if your will not be play like pacifist then game is blaming it all on you. Moreover explanation for that absolutely ridiculous.
    - Graphics. In that game impossible play without Reshade. For Dishonored definitely needed make remaster on modern 3D engine.
  3. antihexe
    Oct 9, 2012
    10
    I haven't quite completed the game yet, but after 15 hours in (i'm quite close to the end, on normal difficulty with all ui elements disabled) I have more or less come to a conclusion about the game.

    It's **** fantastic. Very well may be the best money I spent all year on games. The stealth is engaging, the combat is visceral, the story is interesting, the visuals (i.e. environment    I haven't quite completed the game yet, but after 15 hours in (i'm quite close to the end, on normal difficulty with all ui elements disabled) I have more or less come to a conclusion about the game.

    It's **** fantastic. Very well may be the best money I spent all year on games.

    The stealth is engaging, the combat is visceral, the story is interesting, the visuals (i.e. environment design, art direction) are phenomenal -- probably the best I've seen since say, Bioshock. I wish I could give it a 10, but there's minor issues here and there that keep it from being perfect -- but it's definitely above a 9. 9.5 maybe.

    Wow!    … Expand
  4. DecisiveSauce
    Oct 17, 2012
    10
    Everything about this game was well designed. I loved the story and the quality of voice acting and characterization in this game was incredible. The characters had very good detailed models and the art style, although it can easily make you perceive the game to be bad graphics, was actually very good quality.

    I didn't find the story short, however it was also not too long such that it    Everything about this game was well designed. I loved the story and the quality of voice acting and characterization in this game was incredible. The characters had very good detailed models and the art style, although it can easily make you perceive the game to be bad graphics, was actually very good quality.

    I didn't find the story short, however it was also not too long such that it felt as though it dragged on. I honestly think it was pretty much the perfect length. My only complaint is that one part of the game seemed unnecessarily boring and slow, a part in the sewers.
    Asides from that the story was well paced and enjoyably long, lasting a full week of quite high playtime. In my opinion, well worth the money

    The mechanics were fluid and you could easily just spam off abilities and murder everyone crazily and the game will still be fun. I personally went for the stealth approach and still found the game incredibly enjoyable.

    In terms of good design, the fact that steam achievements that pertained to the story were hidden to prevent spoiling the story blew my mind because it was the first time I had come across a developer taking such a simple step to keep the player experience from being spoiled.

    Another example of good design I experienced was (to prevent spoilers I'll stay vague) when there was an escort type mission (there only was one) to protect a group of people, my initial reaction was eye-roll as my experiences with these types of missions tend to be me running around frantically diving in front of bullets secret service style in order to protect the mindlessly running NPC's.
    However what I actually found was that the NPC's would wait patiently and intuitively hide in their initial building beside an alley way until I stepped out into full view in the alley way, thereafter taking that as their cue to run across.

    The levels were filled with lots of incredibly nice looking environments and lots of cool little side missions that you could stumble across if you were paying attention (saving a civilian from a bad situation involving guards that you can just stumble across, for example).

    The characters were VERY thoroughly developed, with each character having a heap of voice lines to pull from at each stage of the game. On top of that there were audio logs and diaries that they kept. All three of these aspects would change as you progressed with the story.

    I have to say, this game was the single most enjoyable game I've played in a long time.

    Looking at other reviews I can see that people are making stupid comparisons with other games. People need to realise that not every game ever being made is trying to copy the same set of old games (either Half Life 2, Deus Ex or Bioshock), and stop being pretentious **** They made sequels to all those games and people are still not happy.

    Also "Deus Ex" is NOT a GENRE of game.

    Honestly, 10/10 would buy again.    … Expand
  5. Rmathieson
    Dec 10, 2012
    5
    [For PC] It could have been so much better. Thats the feeling I got both times I completed this game, the first time i went through with a combination of stealth and brutality - i sneakily killed everyone. Second time I went through like a ghost, killed no one and aimed for an alternative ending. The mechanics of the game are fun - however theres so many places it could have been better,[For PC] It could have been so much better. Thats the feeling I got both times I completed this game, the first time i went through with a combination of stealth and brutality - i sneakily killed everyone. Second time I went through like a ghost, killed no one and aimed for an alternative ending. The mechanics of the game are fun - however theres so many places it could have been better, for example - no matter what difficulty setting, this game is way too easy - the AI are thick and for whatever reason your char is blessed with godly powers over your enemies who, in any number are completely at your mercy. yet, its still fun. The plot is awful, its execution is slightly worse. They use this loosely coupled slot as a means of producing levels, each level gets "harder" but only terms of the number of guards, watch towers, tall boys and gates. I don't think that multiplying the amount of dumb NPCs dotted around the level is really a progression. It gets dull after a while. each level is somewhat open-world and there are many ways you can achieve your objectives. In this sense it kinda works but in reality your scored on key things and if you, at all care about your score and the outcome of the game, suddenly your options become limited to a very linear step by step process your being guided through by the AI and clues shoved directly under your nose in case you missed them. Other games like this, hitman, deus ex to name a few have all been compared to this game countless times and many of us went in with some expectations. its not like any of them. This game is entirely "Console", it's perfect for chilling on the sofa and playing without giving it your full attention. PC Gamers tend to look for an immersive experience with plenty of choice and feeling. This game lacks both - it's linear and its easy. I still played through it twice though!… Expand
  6. Rail
    Oct 13, 2012
    10
    I just finished the game and I can say it's simply fantastic. Ignore all of the people saying it's "just hype" or "nothing new" because I honestly have no idea what these people are talking about. Dishonored offers it's own feel with a taste of cartoony graphics in a gritty steam punk world, with excellent and complex gameplay to compliment it. The story is good and though the missions areI just finished the game and I can say it's simply fantastic. Ignore all of the people saying it's "just hype" or "nothing new" because I honestly have no idea what these people are talking about. Dishonored offers it's own feel with a taste of cartoony graphics in a gritty steam punk world, with excellent and complex gameplay to compliment it. The story is good and though the missions are linear, the missions themselves are a sort of open area where there are many side missions. If you rush through the game like a lunatic you'll probably finish the game quick like a good number of foolish reviewers...but if you actually take your time and play the game it'll last a fair amount of time, maybe just a tad short. Make sure to note that the "choose your own way to do the mission" holds true throughout the entire game, Dishonored does this extremely well.

    It's not about making some original amazing breakthrough game that'll make you go insane with astonishment like many seem to think, it's about making a fun game. All in all, no what you say about how original or good it is, it's definitely a very fun game that's worth your time.    … Expand
  7. k3Ck
    Oct 12, 2012
    8
    WAY too easy! Even on very hard with all notifications off, cross hair off, using no bone charms and leveling up nothing ect the game is a cakewalk. There's not much challenge at all and it's a real shame.

    It's still a great game but that really holds it back from being one the greatest games of all time.
  8. fryzee
    Oct 10, 2012
    10
    Incredible. And I thought Borderlands 2 was GOTY. WOW. I'm blown away, it's a perfect mix of Bioshock, Deus EX and Assassins Creed, or it's a one of a kind masterpiece. Incredible. Just finished my second playthrough and it just keeps surprising you with all the choices you can make. Can't wait for round 3.
  9. bathrobe_wizard
    Oct 9, 2012
    10
    I've played several hours of this game, and so far there's nothing to dislike in the slightest. Intricate and interesting plot/setting/characters, excellent stealth, fighting, etc. mechanics for your choice of play style, gorgeous painting-like graphics that run really easy on a system but look great, etc. My prediction that this would be the best singleplayer of 2012 looks like it's coming true.
  10. ninjabackhand
    Oct 9, 2012
    10
    I've come to expect nothing less from Arkane. Dishonored is everything you could have hoped for in a new IP and more. The beauty and functionality of this game far exceed any idea of standards I may have had. Simply a joy to play....art in motion. Bravo.
  11. Anionix
    Oct 12, 2012
    5
    I can't understand how people give this game a ten. This is game is not bad by any stretch of imagination, but some people stating how this is one of the best games ever is quite frankly astonishing. Yes, you have some nice little toys to use at your disposal, but when it comes down to it it actually feels limited. The stealth part of the game is basically limited to using the blinkI can't understand how people give this game a ten. This is game is not bad by any stretch of imagination, but some people stating how this is one of the best games ever is quite frankly astonishing. Yes, you have some nice little toys to use at your disposal, but when it comes down to it it actually feels limited. The stealth part of the game is basically limited to using the blink ability, a standard choke and an odd sleeping dart thrown in. When the **** hits the fan and enemies come from all angles the game turns into a mess and rushed and you feel never in control of the situation, unless you waste a whole mana potion slowing down time, but then it becomes a walk in the park with no challenge. Being in a shadow or in the light makes no difference, it's just same boring pattern of hiding behind a box waiting for the person to turn around and to then sneak up (blinking) for the quick choke...the textures also look horrendous, and the character development is non existent, quite honestly I couldn't give a **** about any of the characters. The plot twist can also be seen a mile away and is the same plot twist that plagues the film and gaming scene. You'll see what I mean when you get to that point. Like I said the game has nice features and is worth a look if you like this kind of genre, but it doesn't come close compared to the classics of Thief and Deus Ex.… Expand
  12. jesterx7769
    Oct 10, 2012
    5
    This game is plan and simple overrated lacking in numerous areas for its hype. The game is an assassination game that punishes you for killing people. The more people you kill the higher your chaos meter rises leading you to one of two game endings. It is more of a stealth hide from people and choke them out game. The graphics are cheap water color texture that while some say is "artsy" isThis game is plan and simple overrated lacking in numerous areas for its hype. The game is an assassination game that punishes you for killing people. The more people you kill the higher your chaos meter rises leading you to one of two game endings. It is more of a stealth hide from people and choke them out game. The graphics are cheap water color texture that while some say is "artsy" is just in all honesty cheap and unfinished. It looks like a PS2 or Iphone game. The stealth mechanics do not work well and hand to hand combat is atrocious consisting of holding down block then clicking your mouse to counter. No combat, no real stealth mechanics, where is this awesome gameplay again? The only three things that are fun are "blink" which allows you basically spring forward, possessing animals, or stopping time. Far from revolutionary and amazing. Sound is awful and so are character models. There is "free running" like most open world games offer now.

    High action? Far from it. If you want a high action game go play one of the new batman's or assassins creed. This may be a decent game and give you some moderate entertainment for the VERY short play through, but it is by no means acceptable as a "blockbuster" or game of the year.    … Expand
  13. gimmedatsammich
    Oct 16, 2012
    4
    I have learned my lesson. Never again will I trust the word of a video game "journalist." It's quite obvious these guys are being paid for favorable reviews. My fault for ever believing them, I guess. Dishonored is a shallow, boring, tedious game. The stealth mechanic- so highly touted in previews and trailers- is utterly lacking in complexity and challenge. "Blink" behind a guy, choke himI have learned my lesson. Never again will I trust the word of a video game "journalist." It's quite obvious these guys are being paid for favorable reviews. My fault for ever believing them, I guess. Dishonored is a shallow, boring, tedious game. The stealth mechanic- so highly touted in previews and trailers- is utterly lacking in complexity and challenge. "Blink" behind a guy, choke him to sleep, stash his body in a dumpster, rinse, repeat. That's the whole game right there. It gets old very quickly, as do the sword fighting and gunslinging. Playing with all the toys in your arsenal is fun at first, but the charm quickly wears off and descends into boredom. The story is thin as matzo. The setting is cool, sure, but no effort is put into characterization, especially with Corvo- yet another dull, silent protagonist- and the game suffers for it. You don't care about the heroes, and you don't hate the villains. The big twist isn't shocking in the least, and the ending feels rushed and incomplete. The writing is passable, but nothing special. This dreck would barely earn a C in an entry level creative writing course. The graphics and art design are Dishonored's saving grace. Dunwall is gorgeously realized, and the game runs beautifully on the PC. The world Arkane has created is truly a work of art. If only they had harnessed its full potential. In the hands of a better developer, this game could have reached its full potential.… Expand
  14. DeeEss
    Dec 30, 2012
    4
    One review for this game mentioned something about it being like Deus Ex and Bioshock had a beautiful child. A beautiful one, perhaps, but not a bright one. It takes a little from several games and doesn't really do anything special with it. The Good:

    Powers are interesting and the horribly overpowered Blink can be quite a lot of fun. The world does look great, despite the    One review for this game mentioned something about it being like Deus Ex and Bioshock had a beautiful child. A beautiful one, perhaps, but not a bright one. It takes a little from several games and doesn't really do anything special with it. The Good:

    Powers are interesting and the horribly overpowered Blink can be quite a lot of fun. The world does look great, despite the character models. There's also the option of neutralizing your targets by methods other than murder, which is something I'd like to see more in games.

    The Bad:

    I can't really say it's boring, but the story certainly was. When the 'twist' came up, it was expected and I was a little disappointed that I had obviously finished that much of the game so quickly. It didn't help that we have yet another silent protagonist, which makes it tougher to care. Did he like the empress? Was he her lover/friend, or did he resent her for some reason? We'll never know, and the main motive being given is simple revenge which came off as, "STFU and play the game already". The interactions with Emily were nice, provided you chose to do them and chose the less deadly options.

    The morality system was a major source of contention for me. For starters, it affects Emily's actions and outlook, and it bothers me that it's not explained how she or anyone else found out about whether or not anyone died. Sure, it could have been overheard, but with the ruling power being like it is, that's the sort of propaganda they're likely to spit out, regardless of what happened. Secondly, Corvo is frequently referred to as an assassin, but killing is what you get punished for. I should add that if you decide to go the non-lethal route, you'll be very limited in your choice of weapons. There is a round of ammo that puts enemies to sleep but, with a maximum of 10 rounds, you'll run out very quickly. Art style for the characters is pretty terrible with the exception of Emily and the Empress. Maybe this was done to reflect how monstrous the new regime is and if that's the case, congratulations are in order.

    Finally, there's the stealth. Unless you're completely behind something or too far away, enemies will spot you. Staying in shadows is almost meaningless in this game. The lead level designer said, "In Thief the light is very very important. At the beginning we tried to be in the same mood: use the light, use the shadows. But we realised that when you're standing in front of an NPC like this [hand in front of face] it's not realistic - we must admit that. In the real world it's not like this."

    Yes, we realize that it's not realistic, and there's an explanation as to why Garrett can do that. It just seems odd that someone would, in effect, say, "I'm sorry, it's not realistic for our rat summoning, teleporting, time stopping, body possessing, wind controlling, wall seeing through protagonist to do that because it's not like that in the real world." The other half of the claim is that the art direction inhibited this. Okay, got me there when you get to a well lit area, but what about when it's dark? To sum up, it's not a terrible game, but doesn't really deserve to be compared with the titans that are frequently mentioned, . Certainly not worth paying $50 or $60 bucks for, just wait until there's a huge discount on Steam or rent it. I'd give it a 4.5, but I don't have that option.

    Let me rebut some comments here: "You rushed through the game!" I did not rush through the game intentionally. I read everything that could be read and listened to all the conversations and recordings (My favorite was when the guards were talking about how Corvo was probably hiding somewhere near them). "You can add a lot of game time just by doing it in stealth!" And? That's only a justification for a lack of content. How would you feel about a 2 hour FPS with 15 difficulty modes? That's 30 hours of gameplay!

    "I don't understand why people are saying there's nothing new." That means you missed out on one or several of Bioshock, Deus Ex, Thief, and many other games with stealth or morality options. If there is something new, someone, PLEASE, enlighten me.

    "It's a sandbox!" Not even close. You get taken area to area. Sure, you can explore a little, not like Elder Scrolls or Fallout though. You don't even have the option to go back to those areas unless you're required to by the plot. "People who don't like this game are too used to hand holding." Please. For starters, personal insults don't explain why you like it or why I'm wrong. Secondly, these are opinions which will vary wildly depending on the experience of the user. I played the games this one is being likened to back when they came out, so I see it as a copy of those. Thirdly, what do you call it when you have an item that tells you where items are, as well as UI markers telling you where to go?    … Expand
  15. MadclownJack
    Oct 16, 2012
    6
    It's mediocre fun, as i knew it would be. In all honesty i prefer the old Thief over this thing any day. It has a lot of good ideas, albeit sometimes poorly executed. It demands a very high suspension of disbelief, even with menial things. The AI is surprisingly dumb. It seemingly boasts with open world and lots of choices, but that's a lie. There's only one large area and a dozen doorsIt's mediocre fun, as i knew it would be. In all honesty i prefer the old Thief over this thing any day. It has a lot of good ideas, albeit sometimes poorly executed. It demands a very high suspension of disbelief, even with menial things. The AI is surprisingly dumb. It seemingly boasts with open world and lots of choices, but that's a lie. There's only one large area and a dozen doors leading to a handful of other, smaller areas. It tries very hard to be the Thief of this generation but humbly fails, in my opinion. I read somewhere that Dishonored's stealth system that was supposed to be based on Thief's but was discarded because it was too "unrealistic". Instead they put a system where the only direction an enemy faces is straight, so even in broad daylight you can stand above an enemy's line of sight and they'll be none the wiser. There's also the superpower that lets you see through walls. I really don't get if they were being sarcastic, or just plain old stupid, but there it is. The story is a cliche mish-mash, set in a fantastic but very unbelievable world. All in All, i liked playing it for a short while, but when i stopped there was no real craving for another run. After Thief 2 I was left with a void for a good sneaker installment (Thief 3 was ridiculous, aside from the Asylum mission). This comes close, but i don't think this is IT. Rent before buy is my advice. It might not be your 50$ cup of tea.… Expand
  16. Muuvinki
    Oct 10, 2012
    6
    Dishonored provides solid assassin gaming experience but remains very short. Some of the skills in the game make playing almost too easy. Graphics are a bit old compared to now days standards but it doesn't ruin the game.
  17. Eddie_Izzard
    Oct 14, 2012
    5
    It's a Bethesda-published game, which means that it does the same thing every single other Bethesda-published games does: Completely fail to live up to expectations. I went in to this game expecting a nice mix of Thief, Bioshock, and a little Assassin's Creed, and I got a heap of average gameplay mixed in with a below average story. Let me start with the thing that bothered me the most:It's a Bethesda-published game, which means that it does the same thing every single other Bethesda-published games does: Completely fail to live up to expectations. I went in to this game expecting a nice mix of Thief, Bioshock, and a little Assassin's Creed, and I got a heap of average gameplay mixed in with a below average story. Let me start with the thing that bothered me the most: The story. In short, there's hardly a story in the first place, let alone a compelling one. The story is a cliche-ridden mess without an interesting beginning or a satisfying ending. I cannot care for any of these characters because I don't know them, nor can I connect with any of them. I cannot care for what happens to the city or the world around me because the game fails to immerse you beyond some supposed good gameplay. My second main complaint is the gameplay itself. It's average in its best parts, and completely vanilla in the rest of it. Swordplay is a joke, number one. It's completely uninteresting because of so few mechanics in play. Simple complexity is what a game should strive for, not plain simple. The stealth mechanics are DATED. There are many things that some be intertwined with the stealth side of the game that simply don't exist. The main problem of this is that the AI is dumb as a rock. I'm not expecting geniuses everywhere, but I AM expecting the enemy to wake up an unconscious comrade, run to a superior to call reinforcements, and to overall be much more aware after spotting me, or a fallen ally. The AI is the most simple you can get in a game like this: Once they lose sight of you, they lose all memory of you. They ignore dead bodies after 10 seconds, and they don't attempt to help each other. This makes the game WAY too easy. The only way to get any real difficulty is to remove the UI completely, never use your powers, and attempt to get the no-kill and the ghost bonuses, as well as collecting everything. And even then, it would just be time consuming, not truly hard. The animations and graphics, while secondary, are also pretty average. Animation is stiff, the graphics are standard and unimpressive. This is a shame, because the art style and the art direction appear to be pretty good; but they're held back by these things.
    Even the game's good points are marred by either laziness or lack of explanation. The world is interesting, and I love the setting, but after the end of the game, I understand very little of it because it simply was not explained, and barely even touched upon. The setting allowed for some interesting elements to happen, but they simply didn't because of the simplistic gameplay, the lack of proper story-telling, and the apparently lack of simple EFFORT. My favorite thing about this game is both the setting and the sounds as a whole. I love both of them, but neither of them can carry this game to a better rating.
    And finally; the biggest failure of this game is that it seems like the devs got all the basic stuff covered and simply didn't continue from there. This is a basic, BASIC game, and these days that simply doesn't cut it. It's a painfully average experience.

    If you've already purchased the game; I'm sorry.
    If you plan to; Don't. Rent it and see if you feel the same.
    If you somehow think this game is still amazing; Well, good for you. I wish I could think the same.    … Expand
  18. TheJadedGamer
    Oct 10, 2012
    5
    Mehhh. Game is just o.k. It's such an obvious console game that it really feels kinda scrub on the PC. Illusion of choice in all the levels, because they are actually quite linear. The game basically punishes you for killing people, so the "right" way to play it is to avoid everything and not kill anyone. This basically ruins the point of using all the cool powers and weapons. My biggestMehhh. Game is just o.k. It's such an obvious console game that it really feels kinda scrub on the PC. Illusion of choice in all the levels, because they are actually quite linear. The game basically punishes you for killing people, so the "right" way to play it is to avoid everything and not kill anyone. This basically ruins the point of using all the cool powers and weapons. My biggest complaint however is you basically HAVE to keep the power that lets you see through walls on 24/7. Without it you are at a huge disadvantage. The problem is this means you're playing in washed-out sepia mode with annoying music / sound the entire game. Could it have killed them to put in an enemy radar?

    Rent it, don't buy it.    … Expand
  19. raidet
    Oct 13, 2012
    4
    I have to agree with others that have said this game is nothing special. It has a nice, Bioshock-style retro theme, and that's all this game has. If it had a contemporary theme and everything else was the same, everyone would be calling this the tedious piece of unremarkable **** it is. It's just boring. Bioshock has already done all this, but in a much more engaging way.
  20. robotoboy20
    Oct 11, 2012
    5
    I decided to play Dishonored because all the major critics were raving about it, I started it up on my PC after watching the cinematic trailer. Let me ask you a question, do you love Deus Ex? If you answered yes to that question then I think you'll enjoy what little time you get with Dishonored (And I mean little.) I disliked the game for a number of let me lay them on the table here.I decided to play Dishonored because all the major critics were raving about it, I started it up on my PC after watching the cinematic trailer. Let me ask you a question, do you love Deus Ex? If you answered yes to that question then I think you'll enjoy what little time you get with Dishonored (And I mean little.) I disliked the game for a number of let me lay them on the table here.

    1). Terrible narrative, and overall bad character development.
    2). Linear (With branching paths) gameplay.
    3). Heavily broken gameplay.
    4). Deus Ex Human Revolution STEAMPUNK STYLE!
    5). Feels like the art designer at 2K helped... The style is very similar

    So let's talk about the narrative. I didn't care about Corvo, nor did I care about the little girl he should be saving, I found that even the villains are boring and not worth my time. I haven't seen such stiff lifeless looking characters since 2004... The characters do not feel alive, or even well animated, before you go running to that whole "It's not supposed to look realistic!" Yeah I realize that but the animations should have looked better, this part of the game just felt really unpolished and pulled me out of the immersion. I didn't find the story original. The whole "I want revenge for being betrayed BWAHHH!" is so overdone I could have done with out it, and the twists in the games story are just, well let's say that I don't know very many people that wouldn't see them coming. The gameplay is the big thing here though right? Wrong the "Play the way you want" model is the oldest trick in the book, the illusion of control. You do have several ways that you can complete the missions set in front of you, and let me tell you killing people in a number of ways, or knocking them unconscious has never felt so dull. I found that a lot of your options start feeling less like options and more like toys to play with, witch is neat except that I got that little feeling in the back of my mind that made me realize that they weren't as rewarding as they probably meant for them to be. I felt like even though my options were open they were limited. If you'd like to kill you have a nice set of gameplay styles to choose from like razor mines, a pistol, a crossbow for silent takedowns, even the sword takedowns pretty nifty to be absolutely honest, if you want to do the whole non-lethal thing though well... You get sleep darts, and chokeholds, that's all folks! not many options in there. Your essentially given the most game breaking skill right off the bat and that's the blink skill. Blink allows you to teleport anywhere you aim. Blink is neat but it makes the game amazingly easy even on hard. and I couldn't justify why it felt so limitless. The false feeling of progress also felt really empty to me with the game giving me dozens of objects to pick up! It felt almost like the game kept trying to give me depth but it just felt so shallow. The AI is ludicrously stupid, I found myself easing by them all the time, and if you want to kill easy, stop time! The game feels very borrowed, I didn't feel one ounce of originality or a sense of fleshed out personality from this game. "Deus Ex did it better" were the words that kept crossing my mind. I realize that the whole cyberpunk thing doesn't appeal to everyone and this steampunkish styled world might come off a bit more appealing to others! Well good news it does do a decent enough job at giving you an interesting idea. I enjoyed as much of Dishonored's setting as I did skyrim's arrow to the knee crap... It felt bland and lifeless, and once again I find myself comparing it to the all mighty Deus Ex. Have you ever played Bioshock? Great game, I enjoyed it tons! This game feels like it stole that charm. I feel like the art design for the game just felt old out-dated and bland. Bioshock had this way of letting us feel interested in the world around us, it thrusted us a man of mystery and unknowing into a world full of the same, and made us feel interested and charmed. Dishonored feels so borrowed and so un-original I don't recommend buying it if you played Bioshock, or Deus Ex. The game is REALLY short, ends suddenly, and becomes tedious. I think though if you haven't played a lot of games, and you by chance did touch those two games I mentioned because they're settings and plot didn't interest you, you might like it. I won't say it's a bad game but it is definitely overrated. I beat it twice and liked some of it, but I will admit to you that it in the end had a very, very, very, very hard time holding my interest... So if you want more of what Deus Ex had to offer but want a cut-short and flat feeling experience go for it.

    Overall I'd say pass.    … Expand
  21. shadow_walker
    Oct 13, 2012
    4
    I was really looking forward to something fresh or new alternate to the fps and rpg genres. Despite all the good review, the game was not mind-blowing or freshly innovative as the hype claimed. The graphics and plot to the game are good but that seems to be the only thing that keeps this game afloat. Personally, I would rather save the cost and buy some good old game like Fallout 3 or waitI was really looking forward to something fresh or new alternate to the fps and rpg genres. Despite all the good review, the game was not mind-blowing or freshly innovative as the hype claimed. The graphics and plot to the game are good but that seems to be the only thing that keeps this game afloat. Personally, I would rather save the cost and buy some good old game like Fallout 3 or wait for the new release of Bioshock Infinite. After completing 3 missions the game was not thrilling enough to pull me back to play again-not better than something of Assassin's Creed stature.… Expand
  22. anubite
    Oct 10, 2012
    4
    Although not a horrific game, I think this is a step back for the "Deus Ex genre" - or whatever you want to call it. A hybrid of stealth and action - the action falls flat. You can run and gun in this game, but there's no omph to it. It's on par with the original Deus Ex in terms of pure gunplay. Or, maybe that's too generous - Deus Ex gives you a wide array of weapons over a decade ago.Although not a horrific game, I think this is a step back for the "Deus Ex genre" - or whatever you want to call it. A hybrid of stealth and action - the action falls flat. You can run and gun in this game, but there's no omph to it. It's on par with the original Deus Ex in terms of pure gunplay. Or, maybe that's too generous - Deus Ex gives you a wide array of weapons over a decade ago. In Dishonored, you have three kinds of bolts to hurl with your tiny dart-slinger, and a shabby pistol. Action just isn't there, with gameplay revolving around running straight at enemies, using up your small ammunition stockpile, and then chugging mana potions while you hurl rats and wind about. There's very little to engage you, as most of the levels are extremely linear if you choose to take the action route. ||| The stealth side of things is better than I was expecting, but most of the depth of stealth is lost thanks to Blink. Granted, you can choose not to use the spell, but the stealth is balanced around it. And choosing not to use it simply makes every level a chore. In Deus Ex, sneaking involves passing through guard patrols, crawling through vents, utilizing security systems, and hacking. In Dishonored, stealth is patiently waiting about for your enemies to turn their heads toward the sea for a moment and seldom more than that. Occasionally you encounter a security system you need to bypass, but the ways of approaching those security systems involve blink, at least until you can slow down time. ||| What I'm trying to imply is that the depth of choice in Dishonored falls a little flat. It's easy to see that they tried, but the most striking failure of Dishonored is its lame level design. For a game as short as it is (… Expand
  23. gun661
    Oct 10, 2012
    3
    Another game that makes me feel increasingly alienated from this industry. There's been put a lot of talent, work and energy into this game, including marketing that promotes Dishonored to be about solving things in a creative way. All this is kinda sad, since ultimately, Dishonored plays just like another blockbuster which you'll forget about before tomorrow. Because: 1.) Stealth-gameplayAnother game that makes me feel increasingly alienated from this industry. There's been put a lot of talent, work and energy into this game, including marketing that promotes Dishonored to be about solving things in a creative way. All this is kinda sad, since ultimately, Dishonored plays just like another blockbuster which you'll forget about before tomorrow. Because: 1.) Stealth-gameplay is you waiting for enemies to look away, nothing more, because light isn't regarded, for example, i.e. enemies see you just as well/badly in broad daylight as within total darkness. Also, you only have really few options to be stealthy besides the "Blink"-skill, especially if you want to do it non-lethally (options: sleeping darts and choking... that's it, 2 options, there isn't even a blackjack). 2.) Action: Trying out the various gadgets and skills to lethally engage enemies seems nice, but just as with stealth, there isn't much tactics involved - it's repeating the same process over and over again, the skills just make it look differently. 3.) Personally, the seemingly unnecessary, overdrawn brutality you are invited to perform or is performed visually and story-wise just turns me off.. I never had any problems with the gore of the Dooms and Quakes and what not, 'cause they were silly games. But games like this, somehow, for my taste, are just... no, thank you... Feels like today's games are trying hard to impress little boys who want to be "really bad-as*", if you allow me that snappy remark.… Expand
  24. Coeco
    Oct 14, 2012
    4
    Picked up this game without watching any trailers and the moment I got the controls, Skyrim and Thief: Deadly Shadows popped up in my head like a prostitute wearing a party hat out of a cake. While by no means lacking in quality, the graphics are great, (For PC) story is decent and the game offers new ways to explore the sneaking-around genre with various "magic" abilities. The lackingPicked up this game without watching any trailers and the moment I got the controls, Skyrim and Thief: Deadly Shadows popped up in my head like a prostitute wearing a party hat out of a cake. While by no means lacking in quality, the graphics are great, (For PC) story is decent and the game offers new ways to explore the sneaking-around genre with various "magic" abilities. The lacking parts however, are quite severe. The more people you kill, the worse ending you'll get and you cannot render enemies unconscious in combat by say, a club weapon or with the hilt of your sword but you must instead strangle them from behind (while undetected) or shoot expensive "Sleeping" bolts into their faces (In which you can only carry a maximum of 10 with upgrades). Challenge or not, you'll be extremely disappointed at the moments you simply must kill to progress in missions (Some allow a non-lethal approach but you'll still draw blood on some), leaving any kind of 100% perfect play-through impossible. I found myself just running through the entire game by repeatedly gulping down mana potions and stopping time because rendering enemies unconscious was an insane bother, like having to ride a unicycle up a mountain instead of taking the sky-lift. For sh!t and giggles, i went ahead and took Hardcore on my second play-through and wouldn't you know it, the game is still dirt-easy. Sadly a flaw that will forever appear in console-ports like this even if they do a good job with most of the stuff, the rest will be sticking out like a huge pimple.… Expand
  25. truthmonger
    Oct 14, 2012
    0
    It should have been called "Dishonest" - this game delivers NOTHING it promises

    Stealth gameplay? Sure, if you consider teleportation and basic "attack-from-behind or only at extreme distance" stealth. Light and shadow have NO impact whatsoever..enemies all have night vision, which YOU have to buy with a precious upgrade. There's also NO way to knock out enemies once they spot you    It should have been called "Dishonest" - this game delivers NOTHING it promises

    Stealth gameplay? Sure, if you consider teleportation and basic "attack-from-behind or only at extreme distance" stealth. Light and shadow have NO impact whatsoever..enemies all have night vision, which YOU have to buy with a precious upgrade. There's also NO way to knock out enemies once they spot you except for a crossbow with sleep darts. Mind you that killing people makes the game get uglier, more rats and zombies and an even MORE terrible ending. Its like the devs were just laughing as they made this game thinking of how mad the Thief and Deus Ex fans would get when they realized they'd been f*#ked. 90% of everything in this game is stolen from Bioshock, Half Life II and other games - they don't even try to hide it. Anyone who says this is an "open world" is LYING. An "open world" is what you get with TES or FO..this is nothing like that. Its just levels with invisible walls like 99% of the games you've played before. Duke Nukem 3D was more "open world" than this!! The game is a cakewalk if you just kill everything which seems to be what the designers wanted. You're so overpowered by the second mission that you can clear a level in under 10 minutes if you want to..everything is handed to you on a platter, there's no real "searching" for anything. You even have a stupid BEATING HEART you carry around that points you to everything of interest, maybe the biggest joke I've EVER seen in a game. I bet the designers thought that was really edgy, LOL! There's a million empty bottles with nothing in them - well except for a few that explode a little (not enough to hurt anything but YOU). Low-quality graphics, stupid and useless abilities..I could go on but why bother? Name any game of this kind made in the last 10 years - its better than Dishonest-errr, DisHONORED.    … Expand
  26. psycros
    Oct 14, 2012
    4
    Here's what right with this game:

    * It doesn't crash. * Most of the voice acting is OK, but not without issues (see below). * It runs pretty well with everything maxed on a system that was considered high-end two years ago. Here's what's wrong with this game: * Everything from plot to mechanical design to you-name-it is a derivative mish-mash of Half-Life II and Bioshock, with a    Here's what right with this game:

    * It doesn't crash.
    * Most of the voice acting is OK, but not without issues (see below).
    * It runs pretty well with everything maxed on a system that was considered high-end two years ago.

    Here's what's wrong with this game:

    * Everything from plot to mechanical design to you-name-it is a derivative mish-mash of Half-Life II and Bioshock, with a dash of FEAR, Assassin's Creed and even Oblivion tossed in for bad measure. Its painfully hacked together and non-cohesive, like the devs were fighting over which game world they most wanted to copy. Ironically, there are a few legitimately creative strokes tossed in, but their mostly lost in the noise. The backstory is almost painfully contorted to explain the bizarre mix. NOTE: I have only gotten through (I believe) about half of the game so maybe - just maybe - it makes a little more sense later on..but I doubt it.
    * The graphics are about four years out of date. The male faces are hideous, hopefully due to a limitation of the Unreal engine and not artistic intent. Tim Burton wouldn't make men this unattractive, or women this identical. Even the dogs are ugly.
    * Music, visual design, most of the characterization and plot elements make for a brooding, dark and depressing atmosphere. Seriously, does every game need to go down this road? I know its supposed to be a region gripped by plague, dark mysticism and a totalitarian conspiracy, but..sheesh, enough already! Not every setting needs to be an Orwellian zombie apocalypse. (Yes, Dishonored has zombies. Sigh.)
    * The voice acting is decent and better than most Bethesda titles, but the R-rated swearing seems out of place in this steampunk world. It definitely hurts immersion.
    * If you're going to sell a game as having multiple playstyles, then by the Nine you best deliver. Dishonored fails utterly in this regard. Killing is supposed to be optional, but good luck with that effort. First off, there is no way to disable an opponent in combat except by using sleep bolts in your crossbow. Once you've lost the element of surprise you can't choke out a person or dog (yes, I did this to a dog one time but it never gave me the option again). You play the royal bodyguard, one of the best fighters in the land, and you don't know how to knock a guy out? Hell, you've got a flintlock with a huge club-like butt - that's what it was designed for. You can carry ten sleep bolts and there are only a handful scattered through the missions I've played - and some are fairly hard to reach if you didn't put everything into movement powers. You can buy sleep bolts between missions and some missions have vendors who will sell them at an exorbitant fee, but if you rely on them for non-lethal takedowns you will run out eventually. BTW, you can upgrade your carrying capacity for normal bolts to 20. Normal bolts do damage and are an easy button for killing at range, superior to your useless pistol in nearly every situation. In fact, on the hardest difficulty the game presents no real challenge if you simply kill everything you see. But that's the real kicker with Dishonored: the game makes murder a cinch and then punishes you for killing. The city gets nastier and the game ending will get "darker" as your body count grows. I might add that anyone who dies during combat with you, be it from falling off a bridge or friendly fire from other NPCS, counts as one of your kills. I'm pretty certain even the dogs count as your kills.
    * You only see your progress stats when a mission ends (i.e. body count, runes found, etc).
    * There are some technical problems, at least on my system. The savegame routine is horribly botched and provides no way to identify saves other than which mission and level their from. Worse, it seems that old autosaves are never really deleted and pollute the list when you're trying to load a game. Trying to figure out which save is the one you need is a horrible sort of mini-game and hearkens back to the worst of Bethesda's sloppy programming (although Bethsoft may have nothing to do with the actual game design or coding). Sometimes character voices sound like their coming from the environment Corvo is in rather than the one they actually occupy. You'll be standing just outside the door to a tunnel and the NPC's voice will have no echo, as if he were right beside you. This makes for some confusing positional audio, making the bogus stealth gameplay even more of a joke.

    To sum it up, this is a game that promises beauty, originality and multiple playstyles and delivers none of those things. Its a pretty stable console port of a mediocre game with confused, misleading design. I'd skip it or at least wait for some serious patches before giving it a go. And another thing: its very obvious there's paid reviewing going on with Dishonored. Don't think we don't notice, Bethesda.    … Expand
  27. gameslayer
    Oct 14, 2012
    0
    Providing some balance to all the paid reviews :) If I was being totally honest, I'd give Dishonored a 3 (4 at most) for being unoriginal, lying about the stealth gameplay and other inexcusable design flaws. Sooo obvious it wasn't finished when they released it..tons of stuff they reference that ends up being placeholders. DO NOT BUY. If this gets GOTY from *anyone* it will only be dueProviding some balance to all the paid reviews :) If I was being totally honest, I'd give Dishonored a 3 (4 at most) for being unoriginal, lying about the stealth gameplay and other inexcusable design flaws. Sooo obvious it wasn't finished when they released it..tons of stuff they reference that ends up being placeholders. DO NOT BUY. If this gets GOTY from *anyone* it will only be due to bribery.… Expand
  28. stickfish
    Oct 11, 2012
    1
    This is a ok game, not more than that. The story it's not good, don't have tha "feeling" at all. The graphics are PS3 graphics, it can be ok for a PS3 game, but not for a PC game. The Stealth its not so stealth, the combats are stupids

    I don't get all the hype about this game, the producers are good peoples, the bethesda is great but this game sucks
    I really want to like this game, but...
  29. GIANT_CRAB
    Oct 11, 2012
    3
    Its overrated.

    Terrible graphics and extremely short game-play.

    Its very basic, just keep killing on and on.

    Not challenging and quite straight forward.

    Overall, its still a good game but its not worth the money.
  30. Khaos25
    Apr 10, 2013
    10
    Dishonored is proof that there is hope that the video game industry can pull off something new and exciting. While not exactly groundbreaking, Dishonored is one helluva fun game. The setting is awesome, the characters are great and the abilities and weaponry are also really cool, especially Corvo's balisong-like sword. The main complaint with the game is that while the stealth approachDishonored is proof that there is hope that the video game industry can pull off something new and exciting. While not exactly groundbreaking, Dishonored is one helluva fun game. The setting is awesome, the characters are great and the abilities and weaponry are also really cool, especially Corvo's balisong-like sword. The main complaint with the game is that while the stealth approach does make the storyline less depressing, its quite boring. You go around choking people to unconsciousness and then hiding their bodies, it gets really old fast. It IS however, worth it storywise. As for the all out violent approach, while more fun it is not advisable. Corvo while an expert fighter and assassin is quite fragile and you should not try taking on more than three guards if you can. One would distract you into a swordfight while the others would take potshots out of you with their pistols which pack quite a punch. I also have problems with the powers as some are obviously more useful than others like the Blink ability. In fact, its probably the only one you'll ever need. Nonetheless, Dishonored is unique and while I wished the story was a little bit better, its easily my favourite game of 2012, fully deserving of the awards and recognition it gained.… Expand
prev
Page:

Awards & Rankings

1
#1 Best PC Game of 2012
7
#7 Most Discussed PC Game of 2012
2
#2 Most Shared PC Game of 2012

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
91

Universal acclaim - based on 29 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 29 out of 29
  2. Mixed: 0 out of 29
  3. Negative: 0 out of 29
  1. PC Master (Greece)
    Feb 6, 2013
    90
    We can draw comparisons with other titles all day, but everything is based on something. Dishonored remains a unique gem in a beautiful, yet chaotic world, with flawless gameplay. [December 2012]
  2. Absolute Games
    Nov 9, 2012
    75
    Dishonored rarely challenges the players, but it doesn't take them for fools, either, so that's an achievement compared to other games in the genre. Just don't expect strokes of genius like the Shalebridge Cradle level from Thief: Deadly Shadows.
    Read full review
  3. LEVEL (Czech Republic)
    Nov 4, 2012
    100
    Dishonored injects new life into stealth actions and their sophisticated worlds. Awesome work in every detail. [Nov 2012]
See all critic reviews »