Dishonored 2
Dishonored 2 - is this a game for you?
Right now, the game is undergoing a spell of patching after a very poor PC release. The game worked for some, but not for many, and so your mileage will vary depending on your PC (not necessarily how powerful it is either - but how balanced, how much VRAM you have and such). As most reviews already centre around performance issues, I won’t spend too much time on those because I’d rather review the game itself but please bear them in mind (they are mentioned in the ‘not so good’ section below)….
– Real player with 111.9 hrs in game
Read More: Best Assassin First-Person Games.
My experience with this game can be summed as thus: every update I found myself testing the changes, nodding in satisfaction, then quitting the game to await the next update.
Arkane knows how to make a good game. No question. But if you film an Oscar-worthy movie and the lens is smudged while filming, you can’t judge what’s underneath without acknowledging what’s been marring your experience the entire time.
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PERFORANCE
Everyone is aware of the performance issues, and these still persist to this day. It runs much better than at launch, where it was literally unplayable, but that’s because the game looks worse than before - the most noticeable change being the extremely aggressive LOD scaling. Out of the corner of your eye you notice the shapes of window frames and posters on distant buildings morphing in shape, or the furniture at the opposite end of a long hallway suddenly blinking into existence. FPS dropped to 15 when stabbing a gravehound, so they simply removed the inky visual effect that was causing the problem instead of optimizing it.
– Real player with 111.0 hrs in game
Aragami 2
My experience with the game was very good. Finished it once in a lethal two player coop run, and then once again in a solo pacifit/stealth run. Both of my playthroughs were very relaxing and pleasant. The game world is pretty and the soundtrack is charming at times. Stealth gameplay is very solid yet not too tedious. Storytelling and dialogue is minimalistic, but it provides a good setting for the gameplay.
It is about 5 times longer than the first installment, the level design is more open and diverse, and the graphics are stylized but beautiful in their own right. It compares well to the “normal” difficulty of the original game, but I would prefer a setting to make visual and hearing perception distance of enemies greater than it is. Your character is less squishy than it was in the first game, but if you mostly play this for stealth, you will only notice when surviving a nasty fall here and there (though not always).
– Real player with 76.1 hrs in game
Read More: Best Assassin Co-op Campaign Games.
Despite the bugs and issues, this game had in the beginning, it was fun to play with friends.
– Real player with 28.7 hrs in game
Jiangshi x Daoshi
I absolutely love this game! It uses a refreshing mix of static avatars & backgrounds, with frequent animation and motion comic action panels reminiscent of Dead Leaves. This gives the game an extremely dynamic feel, which makes up for the lack of choices. Like many Visual Novels, heavy emphasis is on the word Novel, as such, interaction in this game is mostly limited to hunting for words that the in-game hover-dictionary may explain for you.
Jiangshi X Daoshi boasts a rich story packed with fantastic Chinese mythology/historical information, with a wholesome dynamic between the main characters.
– Real player with 9.9 hrs in game
Read More: Best Assassin Swordplay Games.
Please be mindful that this is the censored version uploaded to steam.
I wish to bring awareness to this. Apparently this VN was banned upon submission because of certain scenes and they’ve fought tooth and nail the bring it back for us to enjoy. Bans usually mean end of the line for most games from what I have heard. I’ve went back in to check most of these scenes and they aren’t even close to becoming questionable. For more on that story for those interested: Fruitbat Blog Post
– Real player with 7.7 hrs in game
Dishonored®: Death of the Outsider™
Caution: This review includes information that will spoil Dishonored: The Knife of Dunwall and Dishonored 2 for some readers!
While Dishonored and Dishonored 2 focus more on the politics of the Empire of the Isles, the side stories – The Knife of Dunwall, The Brigmore Witches, and now Death of the Outsider – explore the playable characters’ inner conflicts, as well as the dark, supernatural sides of the game series’ lore. This allows the developers to expand on the game universe without over bloating the main series titles, and give the side stories their own tone and personality.
– Real player with 29.9 hrs in game
Roughly a year after Dishonored 2 its expansion pack, Death of the Outsider, was released. Events take place just after its predecessor: we now take control of Billie Lurke and, initially, our job is to find her old mentor, Daud. Once he is located we are tasked with killing the Outsider. An interesting plot (even more interesting is the ending) that will continue in the 5 chapters the expansion pack offers.
New (albeit fewer) powers
It’s always nice to see what new ideas developers come up with. I thought Billie’d probably have Blink and Dark Vision and some new powers. Instead, even these powers have slightly been changed. We teleport by using Displace which first requires us to put a marker somewhere and only then can we finally complete teleportation. if the marker is put on an enemy he’ll die a gruesome death with bloody parts flying every which way.
– Real player with 28.3 hrs in game
Dishonored
Incredibly detailed steam-punk world. Play the way you want - stealth or shoot/slash ‘em up.
– Real player with 288.3 hrs in game
If Bioshock and Assassin’s Creed/Far Cry had a baby, this would be it.
Super fun and highly recommended!
– Real player with 44.7 hrs in game
Aragami
Masterpiece of stealth
– Real player with 44.1 hrs in game
“…it’s built around a fantastic and incredibly fun core that is unlike anything else out there and I hope to see more DLC, or even a sequel, in the future. It hooked me pretty badly – I just couldn’t get enough. I loved waiting for my moment to strike, then pulling off the perfect execution of teleports and takedowns, only to fade back into the shadows before anybody saw, or even fixing a mistake swiftly by taking out any alerted guards with precise ferocity.”
8/10
Full review at https://darkzero.co.uk/game-reviews/aragami-shadow-edition-pc-review/
– Real player with 27.0 hrs in game
Stormrite
Stormrite is an upcoming open-world Action-RPG set in the dark, fantasy-medieval kingdom of Redreach. You will play the role of a young squire, exploring a world full of chaos and conflict. Become an expert assassin, learn the arts of dark magic, or lead your armies into large-scale war. With multiple endings to all questlines and a rich character tree to decide how you interact with the environment and its inhabitants, you have the power to decide your role in the world of Stormrite.
THE STORY
UNRAVEL THE TWISTED HISTORY OF A VAST KINGDOM
Across the land, there were drawings and scratchings on the walls that hinted at the existence of some greater being. A being that could control time, the earth, the underworld, and anything else the human mind could perceive. There were drawings of it creating tornadoes, raising demons from the earth, and stopping time altogether. This being was feared across the land, and also worshipped by those who were too afraid to be afraid of it. They called it ‘Rek-Tu-Hiem’, ‘Requiem’ in modern terms.
PREPARE FOR REQUIEM’S RETURN
The kingdom of Redreach lived in a state of constant fear, subject to an endless cycle of suffering by this all-powerful being until, one day, it seemingly vanished without a trace. For years, Redreach’s strongest minds attempted to gain some insight into where this being’s immense power came from, and how it somehow disappeared off the face of the Earth. These studies led to the discovery of the Stormrites, a series of powerful scrolls that, in the wrong hands, could lead to the end of all life as we know it. You will learn about the Stormrites while navigating the mysterious kingdom of Redreach, meeting friends and foes along the way, creating your own story in a quest that can ultimately end in one of two ways. You being a hero of the people, or becoming just as powerful and feared as Requiem itself. The choice is yours…
HARNESS THE POWER OF THE FOCUS CRYSTALS
Human characters in Stormrite do not have any magical powers, and all powers are granted by focus crystals. To cast spells, players have to charge their focus via a crystal equipped to their character, with different crystals providing varying buffs and abilities to the player. Certain crystals in the endgame will give players immense power, and the more powerful crystals must be hunted for by the player. This system provides a contrast from the usual “regenerating mana bar” style of magic combat used in other games.
TRAVEL THE LAND AND DISCOVER THE SECRETS THAT LIE WITHIN
Explore a vast open-world filled with interesting landmarks and civilisations, learning skills and trades along the way from the people you meet in your journey across Redreach. You will begin in the small mining village of Silverhorn, a quiet settlement that is being terrorised by bandit travellers attempting to take control of the nearby silver mines. Whilst helping defend your neighbors from these thugs, you will discover dark secrets about the village and its residents, and its ties to the legendary tales of the Stormrites.
Along your journey, your character will become increasingly entangled with the storyline of the Stormrites, potentially finding yourself in a position where you must save the kingdom from the terrors that could be unleashed by these powerful scrolls.
From the intense droughts of the Southern deserts to the unforgiving winters of the North, Redreach has plenty of regions for you to explore, each with their own stories and legends.
CHOOSE YOUR PATH
With Stormrite’s branching skill trees you are given the ability to mould your character into the fighter you want to be. With a wide range of spells, weapons, and equipment to choose from, you can tailor your loadout every time to deal with each encounter that is thrown at you. Each tier of the skill tree increases the amount of specialisation available to your character, while the choices you made earlier into account to decide which paths you choose from next.
GAMEPLAY FEATURES
Stormrite is a fully single-player third-person experience. Your time will be spent going on enthralling quests, exploring the kingdom of Redreach and using various weapons and fighting techniques to dispose of your enemies. The three main styles of fighting are melee, ranged and magic. However, within each of these three categories there are several choices of weapon/combat style for you to choose. For example, ranged players can choose to go for a traditional bow and arrow loadout, can choose to go for a more clunky but powerful crossbow style, or even a hybrid melee-ranged loadout utilising agility, daggers, and throwing knifes.
Magic users can choose to cast spells that directly affect their enemies, summon companions to fight, or manipulate the very fabric of the world around them. You are also able to shoot spells into each other, resulting in some very interesting interactions that can be used to increase your options in combat.
Melee users also have plenty of choices, with 5 fighting styles (and counting) to choose from, and abilities to aid with your battles.
Stormrite will also have a companion system where you can bring allies on your travels to fight alongside you, either supporting you from behind or soaking up all the attention while you deal the damage from behind. This opens up many different ways to approach situations, with no two encounters being the same.
There are also plenty of other interesting gameplay mechanics that we have added/plan to add, such as mounts, feats, and many more!
Styx: Master of Shadows
SLIGHTLY IMPERFECT BUT WELL-EXECUTED AND TRUE STEALTH GAME
There are three things you need to know about this game.
1. It’s chock full of potty-mouthedness, including from the main character.
2. It is NOT a game you want to play if you like being the alpha badass.
3. It ranks up there with the original Thief games and others (skip down if this is all you care about).
I’ll address these and more in sequence in this review. It’s a long one, but maybe worth the read.
First off, as regards #1 above, if you’re too young, or if you, your parents, or your professed god do not approve of you being exposed to cussing and other adult humor, skip this game, cuz it’s not for prudes. That said, it’s all just words, put-downs, and sarcasm–only a little more advanced than the stuff that your average first-grader might hear daily on the playground or in the back of the school bus. I didn’t see any nudity or erotic content, so you won’t have to worry about that. Nobody was particularly racist, gay-bashing, etc., although masculine status does get insulted in a few spots. There was at least one subtle joke about masturbating–again, nothing that kids don’t know about already. Guards pee, and you can see the stream from any angle, but the source organ is never rendered; in fact, pants never come down, although associated movements do occur. I’d give it a PG-13 if it were a movie.
– Real player with 138.0 hrs in game
Caveat: the recommendation is intended for existing fans of the stealth genre. If you’re not familiar with espionage/infiltration gameplay, you’re unlikely to gain an appreciation for it in “Styx.” Though the story is decent, that plot progression is gated behind some maddeningly patience-trying stealth sequences, especially at the end.
Hope you’re looking for a challenge, because “Styx”, like DMX, is gonna give it to ya. Some of this difficulty is deliberate (enemies such as Knights and Elves, difficulty selections such as ‘Goblin’, mission insignias, etc). Sadly, some of it is a consequence of mixed design goals and sloppy controls/interface. What’s more frustrating than getting caught because, instead of dropping off the ledge to slip past a patrol, you instead slid across that same ledge and climbed up onto the next platform? Rather than the clever use of environmental interaction that worked in the same situation earlier, the same commands now send you on a completely unanticipated course, like some kind of slapstick scene in a comedy show. And in full view of the two Knights and elite crossbowman who had nothing better to do than hang out on the same balcony. All. Fucking. Night. The answer my friends is nothing. Nothing is more frustrating than that.
– Real player with 74.6 hrs in game
Shadowy Contracts
“If you’re a fan of stealth assassin games such as Hitman and like the idea of a fantasy spin with magical equipment and spells then my advice is dive in while the game is on discount. Hopefully a surge of initial support will encourage the developer to remain diligent.”
Full article (Plus gameplay videos) here - http://pixelpopnetwork.com.au/2019/10/shadowy-contracts-early-access/
– Real player with 9.1 hrs in game
This game is early keep that in mind. its new so there will be bugs. a lot of them. but if you can see past the bugs the game is amazing. addictive and very challenging. its got beautiful graphics and environments i just want to walk around and take in the sights. the combat takes some time to get the hang of but in the end it is rather enjoyable, cant wait to see what the development company has in store for this game. and at $12.00 usd its worth it. if there was one negative thing i would have to say about the game it would be the lack of being able to sell gear and weapons you loot. i found myself spending a lot of time dumping inventory.
– Real player with 6.5 hrs in game
ADM 2(WHEN WORLDS COLLIDE)
Angels,Demons and Men 2(when worlds collide) is a story rich,hack n slash,acdventure rpg.Darkness continues to take over
the lands.Explore new locations,master new skills,stand up and fight.
EXPLORE VARIOUS UNIQUE CHARACTERS AND THEIR EPIC JOURNEYS
Alexander(the royal guard) continues his journey back to the kingdom through the demon maze
Kaia(the angel) continues the search for her mentor and old friend
Audra(the mage) crosses into hell through a portal to free mia.
Cade (the demon king) continues to match his army through the kingdom and slaying everything in his way
Lance(the captain of knights) assembles the last men in the kingdom for one last stand against cade