I might be misremembering here, but I think the lack of chaos here is explained in game somewhere or the in the manual. Billie isn't as big of an influence in the world as Corvo or Emily, hence her actions have a smaller repercussions in the world at large. I think. I swear i read it somewhere
You have actually a really good chaos system in D2 Basically offing the target is a factor, but now some guards have families and so on more reliant so if they die it gets worse off than the others.
Agreed. Deathloop despite having the explantion that “even if you kill someone they’ll still be alive in the next Loop. So who cares?” And it does feed into the game’s message. As Julianna tries to egg you on. Tries to make you give into her way of doing things. Treating the NPCs in the game as test subjects. When the only right answer is to end the loop and stop playing. Even then it feels kind of hollow without a chaos system to judge you for your actions. I don’t feel as bad gunning down eternalists. Like I do Guards in dishonored.
@@awesomechainsaw And I think that's the point of the moral setup within Deathloop. The game doesn't put any moral query in front of your face. Instead, it tries to make you want to kill the visionaries, as all of them are terrible & horrible people in some way, shape, or form. From the little I've seen (since its exclusive ATM), it has a great amount more of weight put into information gathering & planning. It reminds me a lot about this game, which makes me feel a bit more excited about it. At the moment, I'm most curious to see how their latest game will hit in its more co-op structure.
@@GFHC406 I hope this is the case, and future games do use it, at least where it makes sense, to use an idea mentioned in the last video. Say you were playing as a slave breaking out of a labor camp (maybe even trying to lead some sort of revolution), there I feel the chaos system would work, could also be rather interesting, a revolution can easily become something rather violent and messy as seen in our own history, it’s be up to a player to at least try and keep it from devolving into that. But say we have a game exploring Pandyssia, don’t know if it would fit there, as far as I understand, Pandyssia doesn’t have much in the way of complex civilization, at least not a large scale, and the further inland you go the more eldritch thing will probably become, with animals seemingly connected to the void becoming more common. Yes you could be disruptive, but based on the stories we’ve gotten of the place I feel the environment would probably hit back harder. I supposed in that sense a chaos system could work, if you play thing violently, the world will become more and more hostile. The challenge for peaceful players would be navigating the world without inviting conflict, for violent players it’s trying to overcome the challenge you’ve invited on yourself (which actually sounds like it could sell pretty well now that I think about it)
That final segment was spectacular. I hadn't even thought that much about how unconventional Billie is for a mainstream protagonist, and how letting the rats speak was like elevating the voices of the oppressed. This was an excellent analysis.
The ending of Death of the Outsider destroyed me. I went for the merciful option and chose to save the Outsider. The conversation Billy had with Daud chilled me to my core and the story that DotO wanted to tell became clear: no matter how badly you muck things up, you can always chose to do the right thing. Additionally, the use of contracts was very interesting. Especially in level 4, Álvaro and the Abbey. Basically you are told to put a high Overseer in a 'music chair' so someone else can preform revenge on him for all his cruel deeds. I wanted to play a merciful playthrough (low chaos, no killings, stealing everything that isnt tacked to the wall) and when I explored the contract... Dear Lord. You find a witch locked up in the archives to get a confession out of her and audio recording on how previous 'sessions' went. The torture described and the cruelity the overseers delightfully inflict on said witches... harrowing. When I freed the witch, she asked me to kill every single one of them. I couldnt fault her for wanting that. I did however, wonder what the 'good' thing was to do. Let the man live and continue on his merry way? Kill him and be done with it or put him in the music chair and let him have a taste of his own medicine? I went for the last option. And when I spend more thought on it, I realized that whatever Billi's intentions for the man were and whether he/the abby could ever learn from this and thus IMPROVE the institution.. As Billy, you have only 2 options. Kill, or let them go. No Corvo that could fix things behind the scene's, no Emily with actual power. As a player, I felt powerless. So when you do get to the end of the game and you can make a choice to save the Outersider (and thus talking with Daud, convincing him to be better) or just to kill him, man. I felt that impact. BIlli did something that mattered and boiiii was it satisfying.
One thing I love about this game is the overall color palette and vibe. It’s not the mottled, beautifully smoggy watercolor of industry and fog like the first game, nor is it the bright, vivid, and defined warmness of the second installment. DoTO is graying and dusty, whose light is muted and faint. It’s a world that’s tired, all of it’s political and social systems fading or collapsing. It’s kinda like that Jacob Geller video, if anyone’s seen it, about Dark Souls 3 and the movie “I’m Thinking of Ending Things”. The world wants to move on, wants to fade and die, but it keeps getting dredged and pulled back, extending it’s decay.
Agreed about the colour palette, it’s the most beautiful of the 3 games because of that classy yet dusty look. Thanks for voicing my opinion before me ! Lol
Brilliant video as usual, it's criminal how little views your essays get. Please know many of us truly appreciate your effort, and the time it takes you to put these out for all of us.
When I played DotO for the first time a few years back I remember not being a big fan of it, but hearing your take on it now made me view certain aspects of it in a totally new light. I need to go back and play it again, and do it with a more open mindset this time... but first I'll be reading that article. Thanks for another awesome video essay! Your stuff is always so well thought out and beautifully edited.
I really hated DOTO, since the game destroys the mistery around this lovecraftian, eldritch, neutral and sharp entity that was the Outsider, but your review showed me many strong points in this game and for this, I thank you, great job.
On the contrary, it pokes a hole deeper, past the Outsider. We created the outsider to cope with and interface with a much deeper and unknowable world. The Void.
@@TheEnmineer "The Dutchman needs a captain" I think The Outsider was really just an avatar for a greater entity. If there's more in the Dishonored series (and I hope there is), this gives us the opportunity to explore more of the unknown, like you said.
@@TheWingus Yeah, while it demystifies the Outsider by doing so it also serves to further mystify the Void itself, which in my mind is a worthwhile trade.
In dishonored 1 The outsider said to corvo "Did you know that their are 8 people in this world that near my mark?" Corvo, the rat boy, Daud, Delilah, Grant rags... thats five. Who are the other 3? We were never told... which is what makes me hope we might one day find out.
@@geordiejones5618Emily's powers came later, so unless the Outsider was looking to the future, which granted would be an interesting addition to his abilities, I doubt he was counting her
@@sciencealltheway nope , he was given his powwers by granny rags (one of her powers is marking one aprentice with a fraction of her power , similar to dauds ability to give lesser versions of his powers to his assasins)
I have completed nearly 70 playthroughs of the first Dishonored. The knife of dunwall and brigmore witches got around 10. Dishonored 2 got just under 30. DotO got exactly 1. The lack of weight to your actions by removing chaos as well as the complete bullshit of the envisioned enemies one shotting you and being insanely durable made for the only time in the franchise I have been genuinely frustrated, and it lasted for many hours. I plan to revisit eventually, but I usually play games intent to 100% them. And I felt like I did that on the first try. I genuinely agree with most things you said, especially about the portrayal of rats. While not vegan myself, I did keep pet rats for many years and I have the same issue with the treatment of snakes and bats and spiders in basically every game ever made. It crushes me when I enter the abandoned temple and there's a hundred snakes that are minding their own business in a dark room and I'm forced to kill them to move to the next room.
Amazing video, and glad to find another vegan in the world ♡ i appreciated your specific acknowledgement of the empathization with animals in these games, especially the whales who are absolute pariahs in the dishonored universe, the symbolism there is so effective. This is by far the most affecting of the games in the series and you so perfectly captured its impact; I am trying so hard to get my partner to play it lol.
Regardless of the fact that based on your views and opinions, we would not be friends, I absolutely love these videos. I just came across yours recently, after watching some other ones, and I think yours are some of the best made video essays I've come across. The fact that this isn't the standard is a bit criminal.
Havent watched the full video but ya its criminally underrated and I really don’t know why. All I can think of is the price at launch and the dissatisfaction with D2. Either way DOTO resonated with me more than D2 and I just can’t get over the bank heist, probably my favorite mission in any game. Glad you are showing it some love
i always kind of felt bad for the rats being blamed for the plague, because they were just doing what rats do. it wasn't their fault, they were tricked and used just like everyone else, and the reputation rats hold with just about everyone is going to blame them for spreading disease. they're animals, and only following their instincts. the object of blame should be high overseer campbell, which is why i love the nonviolent ending of that mission to broadcast and sort of clear not only corvo's name, but clear the rats names as well, since they don't have a voice until this particular dlc.
Man you make a great video on Death of the Outsider and then you throw down the best take in the universe: “I was mistreated by many people (rich AND poor), so to fight back I’m gonna commit murder for money”
I've played all 3 games over and over. This whole series is just fantastic IMO. Watching some of the "gods" who play this game like StealthGamerBR utilize the combat and mechanics just blows my mind. But that's just the surface. The story and characters give life to this pandora's box of real and imagined. For me, the 1st and DotO are best for the story and narrative world-building but the second...oh man the second blow them both out for me just for one simple reason. Replay value. The different builds, subtle ways to change your style and approach while still fitting the overall narrative just mmmm! I could go on for hours about these games and I might even do that. Great work once again! Edit: Daniel Licht's music always gets me...now more than ever. Never doubt the importance of music in works. R.I.P. Daniel
My girlfriend works for a museum, and when I told her the next level of this random game I was playing was a museum level, she audibly gasped. Then when I played it, it felt very...closed off. All the exhibits gone, all the magic lost. I will disagree that it feels out of place. I think it's the perfect level for right after the bank heist. Billie is at her lowest point, her life has lost all mooring. I think her story in this section mirrors that of the starcrossed couple whose quests you can complete (or ignore accidentally on my first playthrough, which made me put down the game for a few days) where she's trying to succeed, but everything feels...closed. This great place has been halved, made tiny, had the magic sucked out of it. A land that's lost its history, the records all slashed and burned and the women behind it either butchered or brain-busted (and possibly worse, if one particular recording is to be believed). Billie's world is dying, and the fact that this place is both familiar but missing something is much how Billie feels about Karnaca right now; the city is still the same she's always known, but it's...emptier for Daud's absence. She wants to be happy, but the world is a less colorful place than she remembers. I feel like having this place back in the game shows better than anything else that time is moving beyond the game we remember. The past has been lost. Only the future will save us. All that aside, I feel like your analysis has gotten sharper in every video. I loved the full-circle nature of the rats, going from a mindless weapon in D1 to a companion in DotO. The last level was great, though I haaaaated trying to do a ghost playthrough with the crystal boys skulking about. I swear they could see my foresight and followed it back to me every time I used it. And yes, this game is so, sooooooooo gay. I loved it. I think the only thing I never understood was how she lost her eye and arm, then got them back, then lost them again. I know it's a demonstration of her powers, and a damn cool visual upgrade, but it did feel weird. Anyway, off to get my popcorn ready for the Prey video. Can't wait!
I love the way you describe the museum level. I haven't played these games in a long time, but I've been going through Dishonored nostalgia videos at the moment and loving them, and from what I remember I also felt disturbed by what happened to that place. If I remember correctly, it made me sympathize a lot for the witch coven. As sadistic as they were, they were (pun intended) outsiders looking for community, and the queer themes made it all the more impactful for me. As far as Billie's eye and arm, I wanted to mention something, even if you already knew this, mostly because I didn't hear Eric comment on this either in his videos and I found it strange that he left it out of his videos. In Dishonored 2, Billie mentions in a bit of dialogue how at some point she lost her arm and eye fighting the Duke's guards at Stilton's manor trying to find out what happened to him. If you rescue Stilton and preserve his sanity, when you return to the boat Billie's eye and arm are whole because that chain of events never happened. I found that to also be a very powerful experience, accidentally healing wounds as a result of a good deed that was never even considered as a possibility of the mission. In DotO, Billie's powers come from a result of these diverging timelines, and her eye and arm enter this state of being both there and not there. Playing this after going through all the possible outcomes in the last game, the reality for Billie that the literal state of her body relies so much on the unknown acts of others (i.e Emily or Corvo) was also a lot for me to process. Sorry for the wall of text, especially if none of that last paragraph was new information to you. Just realizing in the last few days that this game series that meant so much to me also meant so much to others is amazing, and really speaks to the quality of these games. Dishonored's ability to tackle such real emotions and ethical dilemmas while also being so visually stunning show them, in my opinion, to be very effective works of art.
She regained her arm because canonically, Emily prevented Aramis Stilton from going to the Delilah ritual. Because of that, she never went looking for him in the dust district and didn't get fucked up by the guards. But she mentions she still has dreams of a world where she's lost both the eye and arm, it's like both worlds overlap and one reality bleeds into the other. Way I see it, the outsider makes it so there's only one Billie. One that has her arm and eye and at the same time doesn't. So that's how she got and lost and got them again
i’m so happy to hear someone else say what i’ve been saying forever, wish i found your channel sooner. i’ve always hated how much hate this game gets from the community when it did so much well, it broke some norms but created a truly unique product and the experimentation paid off. the upper cyria district is genuinely one of the greatest areas in any video game, i absolutely love everything about it. its so open and free but in classic arkane style every inch of it has purpose and meaning. i also really appreciate the recognition that the powers lend to billie’s skillset; as a much more experienced assassin she seems to have a much more planned and purposeful approach and her powers mirror that so well. playing as billie just feels so cool, doing heists and detective work is so fun in this game. also hearing someone praise billie as a character is equally appreciated, she’s so underrated and is genuinely my favourite character in the dishonored world, she has so much personality and her character development is genuinely so interesting and relatable. i also love how she’s the first protagonist from a truly “low” position in society; she has been trodden on and ruled over her entire life and like you said, it has lit a revolutionary spark in her. for a game so driven by class conflict, being on the other side of it for once *genuinely* feels moving. experiencing the dishonored world from the eyes of billie feels completely different to any of the other dishonored playable characters in a way that’s hard to explain. it also lends itself to the much more relaxed world in this game, at least in the second and third missions. when i say relaxed i mean it as in, in dishonored one and two, the entire populace is directly entwined in the narrative, the coups and assassinations are much more directly influential and everyone is aware at least of the basics. but death of the outsider is slightly different. emily is in power and the empire is fairly stable. all of the inequalities still exist, but in terms of direct and obvious danger, not much is happening. billie herself is a much less prominent face than corvo, emily and daud. the game early on has this interesting contrast where you’re basically planning to kill god himself but in an almost nonchalant and secretive setting. i don’t know how else to phrase it, but it just has a really unique vibe that i really enjoy. “the rich pay to poison themselves with this bullshit… with they’d just finish the job” “good evening michael’s deposit and loan, i’d like to make a withdrawal” two of my favourite voice lines from billie :)
Hey man, such a great series you've put together, well balanced between personal opinions and explanation of what these games bring to the players. I'm rarely entertained so much by videogames essays but yours are some of the best i've listened to here on yt. About the chaos system I'm not sure we won't see it never again because Deathloop is not developed by the same division of Arkane which have done the Dishonored sereis, maybe, there is a chance to see this beautyful and meaningful system in their next project. By the way keep on on this level of quality and you'll see reults very soon, to the next video
Thanks for your kind words! Deathloop is being directed by Dinga Bakaba, who also directed Death of the Outsider. I expect his priorities remain the same. Hopefully whatever Harvey is working on right now will feature something like a chaos system, or at least nonlethal options.
These videos were a great listen, thank you so much, right now I’m waiting to be able to upgrade my computer before I replay the whole series once again. Probably get the ghost achievements on PC. I actually preordered the second game collectible edition and got that sweet mask statue.
As a fan of the Dishonored games since the first one, thanks for these videos, they are awesome. Each time I replay DotO I´m surprised by how good it is. I´m also with you that the lack of non-lethal options in Deathloop is concerning and I hope that change isn't introduced into Dishonored.
I've never played dh2, but recently they made free dhdoto on epic, and I'm slicing trough the game. I'm kind of thankful in a way of they removing the chaos system. It allows you to play a continuous game, no need to quickload if you need up, because killing a few guards if you get caught feels way more immersive, and you got tools to get out of trouble.
A fantastic essay, as I've come to expect of you. Another aspect of Death of the Outsider that gives very interesting perspective is the nature of the Outsider and the Abbey of the Everyman. The Outsider himself is no omnipotent or malign being. He is the product of people desperate to put a face to the incomprehensible nature of the Void, as is essentially the point of the majority of religions; allowing us to antarpermorphise that which we do not understand so we do not linger on existential questions. And in regards to the Abbey, when you look deep into their symbolism and ways, they are in fact derived from that which they call heresy. The Oracular Sisters for example gain their prophetic insights from a type of void link, their iconography derived from the very same thing as the Eyeless; being the Eye of the Dead God. This is also hinted at in the very first game regarding the functionality of the Ancient Music, which in itself uses the void as a way of counteracting its power. It is a very interesting way to point out the hypocrisy of religions zealously undermining and demeaning other faiths out of blind belief, when more often than not they have more in common then what truly separates them. Since religion is often such a delicate subject to discuss/criticise, putting it in a well worked-out fictional environment is an interesting way to allow one to think about and discuss the matter. The Abbey in this series for example calls into question the ethics of religious indoctrination that can extend to horrible outcomes given the circumstances. Even here I feel I tread on eggshells so I'll emphasise that I am perfectly fine with people's faith as long as it does not actively undermine, oppress or harm others. It is a shame it even has to be said.
Honestly i didn't like this game as much as the previous two but I did really appreciate the way they handled the outsider. The idea of the outsider being simply the most recent avatar of the void was really interesting, regardless of your choices in the game a new avatar will be chosen. While this revelation makes killing him pointless as it just starts a cycle over, it does make freeing him more impactful as while you can't stop the voids influence on the world you can atleast save someone who's life was stolen by it.
Well done again! I hate that doto is so overlooked. Like you said, the final mission is by far the most difficult in the series and man it makes it so much more fun and tense. Also can't wait for your Prey video!
The problem i had with this game was the title made me think the outsider was a antagonistic. I didnt believe that at all so i didnt get the game thinking i wouldnt have a choice
amazing video! i was directed to your channel by a friend who liked your videos, and i definitely do not regret binging your dishonored videos as a result. i enjoyed your analysis, and you brought up some themes of the games that i hadn't thought about much before. that bit on self-love and outsiders at the end definitely resonated with me. i will definitely need to go read that article on queer themes in the game. it's interesting to me that you found the final mission the most difficult in the series, because that was not at all my experience with the mission when i played death of the outsider recently. i found the envisioned fairly simple to sneak past. they're slow, and there weren't that many of them, so i could easily mark all of the ones nearby with foresight, and use the teleport ability to get past them without being seen. maybe the fact that i never really got the hang of using semblance helped? i never really used it, so the inability to use it for stealth didn't really hurt me. the fact that i knocked out pretty much every cultist i could find probably also helped, since it meant that after i activated the eye, the envisioned were pretty much the only enemies left, and i could manouver around them fairly easily, which wouldn't have been the case had i left the cultists undisturbed. the doto final mission wasn't the easiest in the games by any means, i would probably have it fairly high up if i ranked all the dishonored missions by difficulty, but i personally found the clockwork mansion (at least without the upgrade that lets you stealth-kill the clockwork soldiers with only one blow, and before i learned the map so thoroughly) and the flooded district more difficult.
I always felt that the rats were more allies of convenience. They never seemed to want to help me over much, I was just listening in on them. And you know, they talk about eating people a lot, which kinda puts a barrier between me and them. I did think they were cute though, for I have always had a soft spot for most animals called vermin.
"the revolutionary act of self-love when the world does nothing but tell you that you're something to be hated" will remain my all-time favorite quote. kudos for the great videos, this is some quality video-essaying
Outstanding video. Wonderful thank you. I adore this series and all its lore and you describe it so eloquently. Billie is an amazing character rich in depth and this video essay superbly explains why. Thank you
You are amazing, so amazing that I am forced to write a whole paragraph in youtube comments. I'm pretty young and I only just played the Dishonoured trilogy this year, after giving the first game a tentative try and becoming completely hooked, and you have made a brilliant summary of these 3 games which have left me scrabbling to find more (including buying Prey while it was on sale). I always felt that D2 was lacking something that I just couldn't quite put into words, despite the fact that I think it is much more entertaining (especially as a naturally nonlethal player), and in your second video you helped me understand what was missing. Then, like you, expecting lesser quality in a game meant to be DLC about the Outsider, especially after my disappointment at his voice change and randomly revealed backstory (which I felt was without weight, and ruined a lot of his mystery for no real reason), I was stunned to find what I consider to be the best of the trilogy and one of my favourite games in both story and gameplay (the nonlethal gadgets are a treat to use, especially as I usually get stuck using one tactic in the other games, e.g. I never used possession in my nonlethal runs). This game makes me appreciate Robin Lord Taylor (even if I still prefer Billy Lush, without voice effects) and his portrayal of the Outsider, as well as fleshing out Billie Lurk, who I really enjoyed from Daud's story - I think she was brilliant and was ecstatic when I saw her as the face of Death of the Outsider, another parallel in that it is a successor to the Daud DLCs in the same way D2 was for Dishonoured, and they star the protégés of the MCs from those. This game brings back the class commentary that was relegated to Billie saying you're complicit in Abele's corruption, and graffiti on the walls, and makes it the picture rather than the frame it was in the first game, even if it was a well-made frame. These videos are what I have been frantically searching for, since finishing these games and labelling Arkane as my favourite studio (Sorry Larian, I am too fickle with my obsessions). I have vomited some of my thoughts into this with no regard for readability, and if no-one reads it I can still be happy I've written this stuff down somewhere. Thank you, and I will certainly be looking out for your further content! Also I HAD NO IDEA YOU COULD MAKE MARKERS TO TELEPORT TO WHILE ASTRAL PROJECTING AND I CANNOT BELIEVE MY OWN IGNORANCE
Thanks for the video; I enjoyed the watch. Having recently played through this game for the first time, it’s quite apparent to me now how differently we experience the game, haha. I quite enjoyed my time with it. I’m glad you did as well. I liked the energy regeneration change and agree with your positive take on it. I felt freed by the removal of the chaos system, being able to play the game with all the tools available was fun. Normally I choose to play non lethal and feel I’m missing out on lots of fun gameplay since I only do one play through. That was a major complaint I’d come across others expressing in the previous dishonored games. It seems you’ve appreciated the weight of the moral choices more in that trade-off. I’d be happy to see the chaos system come back, even with my experience with this game, though. One comment I had on the script is that it was off-putting for me to hear that you (paraphrased) ‘hope they make the right choice’ in bringing back the chaos system. I’m often uncomfortable with that sort of statement on other people’s art/creations. This idea that there is a right way for them to make things in the future. It seems like there are more respectful way to express your desires. I found your exploration of the themes interesting, though I don’t seem to engage on that level myself very much. Thanks again for the video and I look forward to watching your prey one once I get to playing it. : )
I actually didn't notice that much that DotO had no chaos system, because when a game gives me the option to play non-lethal I can't bring myself to kill, lol
Personally, I think Daud's character was just ruined by this game. He went from a path of redemption and taking responsibility for his actions, full of regret but with empathy in his heart. "I've had enough killing." Then in this game, he suddenly blames the outsider for everything, and thinks one last assassination will just solve all their problems. His whole character arc that made me love him just gets completely reversed for seemingly no reason.
I am mostly impressed and do strongly agree with your insightful analysis except for one. I felt that Chaos system was not excluded but rather sophisticated to blend in to the narrative itself. It felt more subtle and genuine to feel guilty to murder a man with a life and his family rather than to mark yes or no to deliberately placed checkpoints.
What an excellent set of videos! It's nice to see some of the views I have, but also to see the games through new eyes. I'll remember some of these for for next time I play! I hope maybe in the future you might do my other favourite, the Metro 2033 series!
I listened to your Dishonored Videos and i have to say im amazed by the depth you explore the franchise. Although there are for sure some points were i would disagree (for example, i wouldn't argue it would be better to narratively punish or alter Emily for her seeming passiveness as ruler (seeming since other sources claim she actually tries her best to change the state of the empire), i would agree that some stance had to be made, even trying to justify or excuse her failure, as it would made it better or believable since taking a political stance is the core of a ruler), i love that you even bring such things up and in this give me the opportunity to reflect as well on something that i might have taken too granted in video games. Hope you will also make a video on deathloop!
I think the absence of the chaos system made sense lore-wise at leas. In D1 we had the rat plague as a tool of telling us "if you keep killing, more rats will plague the city" and in D2 its similar with the blood flies. The Duke did not pay much attention to them. Now with Paolo/Byrne (+ Fake Duke) in charge they care more about it and handle the blood fly problem, and the rat plague was also dealt with. So killing a bunch of people does not harm the city at least. It is only a moral thing for the player in this game really...
It seems that race was never an issue in the dishonored world, and apart from the sexual assault themes in dishonored 1, sexuality and gender don't seem to be issues as they are in our world either, as in we never hear about anyone getting hate-crimed for any of these aspects of their identity, or it even being up for debate (contrasted with the real world where some people feel the need to debate the validity of others' identity). What they did with protagonist choice is cool as you said, but in-universe I don't think it actually has significance. To be clear, I see this as a good thing! The worldbuilding convinces the player that a world where race, sexuality, gender, and possibly disability (I only say possibly here because apart from Billie no one's popped into my head) are non-issues, as they never should have been in our real world. That said, Arkane does seem to emphasise class struggle a lot, and it seems that it might be way too plausible for one to interpret that as Arkane being class-reductionist?? idk. Would love to discuss with you because I love Dishonored and keep coming back to the gameplay and the story.
I identify as royalty and my pronouns are sire and your majesty. You'd better not debate the validity of my identity you bigot. And dishonored is incredibly racist. There wasn't a single furry gender fluid otherkin black demiboy in Victorian style England. Thats racist, sexist transphobic ableist and any other buzzword I forgot to mention.
@@brandonmaster7901 if you want to get serious, royalty is a social class, not a gender. You're making a transphobic joke and it's not funny. Maybe deep down you don't think genders should exist, and I would agree, but if that's the view you hold, this is not the way to express it
@@nuklearboysymbiote "maybe deep down you think gender shouldn't exist" how in the fuck did you get that from my comment. Gender is a biological reality, saying it shouldn't exist would be like saying your circulatory system shouldn't exist, which would be borderline retarded. We are a sexually dimorphic species with clear biological differences between male and female, but don't believe your lying eyes and 3rd grade biology i guess cause that's transphobic lmao.
@@brandonmaster7901 oh you're conflating gender with sex. sex is definitely real, or at least more real than gender has any right to be. Chromosomes, hormones, gametes, they're all as real as can be. But gender? It's talking about assigning labels to behaviours that are so complex even biology or neuroscience don't have an answer to. Does biology explain why wearing dresses is labelled ”feminine”?
Jesus, that other guy fucking went off. But I agree, the main focus of this world is class, or more specifically power. The rest of the stuff is minimized to focus on an idea, which unfortunately it seems they only seem to allude to instead of actually speak much on. At the end of the day it's a fun immersive sim with a pretty milquetoast morality system that just appears to say that killing is bad.
Death of the outsider was the first dishonored game I played, which led to me playing the other two games and falling in love with this these games. After watching this video I have GOT to play this game again
Great game. Love gameplay, story and attention to details. This specific, graphic "Arkane style" is just amazing for me. In the Dishonored series, I take great pleasure in exploring every corner and reading every found note that allows me to dive deeper into this amazing world.
Lmao people in the comment be like: "Stop talking about politics in the critique of this game that is openly political and talks about class conflict" Literally 0 ability of media critique
Between my Low Chaos and High Chaos run of this, the only difference I noticed was that Daud would behead all of the Eyeless instead of simply knocking them cold.
I think my biggest gripe for getting this new DLC was that it was the first $40 DLC I’d ever seen. Granted I don’t say this in a way to imply their work isn’t worth $40 and/or more than that, however in a day and age where multiple games series drop multiple DLC‘s over a lifetime, a $40 side quest essentially didn’t speak to me immediately so I waited for a sale
Also, if you have not read the accompanying Dishonored novels, I highly recommend them! They are particularly well written, especially for licensed novelizations, and enrich the overall series by acting as prologues and tie-ins to separate entries. The Corroded Man follows Corvo and Emily in the events leading up to Dishonored 2. The Knife of Dunwall follows Daud after the assassination of Jessamine, and the final book follows Billie after the Death of the Outsider. They're all really good. Hopefully we get a third main entry someday, exploring a world without the Outsider (or with something far worse taking his place), and visiting far off corners of this magnificent steampunk world, like the mysterious dark continent of Pandyssia.
I agree that getting rid of the mana pool was a great idea, but for a different reason. In the lore (conon D2 playthrough + the books) Billie was not marked, so elixer wouldn't work for her. She gets her powers from the arm and eye she got from the outsider, think of them like void relics. They were given due to the time impossibility created in A Crack In The Slab in D2. Billie lost her arm and eye from a guard in Aramis Stilton's manor when she went to investigate what happened. When Emily went back in time, she gave Billie her arm and eye back, but Billie had nightmares of losing them from a mission that never happened. She was given the tools to kill the outsider due to a riple in time that the outsider created by giving Emily the ability to travel back in time. Cause and effect, actions and consequences.
These videos have been a gift. Amazing work so far! Has anyone checked out the novels or comics he mentioned? Would love to know if they’re worth picking up.
It is kinda funny how many peopleare upset over politics in gaming, when really they don't mind politics in media. They just don't like the ones that challenge them.
@@eggsbenedict2251 I mean. Yeah the military sponsors movies in order to ensure that they're portrayed positively despite high amounts of sexual violence, war crimes and racism. Is that what you meant?
Just beat this and wow was it good. The textures, atmosphere and sound and music are peerless. Like being inside a murky old oil painting. Not to mention how awesome the gameplay is, and how richly detailed every single level is. I love the whole series and find myself craving another game like this where you have supernatural powers. Tried Alan Wake but ugh, that is not a fun game. I will for sure be replaying Prey again.
so ironic how games drenched in politics, even if they dont do a great job of expressing any kind of meaningful perspective, always attract so many people from the "stop shoving politics down my throat!!!!1!11!!" crowd. anyway, once again great job on this video, im excited to see what else you put out
Cant believe I missed the premiere, oh well. Cant wait to get into this Edit: damn that was good, i really respect how you dont shy away about teh sort of political aspects of thae game and what you took away from them, you did kand make me feel bad about slautering every rat i found in game for the lols.
After half a dozen playthroughs I completely forgot Billies starting skillset, as new game + Carrie's over all skills from Dishonored 2, and thus I usually play with those. I need to try again with Billies skills apparently. Otherwise, the new levels, especially the first couple Karnaca bank levels and Shindarey peak levels, are among the best in the series IMO.
I agree with everything said in this video but the only thing I would add is the fact that there is MUCH less written lore to read in game. In D1&2 almost every room had something to read or even up to 4 seperate things to read but lots of rooms have absolutely nothing in DOTO. Fat was trimmed indeed but I loved getting lost in journals and notes
I'd say that Dishonored 2 did the social part with much more impact though. Player automatically roots for Emily who is fighting against evil usurpers, gangs, betrayers, etc. To restore order and bring peace (chaos system makes player think that there is a good and peaceful way to deal with the situation). But then comes the realization, that it takes a lot to drive the country into THAT many problems. And barely any of those problems (except for personal enemies and betrayers) were addressed and dealt with. Player is caught into thinking "I'll deal with the enemies, minimize casualties of bystanders, and everything will be good". But there's literally no indication that it will. Aristocracy was slightly decimated, practically no political alliances were made. The only tool at the Empress's disposal after the ending is good old military power plus the Outsider's force. No channels of communication were established (even Billy left her). There's an option to team up with the overseers, but it's not very promising In the end a very bitter taste is left regarding social-economic situation of the country
tbh I feel like the envisioned are too hard. Clockwork soldiers were the perfect balance of a difficult enemy while these things were just purely frustrating. I did not enjoy that part of the last level. With regards to the rats, have you tried killing them while they're speaking? When you do they start screaming in terror, kind of puts in a different perspective all the rats you slaughter in the first game lol
I honestly always wondered why people dunked on death of the outsider so much, I personally really liked it and its refreshing hearing someone be at all positive about it for once!!
Oh wow i just finished the game and wondered about the bank heist because I didn’t really think of the stuff I put into the ventilation and I thought to myself why is everyone sleeping such a weird mission concept 😂😂
Very well expressed and nuanced critique. My ideal next Dishonored game: In VR, play as both Billie Lurk and Daud in their early days. Daud would again be a complex character, a decent, tough youth disillusioned deeply, but slowly turns until he is unrecognizable, as a killer, but also a savior. Billie orphaned, lost but briefly found, a relief and joy torn away to leave a void in her heart, all memories pale in its light and all experience and ambitions defined by it. The next worst version of Dishonored ignores the mystery of the void and materializes it as the book series does at the end. They can mine the void like fuel. That reductionism kills the magic, just like George Lucas' comeback trilogy Star Wars made plain and boring the power of jedi, their magic became microscopic life forms, i.e. the magic isn't you, not in you, it's outside.
One thing that I wish Arkane had done differently with the chaos system is making an exemption for civilians and guards who are revealed to have done seriously awful things. Using the heart to scan people reveals some pretty nasty things about the NPCs. Things that would warrant a death sentence. I wish that killing those monstrous people would have no consequence when it comes to the chaos system.
i actually really hope we see a dishonored 3 at some point. i'd love to have a breath of the wild lvl of dishonored game. a game where that chaos system REALLY has a purpose even beyond that of the narrative do you go through the game slowly and stealthy? working the game in a crawl till you get upgrades to let you run stealthily? or do you go in guns blazing from the word go? killing swarms of people at a break neck pace? the idea of how you play controlling the pace of a game and that choice really mattering beyond simply how quick you go through the game sounds awesome to me. i'd be lying if I said i didn't love the idea of a dishonored game centered around the newly resurrected outsider and playing as him. using his god powers to explore and slaughter in a massive open world
I honestly kind of like not having the chaos system for this game. The world still reacts to our decisions, just not in the grand world redefining way it does with the chaos system. One example is how when we free Daud, if we played nonlethally, he'll only knock out the remaining hoodlums, whereas if we've killed, he'll do the same. This isn't a story where our decisions will change the world. No matter what we choose, the game ends with the Outsider gone. It doesn't matter if it's because we killed or saved him, the impact on the rest of the world is the same. But for that one boy who was once a god, that single decision makes all the difference, and I think that's what DotO is all about. It doesn't matter if the chaos system is there or not, what matters is that the world still reacts to our choices in the small, more subtle ways that Dishonored and Arkane as a whole do so well
Yk initially I thought of asking you to do a similar video on portal and boneworks, but having completed the game I'm not so sure what themes you could draw from them 🤧
I've played both and I would consider writing about Portal some day, but I don't really care for Boneworks. It was neat, but other VR games do what it does far better. It felt like it tried to do everything and as a result did nothing exceptional.
Excellent video! I've played "Dishonored" and "Dishonored 2" multiple times, but I've only played "Death of the Outsider" once. Didn't really like it, but that was right after a D2 play through, so maybe it was just series fatigue. I'll have to check it out again...
Thanks for making this video. I too feel that DotO is an overlooked piece of brilliance. I never understood people's angle of the game being too easy when to me it's always been a power fantasy. It reminds me of similar issues people have with Suikoden being "too easy" when in fact the point was to make it accessible and let people focus on the plot and their favourite characters. Your part on foresight perfectly encapsulates my own thoughts on the subject, and I wonder that Worthabuy would think of the subject considering he shares my hatred of wallhacks. I don't like using foresight as I prefer the mystery of not knowing, but I like what they did with it regardless. It says a lot that I like DotO when I tend to despise games which reuse levels. I also love the rat artefact, and feel that it links to the angle of you playing a character who's lived in the shadows and the gutter for their whole lives. I also agree with your angle on their removal of the chaos system, and am equally as baffled and concerned should Dishonored 3 ever become a thing as much as I feel it's unlikely as it'd have to be the start of a new story on Pandyssia in all likelihood which may well be too risky a venture. I too feel they got rid of Daud in a rather underwhelming way. I must however state that I felt the the last level was rather underwhelming, and I didn't find the Envisioned to be interesting at all. They hit me as a bland lump of rock in a cave that acted as a random chunk of HP. The whole level hit me as a long boring funnel to an admittedly satisfying ending. That being said, I never vibed with Half-Life either so maybe that's got something to do with it. I do like the mirroring of the Whalers and the Outsider a fair amount. Whilst I'm rarely one to mention the culture wars, I honestly feel the focus on Billie's colour and sexuality subsumed this game. More pity those who missed it. One last gripe: you implied the rats aren't cute. I heartily disagree. As an ex-butcher, I could wax verbose about ethical meat eating vs vegan vertical farming vs permaculture vs the nature of harm et cetera. This isn't the time for that, but it's certainly an interesting rabbit hole. Good luck moving forwards. Keep taking your time making good content, and never kneel to the algo or your fans. You do you. That outro paragraph was worthy of Dawn Ray'd. Great stuff.
It's such a pity that so many people disliked DotO, I think it is in fact one of the strongest games in the series and I've played it quite a lot. I love the atmosphere and the sense of being on another side, street rat vs royalty. The themes of forgiveness thread through the whole game. And the mechanics were honestly incredibly enjoyable! Strange what expectations do to us 😅 I hope there's more people out there who loved this concluding piece to the story :)
"Black, openly bisexual woman" isn't a big deal, after all, Dishonored is another setting, and we do not know how these things are viewed in the Dishonored world, we do know at least that women can get into the police/military, going by some of Serkonos' high ranking guards. Those brownie points really worth stooping as low as to address a non-issue?
There aren't many black protagonists in AAA games. Nor are there many strong and self assured LGBT women. Representation matters, and I believe very strongly that Arkane deserves praise for Billie's depiction.
@@EricCrosby I think we shouldn't care what race or sexuality the protagonist is, diversity is nice, but I have to say that often, people care a bit too much about it, sorry if I sounded like an ass in the first comment, by the way, just worried about exactly that. Billie is a nice protagonist, that's all I care about, and I've seen too many people complain about some diversity quotas. Also thanks for the reply, didn't expect an answer to a comment so much after the video was posted. EDIT: I'm also going to correct my first comment, as it does appear that women face at least some lesser treatment than men, at least in Gristol, Serkonos seems to be doing fine, but in the High Overseer mission, the Abbey does seem to think that a young girl wanting to do stuff like reading and learning about technology is heresy, and that she should be learning how to clean, instead.
@@GloriousZote to me it does matter quite a bit when a protagonist is female and/or queer because that's part of myself. Most of the time I hear people say "oh it shouldn't matter", it's by people who see themselves all the time anyways so there is no lack for them and therefore nothing missing. Do I want a well written character first and foremost? Absolutely. I hate it when corporations basically beg me to pat them on the back for having a female and/or queer character at the front, letting them run around with a big rainbow neon sign, thinking that's it. But if they write a good character who happens to be all those things I can identify with TOO? That's a great feeling and I wish people would be more open to understand why marginalized groups of people may "focus too much" on that. If you barely ever had something like that representation (and that means the well written ones, not the shoehorned characters who are written for brownie points but without any actual personality) especially compared to others, you often latch on to what little there is. Maybe try to empathize a little bit more and try to see it from a different perspective :)
On lethal/non lethal: Is it usually a choice though? For me personally it's a decision to play a game non lethally that I make at the beginning of a play through and never change my choice. Which means it might as well be a toggle and usually not a moral choice but due to thinking not killing nets me the "best ending" the devs planned. Proper morality system should insetivise moment to moment decision making and not have it be influenced by a stat screen.
On later playthroughs I did play one way or the other, but my first time through these games (which is always the best) I did a little bit of both. I would kill only if the situation demanded it. It was an interesting and exciting way to play.
I had the opposite problem from you dishonored 2 ran great on my pc but death of the outsider kept crashing and wouldn't let me slide I had to play it on xbox where it ran fine but looked less pretty
DoTO isn’t really my favorite of the series, but I agree with the powers being an upgrade, the gameplay being amazing, and the final mission being incredible with incredible enemies. Tbh, I just hope DoTO isn’t the end of Dishonored. It’s clear people can get magic from the void without bearing his mark, so, it’s not like they can’t continue it. But it does feel like them trying to end it. Honestly, my first play through of dishonored games are always low chaos, and I didn’t replay this game, so I never actually noticed there wasn’t a chaos system. XD I do hope they don’t do away with it entirely, the chaos system is what really made Arkane games stand above others, in my opinion.
![Dishonored: Death of the Outsider - Lore (To Kill a God) [SPOILERS]](/img/1.gif)
Dishonored- or anything in same universe- is gonna feel a lot different without the chaos system.
I might be misremembering here, but I think the lack of chaos here is explained in game somewhere or the in the manual. Billie isn't as big of an influence in the world as Corvo or Emily, hence her actions have a smaller repercussions in the world at large. I think. I swear i read it somewhere
You have actually a really good chaos system in D2
Basically offing the target is a factor, but now some guards have families and so on more reliant so if they die it gets worse off than the others.
Agreed. Deathloop despite having the explantion that “even if you kill someone they’ll still be alive in the next Loop. So who cares?”
And it does feed into the game’s message. As Julianna tries to egg you on. Tries to make you give into her way of doing things. Treating the NPCs in the game as test subjects.
When the only right answer is to end the loop and stop playing.
Even then it feels kind of hollow without a chaos system to judge you for your actions. I don’t feel as bad gunning down eternalists. Like I do Guards in dishonored.
@@awesomechainsaw And I think that's the point of the moral setup within Deathloop. The game doesn't put any moral query in front of your face. Instead, it tries to make you want to kill the visionaries, as all of them are terrible & horrible people in some way, shape, or form. From the little I've seen (since its exclusive ATM), it has a great amount more of weight put into information gathering & planning. It reminds me a lot about this game, which makes me feel a bit more excited about it. At the moment, I'm most curious to see how their latest game will hit in its more co-op structure.
@@GFHC406 I hope this is the case, and future games do use it, at least where it makes sense, to use an idea mentioned in the last video. Say you were playing as a slave breaking out of a labor camp (maybe even trying to lead some sort of revolution), there I feel the chaos system would work, could also be rather interesting, a revolution can easily become something rather violent and messy as seen in our own history, it’s be up to a player to at least try and keep it from devolving into that. But say we have a game exploring Pandyssia, don’t know if it would fit there, as far as I understand, Pandyssia doesn’t have much in the way of complex civilization, at least not a large scale, and the further inland you go the more eldritch thing will probably become, with animals seemingly connected to the void becoming more common. Yes you could be disruptive, but based on the stories we’ve gotten of the place I feel the environment would probably hit back harder. I supposed in that sense a chaos system could work, if you play thing violently, the world will become more and more hostile. The challenge for peaceful players would be navigating the world without inviting conflict, for violent players it’s trying to overcome the challenge you’ve invited on yourself (which actually sounds like it could sell pretty well now that I think about it)
That final segment was spectacular. I hadn't even thought that much about how unconventional Billie is for a mainstream protagonist, and how letting the rats speak was like elevating the voices of the oppressed. This was an excellent analysis.
This series is as close to a lorebook and thematic analysis of the games as I'll ever get. What a ride. Thank you!
The ending of Death of the Outsider destroyed me.
I went for the merciful option and chose to save the Outsider. The conversation Billy had with Daud chilled me to my core and the story that DotO wanted to tell became clear: no matter how badly you muck things up, you can always chose to do the right thing.
Additionally, the use of contracts was very interesting. Especially in level 4, Álvaro and the Abbey. Basically you are told to put a high Overseer in a 'music chair' so someone else can preform revenge on him for all his cruel deeds. I wanted to play a merciful playthrough (low chaos, no killings, stealing everything that isnt tacked to the wall) and when I explored the contract... Dear Lord.
You find a witch locked up in the archives to get a confession out of her and audio recording on how previous 'sessions' went. The torture described and the cruelity the overseers delightfully inflict on said witches... harrowing. When I freed the witch, she asked me to kill every single one of them. I couldnt fault her for wanting that.
I did however, wonder what the 'good' thing was to do. Let the man live and continue on his merry way? Kill him and be done with it or put him in the music chair and let him have a taste of his own medicine? I went for the last option. And when I spend more thought on it, I realized that whatever Billi's intentions for the man were and whether he/the abby could ever learn from this and thus IMPROVE the institution..
As Billy, you have only 2 options. Kill, or let them go. No Corvo that could fix things behind the scene's, no Emily with actual power. As a player, I felt powerless. So when you do get to the end of the game and you can make a choice to save the Outersider (and thus talking with Daud, convincing him to be better) or just to kill him, man. I felt that impact.
BIlli did something that mattered and boiiii was it satisfying.
One thing I love about this game is the overall color palette and vibe. It’s not the mottled, beautifully smoggy watercolor of industry and fog like the first game, nor is it the bright, vivid, and defined warmness of the second installment. DoTO is graying and dusty, whose light is muted and faint. It’s a world that’s tired, all of it’s political and social systems fading or collapsing. It’s kinda like that Jacob Geller video, if anyone’s seen it, about Dark Souls 3 and the movie “I’m Thinking of Ending Things”. The world wants to move on, wants to fade and die, but it keeps getting dredged and pulled back, extending it’s decay.
Agreed about the colour palette, it’s the most beautiful of the 3 games because of that classy yet dusty look. Thanks for voicing my opinion before me ! Lol
As it’s been pointed out many a time.
DREADFUL WALE
Is an Anagram for
FAREWELL DAUD
I’ve been a fan of these games since before the release of the first one, and didn’t know that fact until just now.
Brilliant video as usual, it's criminal how little views your essays get.
Please know many of us truly appreciate your effort, and the time it takes you to put these out for all of us.
I fully agree. Let's share this content and spread the love for this channel/author whenever possible. Amazing content.
When I played DotO for the first time a few years back I remember not being a big fan of it, but hearing your take on it now made me view certain aspects of it in a totally new light. I need to go back and play it again, and do it with a more open mindset this time... but first I'll be reading that article. Thanks for another awesome video essay! Your stuff is always so well thought out and beautifully edited.
Great video ! I really love how the Outsider is a deeply human god with his doubts and insecurities !
(Also, ending on class analysis 😍)
I really hated DOTO, since the game destroys the mistery around this lovecraftian, eldritch, neutral and sharp entity that was the Outsider, but your review showed me many strong points in this game and for this, I thank you, great job.
On the contrary, it pokes a hole deeper, past the Outsider. We created the outsider to cope with and interface with a much deeper and unknowable world. The Void.
@@TheEnmineer "The Dutchman needs a captain" I think The Outsider was really just an avatar for a greater entity. If there's more in the Dishonored series (and I hope there is), this gives us the opportunity to explore more of the unknown, like you said.
@@TheWingus Yeah, while it demystifies the Outsider by doing so it also serves to further mystify the Void itself, which in my mind is a worthwhile trade.
It opens the door for more mystery...what is this cult? How do they turn men into God's? Who was the first outsider? Etc.
In dishonored 1 The outsider said to corvo "Did you know that their are 8 people in this world that near my mark?"
Corvo, the rat boy, Daud, Delilah, Grant rags... thats five. Who are the other 3? We were never told... which is what makes me hope we might one day find out.
Does the Empress count?
@@geordiejones5618Emily's powers came later, so unless the Outsider was looking to the future, which granted would be an interesting addition to his abilities, I doubt he was counting her
The mute royal interrogator.
@@sciencealltheway nope , he was given his powwers by granny rags (one of her powers is marking one aprentice with a fraction of her power , similar to dauds ability to give lesser versions of his powers to his assasins)
I have completed nearly 70 playthroughs of the first Dishonored. The knife of dunwall and brigmore witches got around 10. Dishonored 2 got just under 30.
DotO got exactly 1. The lack of weight to your actions by removing chaos as well as the complete bullshit of the envisioned enemies one shotting you and being insanely durable made for the only time in the franchise I have been genuinely frustrated, and it lasted for many hours.
I plan to revisit eventually, but I usually play games intent to 100% them. And I felt like I did that on the first try.
I genuinely agree with most things you said, especially about the portrayal of rats. While not vegan myself, I did keep pet rats for many years and I have the same issue with the treatment of snakes and bats and spiders in basically every game ever made. It crushes me when I enter the abandoned temple and there's a hundred snakes that are minding their own business in a dark room and I'm forced to kill them to move to the next room.
Amazing video, and glad to find another vegan in the world ♡ i appreciated your specific acknowledgement of the empathization with animals in these games, especially the whales who are absolute pariahs in the dishonored universe, the symbolism there is so effective. This is by far the most affecting of the games in the series and you so perfectly captured its impact; I am trying so hard to get my partner to play it lol.
Regardless of the fact that based on your views and opinions, we would not be friends, I absolutely love these videos. I just came across yours recently, after watching some other ones, and I think yours are some of the best made video essays I've come across. The fact that this isn't the standard is a bit criminal.
What you described here is effect of politics and media doing their best to polarize people. Think about it.
How so
Havent watched the full video but ya its criminally underrated and I really don’t know why. All I can think of is the price at launch and the dissatisfaction with D2. Either way DOTO resonated with me more than D2 and I just can’t get over the bank heist, probably my favorite mission in any game. Glad you are showing it some love
i always kind of felt bad for the rats being blamed for the plague, because they were just doing what rats do. it wasn't their fault, they were tricked and used just like everyone else, and the reputation rats hold with just about everyone is going to blame them for spreading disease. they're animals, and only following their instincts. the object of blame should be high overseer campbell, which is why i love the nonviolent ending of that mission to broadcast and sort of clear not only corvo's name, but clear the rats names as well, since they don't have a voice until this particular dlc.
Once again a fantastic video with plenty of very well thought out points! Thank you for putting your heart and soul into these video essays!
Been binging your content all day. Your video essays are well spoken, impressively edited and criminally underrated.
I'm so glad I found your channel, you have such amazing content. I can't wait to see what you do next!
Man you make a great video on Death of the Outsider and then you throw down the best take in the universe: “I was mistreated by many people (rich AND poor), so to fight back I’m gonna commit murder for money”
Dude, I love you/p. I love everything about this review and I'm so excited to see what else you have in store for us in the future.
Just in the middle of binging all your videos up until now.
Your editing and commentary is masterful; can't wait to see what you can do in the future
I've played all 3 games over and over. This whole series is just fantastic IMO. Watching some of the "gods" who play this game like StealthGamerBR utilize the combat and mechanics just blows my mind. But that's just the surface. The story and characters give life to this pandora's box of real and imagined. For me, the 1st and DotO are best for the story and narrative world-building but the second...oh man the second blow them both out for me just for one simple reason. Replay value. The different builds, subtle ways to change your style and approach while still fitting the overall narrative just mmmm! I could go on for hours about these games and I might even do that. Great work once again!
Edit: Daniel Licht's music always gets me...now more than ever. Never doubt the importance of music in works. R.I.P. Daniel
My girlfriend works for a museum, and when I told her the next level of this random game I was playing was a museum level, she audibly gasped. Then when I played it, it felt very...closed off. All the exhibits gone, all the magic lost.
I will disagree that it feels out of place. I think it's the perfect level for right after the bank heist. Billie is at her lowest point, her life has lost all mooring. I think her story in this section mirrors that of the starcrossed couple whose quests you can complete (or ignore accidentally on my first playthrough, which made me put down the game for a few days) where she's trying to succeed, but everything feels...closed. This great place has been halved, made tiny, had the magic sucked out of it. A land that's lost its history, the records all slashed and burned and the women behind it either butchered or brain-busted (and possibly worse, if one particular recording is to be believed). Billie's world is dying, and the fact that this place is both familiar but missing something is much how Billie feels about Karnaca right now; the city is still the same she's always known, but it's...emptier for Daud's absence. She wants to be happy, but the world is a less colorful place than she remembers. I feel like having this place back in the game shows better than anything else that time is moving beyond the game we remember. The past has been lost. Only the future will save us.
All that aside, I feel like your analysis has gotten sharper in every video. I loved the full-circle nature of the rats, going from a mindless weapon in D1 to a companion in DotO. The last level was great, though I haaaaated trying to do a ghost playthrough with the crystal boys skulking about. I swear they could see my foresight and followed it back to me every time I used it. And yes, this game is so, sooooooooo gay. I loved it. I think the only thing I never understood was how she lost her eye and arm, then got them back, then lost them again. I know it's a demonstration of her powers, and a damn cool visual upgrade, but it did feel weird.
Anyway, off to get my popcorn ready for the Prey video. Can't wait!
I love the way you describe the museum level. I haven't played these games in a long time, but I've been going through Dishonored nostalgia videos at the moment and loving them, and from what I remember I also felt disturbed by what happened to that place. If I remember correctly, it made me sympathize a lot for the witch coven. As sadistic as they were, they were (pun intended) outsiders looking for community, and the queer themes made it all the more impactful for me.
As far as Billie's eye and arm, I wanted to mention something, even if you already knew this, mostly because I didn't hear Eric comment on this either in his videos and I found it strange that he left it out of his videos. In Dishonored 2, Billie mentions in a bit of dialogue how at some point she lost her arm and eye fighting the Duke's guards at Stilton's manor trying to find out what happened to him. If you rescue Stilton and preserve his sanity, when you return to the boat Billie's eye and arm are whole because that chain of events never happened. I found that to also be a very powerful experience, accidentally healing wounds as a result of a good deed that was never even considered as a possibility of the mission. In DotO, Billie's powers come from a result of these diverging timelines, and her eye and arm enter this state of being both there and not there. Playing this after going through all the possible outcomes in the last game, the reality for Billie that the literal state of her body relies so much on the unknown acts of others (i.e Emily or Corvo) was also a lot for me to process.
Sorry for the wall of text, especially if none of that last paragraph was new information to you. Just realizing in the last few days that this game series that meant so much to me also meant so much to others is amazing, and really speaks to the quality of these games. Dishonored's ability to tackle such real emotions and ethical dilemmas while also being so visually stunning show them, in my opinion, to be very effective works of art.
I love it when games are so, soooooooo straight.
Sounds weird doesn't it?
@@brandonmaster7901 Cry more, hetero
She regained her arm because canonically, Emily prevented Aramis Stilton from going to the Delilah ritual. Because of that, she never went looking for him in the dust district and didn't get fucked up by the guards. But she mentions she still has dreams of a world where she's lost both the eye and arm, it's like both worlds overlap and one reality bleeds into the other. Way I see it, the outsider makes it so there's only one Billie. One that has her arm and eye and at the same time doesn't. So that's how she got and lost and got them again
i’m so happy to hear someone else say what i’ve been saying forever, wish i found your channel sooner. i’ve always hated how much hate this game gets from the community when it did so much well, it broke some norms but created a truly unique product and the experimentation paid off.
the upper cyria district is genuinely one of the greatest areas in any video game, i absolutely love everything about it. its so open and free but in classic arkane style every inch of it has purpose and meaning. i also really appreciate the recognition that the powers lend to billie’s skillset; as a much more experienced assassin she seems to have a much more planned and purposeful approach and her powers mirror that so well. playing as billie just feels so cool, doing heists and detective work is so fun in this game.
also hearing someone praise billie as a character is equally appreciated, she’s so underrated and is genuinely my favourite character in the dishonored world, she has so much personality and her character development is genuinely so interesting and relatable. i also love how she’s the first protagonist from a truly “low” position in society; she has been trodden on and ruled over her entire life and like you said, it has lit a revolutionary spark in her. for a game so driven by class conflict, being on the other side of it for once *genuinely* feels moving. experiencing the dishonored world from the eyes of billie feels completely different to any of the other dishonored playable characters in a way that’s hard to explain. it also lends itself to the much more relaxed world in this game, at least in the second and third missions. when i say relaxed i mean it as in, in dishonored one and two, the entire populace is directly entwined in the narrative, the coups and assassinations are much more directly influential and everyone is aware at least of the basics. but death of the outsider is slightly different. emily is in power and the empire is fairly stable. all of the inequalities still exist, but in terms of direct and obvious danger, not much is happening. billie herself is a much less prominent face than corvo, emily and daud. the game early on has this interesting contrast where you’re basically planning to kill god himself but in an almost nonchalant and secretive setting. i don’t know how else to phrase it, but it just has a really unique vibe that i really enjoy.
“the rich pay to poison themselves with this bullshit… with they’d just finish the job”
“good evening michael’s deposit and loan, i’d like to make a withdrawal”
two of my favourite voice lines from billie :)
Hey man, such a great series you've put together, well balanced between personal opinions and explanation of what these games bring to the players. I'm rarely entertained so much by videogames essays but yours are some of the best i've listened to here on yt. About the chaos system I'm not sure we won't see it never again because Deathloop is not developed by the same division of Arkane which have done the Dishonored sereis, maybe, there is a chance to see this beautyful and meaningful system in their next project. By the way keep on on this level of quality and you'll see reults very soon, to the next video
Thanks for your kind words!
Deathloop is being directed by Dinga Bakaba, who also directed Death of the Outsider. I expect his priorities remain the same. Hopefully whatever Harvey is working on right now will feature something like a chaos system, or at least nonlethal options.
These videos were a great listen, thank you so much, right now I’m waiting to be able to upgrade my computer before I replay the whole series once again. Probably get the ghost achievements on PC. I actually preordered the second game collectible edition and got that sweet mask statue.
As a fan of the Dishonored games since the first one, thanks for these videos, they are awesome. Each time I replay DotO I´m surprised by how good it is. I´m also with you that the lack of non-lethal options in Deathloop is concerning and I hope that change isn't introduced into Dishonored.
I've never played dh2, but recently they made free dhdoto on epic, and I'm slicing trough the game.
I'm kind of thankful in a way of they removing the chaos system. It allows you to play a continuous game, no need to quickload if you need up, because killing a few guards if you get caught feels way more immersive, and you got tools to get out of trouble.
A fantastic essay, as I've come to expect of you.
Another aspect of Death of the Outsider that gives very interesting perspective is the nature of the Outsider and the Abbey of the Everyman. The Outsider himself is no omnipotent or malign being. He is the product of people desperate to put a face to the incomprehensible nature of the Void, as is essentially the point of the majority of religions; allowing us to antarpermorphise that which we do not understand so we do not linger on existential questions.
And in regards to the Abbey, when you look deep into their symbolism and ways, they are in fact derived from that which they call heresy. The Oracular Sisters for example gain their prophetic insights from a type of void link, their iconography derived from the very same thing as the Eyeless; being the Eye of the Dead God. This is also hinted at in the very first game regarding the functionality of the Ancient Music, which in itself uses the void as a way of counteracting its power.
It is a very interesting way to point out the hypocrisy of religions zealously undermining and demeaning other faiths out of blind belief, when more often than not they have more in common then what truly separates them.
Since religion is often such a delicate subject to discuss/criticise, putting it in a well worked-out fictional environment is an interesting way to allow one to think about and discuss the matter. The Abbey in this series for example calls into question the ethics of religious indoctrination that can extend to horrible outcomes given the circumstances.
Even here I feel I tread on eggshells so I'll emphasise that I am perfectly fine with people's faith as long as it does not actively undermine, oppress or harm others. It is a shame it even has to be said.
Honestly i didn't like this game as much as the previous two but I did really appreciate the way they handled the outsider. The idea of the outsider being simply the most recent avatar of the void was really interesting, regardless of your choices in the game a new avatar will be chosen. While this revelation makes killing him pointless as it just starts a cycle over, it does make freeing him more impactful as while you can't stop the voids influence on the world you can atleast save someone who's life was stolen by it.
Just finished it. Loved every moment. Thanks to you.
Love the analysis. Great essay!
I was not expecting that rat/animal part. Damn.
Well done again! I hate that doto is so overlooked. Like you said, the final mission is by far the most difficult in the series and man it makes it so much more fun and tense. Also can't wait for your Prey video!
The problem i had with this game was the title made me think the outsider was a antagonistic. I didnt believe that at all so i didnt get the game thinking i wouldnt have a choice
amazing video! i was directed to your channel by a friend who liked your videos, and i definitely do not regret binging your dishonored videos as a result. i enjoyed your analysis, and you brought up some themes of the games that i hadn't thought about much before. that bit on self-love and outsiders at the end definitely resonated with me. i will definitely need to go read that article on queer themes in the game.
it's interesting to me that you found the final mission the most difficult in the series, because that was not at all my experience with the mission when i played death of the outsider recently. i found the envisioned fairly simple to sneak past. they're slow, and there weren't that many of them, so i could easily mark all of the ones nearby with foresight, and use the teleport ability to get past them without being seen. maybe the fact that i never really got the hang of using semblance helped? i never really used it, so the inability to use it for stealth didn't really hurt me. the fact that i knocked out pretty much every cultist i could find probably also helped, since it meant that after i activated the eye, the envisioned were pretty much the only enemies left, and i could manouver around them fairly easily, which wouldn't have been the case had i left the cultists undisturbed. the doto final mission wasn't the easiest in the games by any means, i would probably have it fairly high up if i ranked all the dishonored missions by difficulty, but i personally found the clockwork mansion (at least without the upgrade that lets you stealth-kill the clockwork soldiers with only one blow, and before i learned the map so thoroughly) and the flooded district more difficult.
I always felt that the rats were more allies of convenience. They never seemed to want to help me over much, I was just listening in on them. And you know, they talk about eating people a lot, which kinda puts a barrier between me and them. I did think they were cute though, for I have always had a soft spot for most animals called vermin.
"the revolutionary act of self-love when the world does nothing but tell you that you're something to be hated" will remain my all-time favorite quote. kudos for the great videos, this is some quality video-essaying
Outstanding video. Wonderful thank you. I adore this series and all its lore and you describe it so eloquently. Billie is an amazing character rich in depth and this video essay superbly explains why. Thank you
You are amazing, so amazing that I am forced to write a whole paragraph in youtube comments.
I'm pretty young and I only just played the Dishonoured trilogy this year, after giving the first game a tentative try and becoming completely hooked, and you have made a brilliant summary of these 3 games which have left me scrabbling to find more (including buying Prey while it was on sale). I always felt that D2 was lacking something that I just couldn't quite put into words, despite the fact that I think it is much more entertaining (especially as a naturally nonlethal player), and in your second video you helped me understand what was missing. Then, like you, expecting lesser quality in a game meant to be DLC about the Outsider, especially after my disappointment at his voice change and randomly revealed backstory (which I felt was without weight, and ruined a lot of his mystery for no real reason), I was stunned to find what I consider to be the best of the trilogy and one of my favourite games in both story and gameplay (the nonlethal gadgets are a treat to use, especially as I usually get stuck using one tactic in the other games, e.g. I never used possession in my nonlethal runs). This game makes me appreciate Robin Lord Taylor (even if I still prefer Billy Lush, without voice effects) and his portrayal of the Outsider, as well as fleshing out Billie Lurk, who I really enjoyed from Daud's story - I think she was brilliant and was ecstatic when I saw her as the face of Death of the Outsider, another parallel in that it is a successor to the Daud DLCs in the same way D2 was for Dishonoured, and they star the protégés of the MCs from those. This game brings back the class commentary that was relegated to Billie saying you're complicit in Abele's corruption, and graffiti on the walls, and makes it the picture rather than the frame it was in the first game, even if it was a well-made frame. These videos are what I have been frantically searching for, since finishing these games and labelling Arkane as my favourite studio (Sorry Larian, I am too fickle with my obsessions).
I have vomited some of my thoughts into this with no regard for readability, and if no-one reads it I can still be happy I've written this stuff down somewhere. Thank you, and I will certainly be looking out for your further content!
Also I HAD NO IDEA YOU COULD MAKE MARKERS TO TELEPORT TO WHILE ASTRAL PROJECTING AND I CANNOT BELIEVE MY OWN IGNORANCE
Oh sweet! I didn't realise it would be arriving so soon!
This one isn't quite as long as the previous two, so it was a bit faster to put together! :)
Thanks for the video; I enjoyed the watch. Having recently played through this game for the first time, it’s quite apparent to me now how differently we experience the game, haha. I quite enjoyed my time with it. I’m glad you did as well. I liked the energy regeneration change and agree with your positive take on it. I felt freed by the removal of the chaos system, being able to play the game with all the tools available was fun. Normally I choose to play non lethal and feel I’m missing out on lots of fun gameplay since I only do one play through. That was a major complaint I’d come across others expressing in the previous dishonored games. It seems you’ve appreciated the weight of the moral choices more in that trade-off. I’d be happy to see the chaos system come back, even with my experience with this game, though.
One comment I had on the script is that it was off-putting for me to hear that you (paraphrased) ‘hope they make the right choice’ in bringing back the chaos system. I’m often uncomfortable with that sort of statement on other people’s art/creations. This idea that there is a right way for them to make things in the future. It seems like there are more respectful way to express your desires.
I found your exploration of the themes interesting, though I don’t seem to engage on that level myself very much.
Thanks again for the video and I look forward to watching your prey one once I get to playing it. : )
Watching your videos is so satisfying, thank you so much for all your work and for sharing interesting essays!
I actually didn't notice that much that DotO had no chaos system, because when a game gives me the option to play non-lethal I can't bring myself to kill, lol
Personally, I think Daud's character was just ruined by this game. He went from a path of redemption and taking responsibility for his actions, full of regret but with empathy in his heart. "I've had enough killing."
Then in this game, he suddenly blames the outsider for everything, and thinks one last assassination will just solve all their problems. His whole character arc that made me love him just gets completely reversed for seemingly no reason.
I like the small detail that at the end when the outsider sees the sun billy is standing next to a ripped wanted poster of Daud
I am mostly impressed and do strongly agree with your insightful analysis except for one. I felt that Chaos system was not excluded but rather sophisticated to blend in to the narrative itself. It felt more subtle and genuine to feel guilty to murder a man with a life and his family rather than to mark yes or no to deliberately placed checkpoints.
How Cyberpunk 2077 was a sales' success and this game was a sales' failure tells a lot of where the trends are going.
What an excellent set of videos! It's nice to see some of the views I have, but also to see the games through new eyes. I'll remember some of these for for next time I play!
I hope maybe in the future you might do my other favourite, the Metro 2033 series!
no chaos system, not the same dishonored i can see
I listened to your Dishonored Videos and i have to say im amazed by the depth you explore the franchise. Although there are for sure some points were i would disagree (for example, i wouldn't argue it would be better to narratively punish or alter Emily for her seeming passiveness as ruler (seeming since other sources claim she actually tries her best to change the state of the empire), i would agree that some stance had to be made, even trying to justify or excuse her failure, as it would made it better or believable since taking a political stance is the core of a ruler), i love that you even bring such things up and in this give me the opportunity to reflect as well on something that i might have taken too granted in video games. Hope you will also make a video on deathloop!
I think the absence of the chaos system made sense lore-wise at leas. In D1 we had the rat plague as a tool of telling us "if you keep killing, more rats will plague the city" and in D2 its similar with the blood flies. The Duke did not pay much attention to them. Now with Paolo/Byrne (+ Fake Duke) in charge they care more about it and handle the blood fly problem, and the rat plague was also dealt with. So killing a bunch of people does not harm the city at least. It is only a moral thing for the player in this game really...
It seems that race was never an issue in the dishonored world, and apart from the sexual assault themes in dishonored 1, sexuality and gender don't seem to be issues as they are in our world either, as in we never hear about anyone getting hate-crimed for any of these aspects of their identity, or it even being up for debate (contrasted with the real world where some people feel the need to debate the validity of others' identity). What they did with protagonist choice is cool as you said, but in-universe I don't think it actually has significance. To be clear, I see this as a good thing! The worldbuilding convinces the player that a world where race, sexuality, gender, and possibly disability (I only say possibly here because apart from Billie no one's popped into my head) are non-issues, as they never should have been in our real world. That said, Arkane does seem to emphasise class struggle a lot, and it seems that it might be way too plausible for one to interpret that as Arkane being class-reductionist?? idk. Would love to discuss with you because I love Dishonored and keep coming back to the gameplay and the story.
I identify as royalty and my pronouns are sire and your majesty. You'd better not debate the validity of my identity you bigot. And dishonored is incredibly racist. There wasn't a single furry gender fluid otherkin black demiboy in Victorian style England. Thats racist, sexist transphobic ableist and any other buzzword I forgot to mention.
@@brandonmaster7901 if you want to get serious, royalty is a social class, not a gender. You're making a transphobic joke and it's not funny. Maybe deep down you don't think genders should exist, and I would agree, but if that's the view you hold, this is not the way to express it
@@nuklearboysymbiote "maybe deep down you think gender shouldn't exist" how in the fuck did you get that from my comment. Gender is a biological reality, saying it shouldn't exist would be like saying your circulatory system shouldn't exist, which would be borderline retarded. We are a sexually dimorphic species with clear biological differences between male and female, but don't believe your lying eyes and 3rd grade biology i guess cause that's transphobic lmao.
@@brandonmaster7901 oh you're conflating gender with sex. sex is definitely real, or at least more real than gender has any right to be. Chromosomes, hormones, gametes, they're all as real as can be. But gender? It's talking about assigning labels to behaviours that are so complex even biology or neuroscience don't have an answer to. Does biology explain why wearing dresses is labelled ”feminine”?
Jesus, that other guy fucking went off. But I agree, the main focus of this world is class, or more specifically power. The rest of the stuff is minimized to focus on an idea, which unfortunately it seems they only seem to allude to instead of actually speak much on. At the end of the day it's a fun immersive sim with a pretty milquetoast morality system that just appears to say that killing is bad.
A lot of people in power are not held responsible, Corvo and Emily are no different
Death of the outsider was the first dishonored game I played, which led to me playing the other two games and falling in love with this these games. After watching this video I have GOT to play this game again
Great game. Love gameplay, story and attention to details. This specific, graphic "Arkane style" is just amazing for me. In the Dishonored series, I take great pleasure in exploring every corner and reading every found note that allows me to dive deeper into this amazing world.
Lmao people in the comment be like: "Stop talking about politics in the critique of this game that is openly political and talks about class conflict"
Literally 0 ability of media critique
Between my Low Chaos and High Chaos run of this, the only difference I noticed was that Daud would behead all of the Eyeless instead of simply knocking them cold.
This is what I like to see; unique and personal takes on games I love.
I think my biggest gripe for getting this new DLC was that it was the first $40 DLC I’d ever seen. Granted I don’t say this in a way to imply their work isn’t worth $40 and/or more than that, however in a day and age where multiple games series drop multiple DLC‘s over a lifetime, a $40 side quest essentially didn’t speak to me immediately so I waited for a sale
I was lucky. It was labelled as $15 in the bargain bin at Walmart. Then upon scanning- it only came up to $11.25 CAD!!! What a STEAL!!!
I love all the dishonored games I had no doubts while I learned about this game because at its core dishonored is one my fav games off all time
Also, if you have not read the accompanying Dishonored novels, I highly recommend them! They are particularly well written, especially for licensed novelizations, and enrich the overall series by acting as prologues and tie-ins to separate entries. The Corroded Man follows Corvo and Emily in the events leading up to Dishonored 2. The Knife of Dunwall follows Daud after the assassination of Jessamine, and the final book follows Billie after the Death of the Outsider. They're all really good. Hopefully we get a third main entry someday, exploring a world without the Outsider (or with something far worse taking his place), and visiting far off corners of this magnificent steampunk world, like the mysterious dark continent of Pandyssia.
This is the only game series i have Platinumed. I love it
I agree that getting rid of the mana pool was a great idea, but for a different reason. In the lore (conon D2 playthrough + the books) Billie was not marked, so elixer wouldn't work for her. She gets her powers from the arm and eye she got from the outsider, think of them like void relics. They were given due to the time impossibility created in A Crack In The Slab in D2. Billie lost her arm and eye from a guard in Aramis Stilton's manor when she went to investigate what happened. When Emily went back in time, she gave Billie her arm and eye back, but Billie had nightmares of losing them from a mission that never happened. She was given the tools to kill the outsider due to a riple in time that the outsider created by giving Emily the ability to travel back in time. Cause and effect, actions and consequences.
These videos have been a gift. Amazing work so far!
Has anyone checked out the novels or comics he mentioned? Would love to know if they’re worth picking up.
Fully agree.
I would also love to know more about novels
It is kinda funny how many peopleare upset over politics in gaming, when really they don't mind politics in media. They just don't like the ones that challenge them.
@@eggsbenedict2251 MSNBC(news?) Is far different from video games
@@eggsbenedict2251 I'm referring to media as video games and movies
@@eggsbenedict2251 I mean. Yeah the military sponsors movies in order to ensure that they're portrayed positively despite high amounts of sexual violence, war crimes and racism. Is that what you meant?
@@eggsbenedict2251 Now who's changing the subject
Just beat this and wow was it good. The textures, atmosphere and sound and music are peerless. Like being inside a murky old oil painting. Not to mention how awesome the gameplay is, and how richly detailed every single level is. I love the whole series and find myself craving another game like this where you have supernatural powers. Tried Alan Wake but ugh, that is not a fun game. I will for sure be replaying Prey again.
the dishonored 2 slander is crazy
A great video about a great game in a great series.
so ironic how games drenched in politics, even if they dont do a great job of expressing any kind of meaningful perspective, always attract so many people from the "stop shoving politics down my throat!!!!1!11!!" crowd. anyway, once again great job on this video, im excited to see what else you put out
Cant believe I missed the premiere, oh well. Cant wait to get into this
Edit: damn that was good, i really respect how you dont shy away about teh sort of political aspects of thae game and what you took away from them,
you did kand make me feel bad about slautering every rat i found in game for the lols.
After half a dozen playthroughs I completely forgot Billies starting skillset, as new game + Carrie's over all skills from Dishonored 2, and thus I usually play with those. I need to try again with Billies skills apparently. Otherwise, the new levels, especially the first couple Karnaca bank levels and Shindarey peak levels, are among the best in the series IMO.
I agree with everything said in this video but the only thing I would add is the fact that there is MUCH less written lore to read in game. In D1&2 almost every room had something to read or even up to 4 seperate things to read but lots of rooms have absolutely nothing in DOTO. Fat was trimmed indeed but I loved getting lost in journals and notes
I'd say that Dishonored 2 did the social part with much more impact though.
Player automatically roots for Emily who is fighting against evil usurpers, gangs, betrayers, etc. To restore order and bring peace (chaos system makes player think that there is a good and peaceful way to deal with the situation).
But then comes the realization, that it takes a lot to drive the country into THAT many problems. And barely any of those problems (except for personal enemies and betrayers) were addressed and dealt with. Player is caught into thinking "I'll deal with the enemies, minimize casualties of bystanders, and everything will be good". But there's literally no indication that it will. Aristocracy was slightly decimated, practically no political alliances were made. The only tool at the Empress's disposal after the ending is good old military power plus the Outsider's force. No channels of communication were established (even Billy left her). There's an option to team up with the overseers, but it's not very promising
In the end a very bitter taste is left regarding social-economic situation of the country
tbh I feel like the envisioned are too hard. Clockwork soldiers were the perfect balance of a difficult enemy while these things were just purely frustrating. I did not enjoy that part of the last level.
With regards to the rats, have you tried killing them while they're speaking? When you do they start screaming in terror, kind of puts in a different perspective all the rats you slaughter in the first game lol
I honestly always wondered why people dunked on death of the outsider so much, I personally really liked it and its refreshing hearing someone be at all positive about it for once!!
Oh wow i just finished the game and wondered about the bank heist because I didn’t really think of the stuff I put into the ventilation and I thought to myself why is everyone sleeping such a weird mission concept 😂😂
I don’t have the time to watch this rn unfortunately, but I will later! I’m so glad to see that RUclipsrs are keeping the dishonored community alive!
Ahaha, finally finished your last video today and this bad boi is already out
Very well expressed and nuanced critique.
My ideal next Dishonored game: In VR, play as both Billie Lurk and Daud in their early days. Daud would again be a complex character, a decent, tough youth disillusioned deeply, but slowly turns until he is unrecognizable, as a killer, but also a savior. Billie orphaned, lost but briefly found, a relief and joy torn away to leave a void in her heart, all memories pale in its light and all experience and ambitions defined by it.
The next worst version of Dishonored ignores the mystery of the void and materializes it as the book series does at the end. They can mine the void like fuel. That reductionism kills the magic, just like George Lucas' comeback trilogy Star Wars made plain and boring the power of jedi, their magic became microscopic life forms, i.e. the magic isn't you, not in you, it's outside.
Sorry you misunderstand midichlorians.
Finally, that’s gonna be so good 🙌
I don't like the idea that they can kill the outsider that why i don't want to play it, but now, after watch your review, i feel like i maybe wrong
One thing that I wish Arkane had done differently with the chaos system is making an exemption for civilians and guards who are revealed to have done seriously awful things. Using the heart to scan people reveals some pretty nasty things about the NPCs. Things that would warrant a death sentence. I wish that killing those monstrous people would have no consequence when it comes to the chaos system.
i actually really hope we see a dishonored 3 at some point. i'd love to have a breath of the wild lvl of dishonored game. a game where that chaos system REALLY has a purpose even beyond that of the narrative
do you go through the game slowly and stealthy? working the game in a crawl till you get upgrades to let you run stealthily? or do you go in guns blazing from the word go? killing swarms of people at a break neck pace?
the idea of how you play controlling the pace of a game and that choice really mattering beyond simply how quick you go through the game sounds awesome to me.
i'd be lying if I said i didn't love the idea of a dishonored game centered around the newly resurrected outsider and playing as him. using his god powers to explore and slaughter in a massive open world
There actually is a consequence of chaos on ending of the game. if you play on high chaos there's no way to save the Outsider i.e. a non lethal way.
I honestly kind of like not having the chaos system for this game. The world still reacts to our decisions, just not in the grand world redefining way it does with the chaos system. One example is how when we free Daud, if we played nonlethally, he'll only knock out the remaining hoodlums, whereas if we've killed, he'll do the same. This isn't a story where our decisions will change the world. No matter what we choose, the game ends with the Outsider gone. It doesn't matter if it's because we killed or saved him, the impact on the rest of the world is the same. But for that one boy who was once a god, that single decision makes all the difference, and I think that's what DotO is all about. It doesn't matter if the chaos system is there or not, what matters is that the world still reacts to our choices in the small, more subtle ways that Dishonored and Arkane as a whole do so well
Another great video. Keep it up!!
Yk initially I thought of asking you to do a similar video on portal and boneworks, but having completed the game I'm not so sure what themes you could draw from them 🤧
I've played both and I would consider writing about Portal some day, but I don't really care for Boneworks. It was neat, but other VR games do what it does far better. It felt like it tried to do everything and as a result did nothing exceptional.
Excellent video! I've played "Dishonored" and "Dishonored 2" multiple times, but I've only played "Death of the Outsider" once. Didn't really like it, but that was right after a D2 play through, so maybe it was just series fatigue. I'll have to check it out again...
Thanks for making this video. I too feel that DotO is an overlooked piece of brilliance. I never understood people's angle of the game being too easy when to me it's always been a power fantasy. It reminds me of similar issues people have with Suikoden being "too easy" when in fact the point was to make it accessible and let people focus on the plot and their favourite characters. Your part on foresight perfectly encapsulates my own thoughts on the subject, and I wonder that Worthabuy would think of the subject considering he shares my hatred of wallhacks. I don't like using foresight as I prefer the mystery of not knowing, but I like what they did with it regardless.
It says a lot that I like DotO when I tend to despise games which reuse levels. I also love the rat artefact, and feel that it links to the angle of you playing a character who's lived in the shadows and the gutter for their whole lives. I also agree with your angle on their removal of the chaos system, and am equally as baffled and concerned should Dishonored 3 ever become a thing as much as I feel it's unlikely as it'd have to be the start of a new story on Pandyssia in all likelihood which may well be too risky a venture. I too feel they got rid of Daud in a rather underwhelming way.
I must however state that I felt the the last level was rather underwhelming, and I didn't find the Envisioned to be interesting at all. They hit me as a bland lump of rock in a cave that acted as a random chunk of HP. The whole level hit me as a long boring funnel to an admittedly satisfying ending. That being said, I never vibed with Half-Life either so maybe that's got something to do with it. I do like the mirroring of the Whalers and the Outsider a fair amount. Whilst I'm rarely one to mention the culture wars, I honestly feel the focus on Billie's colour and sexuality subsumed this game. More pity those who missed it.
One last gripe: you implied the rats aren't cute. I heartily disagree. As an ex-butcher, I could wax verbose about ethical meat eating vs vegan vertical farming vs permaculture vs the nature of harm et cetera. This isn't the time for that, but it's certainly an interesting rabbit hole.
Good luck moving forwards. Keep taking your time making good content, and never kneel to the algo or your fans. You do you. That outro paragraph was worthy of Dawn Ray'd. Great stuff.
It's such a pity that so many people disliked DotO, I think it is in fact one of the strongest games in the series and I've played it quite a lot. I love the atmosphere and the sense of being on another side, street rat vs royalty. The themes of forgiveness thread through the whole game. And the mechanics were honestly incredibly enjoyable! Strange what expectations do to us 😅 I hope there's more people out there who loved this concluding piece to the story :)
"Black, openly bisexual woman" isn't a big deal, after all, Dishonored is another setting, and we do not know how these things are viewed in the Dishonored world, we do know at least that women can get into the police/military, going by some of Serkonos' high ranking guards.
Those brownie points really worth stooping as low as to address a non-issue?
There aren't many black protagonists in AAA games. Nor are there many strong and self assured LGBT women. Representation matters, and I believe very strongly that Arkane deserves praise for Billie's depiction.
@@EricCrosby I think we shouldn't care what race or sexuality the protagonist is, diversity is nice, but I have to say that often, people care a bit too much about it, sorry if I sounded like an ass in the first comment, by the way, just worried about exactly that. Billie is a nice protagonist, that's all I care about, and I've seen too many people complain about some diversity quotas.
Also thanks for the reply, didn't expect an answer to a comment so much after the video was posted.
EDIT: I'm also going to correct my first comment, as it does appear that women face at least some lesser treatment than men, at least in Gristol, Serkonos seems to be doing fine, but in the High Overseer mission, the Abbey does seem to think that a young girl wanting to do stuff like reading and learning about technology is heresy, and that she should be learning how to clean, instead.
@@GloriousZote to me it does matter quite a bit when a protagonist is female and/or queer because that's part of myself. Most of the time I hear people say "oh it shouldn't matter", it's by people who see themselves all the time anyways so there is no lack for them and therefore nothing missing.
Do I want a well written character first and foremost? Absolutely. I hate it when corporations basically beg me to pat them on the back for having a female and/or queer character at the front, letting them run around with a big rainbow neon sign, thinking that's it.
But if they write a good character who happens to be all those things I can identify with TOO?
That's a great feeling and I wish people would be more open to understand why marginalized groups of people may "focus too much" on that.
If you barely ever had something like that representation (and that means the well written ones, not the shoehorned characters who are written for brownie points but without any actual personality) especially compared to others, you often latch on to what little there is.
Maybe try to empathize a little bit more and try to see it from a different perspective :)
On lethal/non lethal: Is it usually a choice though? For me personally it's a decision to play a game non lethally that I make at the beginning of a play through and never change my choice. Which means it might as well be a toggle and usually not a moral choice but due to thinking not killing nets me the "best ending" the devs planned. Proper morality system should insetivise moment to moment decision making and not have it be influenced by a stat screen.
On later playthroughs I did play one way or the other, but my first time through these games (which is always the best) I did a little bit of both. I would kill only if the situation demanded it. It was an interesting and exciting way to play.
Great video!
I had the opposite problem from you dishonored 2 ran great on my pc but death of the outsider kept crashing and wouldn't let me slide I had to play it on xbox where it ran fine but looked less pretty
I don't get the timeline. Why Billy has both arms at the start of the game?
How could they do my boy the outsider so dirty....
DoTO isn’t really my favorite of the series, but I agree with the powers being an upgrade, the gameplay being amazing, and the final mission being incredible with incredible enemies.
Tbh, I just hope DoTO isn’t the end of Dishonored. It’s clear people can get magic from the void without bearing his mark, so, it’s not like they can’t continue it. But it does feel like them trying to end it.
Honestly, my first play through of dishonored games are always low chaos, and I didn’t replay this game, so I never actually noticed there wasn’t a chaos system. XD I do hope they don’t do away with it entirely, the chaos system is what really made Arkane games stand above others, in my opinion.