Dishonored 2

The original Dishonored released back in 2012 was amongst the most impressive and excellently well crafted titles of that year. It also became one of my favorite titles since BioShock. It didn’t follow conventional design, it didn’t force you to follow a needless linear path, neither did it instruct you to kill or destroy anyone and anything in your path. No, Dishonored let you decide the fate of others, and in a video game, that offers you massive amounts of power.

- Calum Parry

Now, four years later we have our sequel and Arkane Studios have pulled out all the stops in not only crafting a sequel that builds upon the foundation of the first but also introduces a new playable character and game engine. Eager as I can be, it was time again to unsheathe my blade and Blink through the shadows as I ventured into Dishonored 2.

Taking place 15 years later, Dishonored 2 echoes the past by placing you into a false sense of security and a predicament that crumbles the world beneath you. Following from the events of the first game, Dunwall has changed. Corvo Attano, our protagonist from the first, got his vengeance and restored order. The rat plague from before has been wiped and his daughter, Emily Kaldwin, is all grown up and, after her mother, is now Empress of Dunwall. And for a while Dunwall prospered, but it’s short-lived, as during a ceremony of remembrance treachery strikes with the arrival of Daliah Kaldwin who claims the throne is theirs.

Joined by a coup from Karnaca, a bordered region to the south of Dunwall, Dahlia using her powers of witchcraft spends no time in overthrowing the young empress and accusing Corvo of being the “Crown Killer”- a serial killer taking down those who opposed Emily reign. It is at this point where the story becomes a tale of two.

With the guards bearing down upon them, Emily and Corvo are surrounded and it’s here you choose how to proceed. Dishonored 2 allows you to play as either Emily or Corvo.