Arkane's Dishonored

Rainsmercy wrote:

Ok, so any help would be appreciated.

Spoiler:

After being double crossed by the Admiral and Pendleton, I get through the assassin part, then get back to the pub. I manage to kill all the guards except for the 2 tallboys, however, I only have 3 grenades for ammo left, no bullets, no bolts. Is there a way to get to Piero and Salkalov without getting rid of the tallboys first? Also, where do I find the key for Emily's room?

You can...

Spoiler:

go over the roof and get in through an open window on the side of the workshop that faces the tower. It's sheltered by some boxes for cover. As for Emily's room in the tower, I just used the door and the nanny let me in.

Rainsmercy wrote:

Ok, so any help would be appreciated.

Spoiler:

After being double crossed by the Admiral and Pendleton, I get through the assassin part, then get back to the pub. I manage to kill all the guards except for the 2 tallboys, however, I only have 3 grenades for ammo left, no bullets, no bolts. Is there a way to get to Piero and Salkalov without getting rid of the tallboys first? Also, where do I find the key for Emily's room?

Near-Endgame Spoilers:

Spoiler:

You can just blink up to their balcony, the one right below Emily's room. It's unguarded by anyone, including tallboys, and then you just walk down and talk to them as stevenmack said. Since you're going high chaos it sounds like, the key to Emily's room is on Callista's corpse, over in the main square behind the pub.

PaladinTom wrote:

Does anyone know if...

Spoiler:

killing assassins that come after you

...counts toward your kill count? I'm guessing that it does, but am too far along to go back and check.

Early game spoilers:

Spoiler:

I believe it does. If you look at the text when they show up it mentions you can attack them or defend, with a parenthetical note that defending is the non-lethal option.

Awesome, thanks!

Rainsmercy wrote:
Alien Love Gardener wrote:
tanstaafl wrote:

I'm behind everyone; I've only finished the first "real" mission (the one to kill the Overseer) and have a question.

Spoiler:

Before you leave for the mission a woman tells you the Overseer is planning to poison her uncle and asks that you spare him. I get to the meeting room, wait for the two to come out and sleep dart both of them. I then throw the Overseer in the interrogation chair and brand him as a heretic (loved that option) and snuck out.

I make it back to Samuel and leave and the mission screen says I didn't kill anyone but apparently I didn't get credit for saving the uncle. Is there something obvious here I'm missing?

Spoiler:

Yep, you missed that the objective updated and told you to stash him in a safe place. A dumpster should suffice.

EDIT:

Ach, tannhausered.

Spoiler:

Huh, when I did it, I sleep darted Campbell, and the captain ran away and I got credit for it.

Lots of ways to complete that mission! I didn't do any of that; all I did was

Spoiler:

smash the (presumably poisoned) wine glasses & bottle that were on the table, then ran away. I still got credit for saving the uncle.

Aaaaand finished (low chaos ending and zero kills - including primary targets - with the exception of what I suspect was that annoying bug mentioned earlier and probably those guys in the tutorial bit, assuming they count).

Going to be hard to top that on my personal game of the year list. DAMN fine game.

The game does not have a steep learning curve, but I always feel like a video game newbie when I fire up a new title for the first time. I keep failing on my stealth/no-killing tries. The first person camera makes it difficult for me and I still do not know how to use the level geometry to my advantage. I try to go slow, use the Dark Vision, but I end up getting spotted and then having to just murder all the enemies that come after me. It is the first real mission, so hopefully this stuff will become easier as I progress. I really want to be a paladin, but I lack the skills to be that guy.

I also made the mistake of spending all my initial cash on equipment, instead of mixing in some upgrades.

I plan on going the Stealth route, even if I end up just killing everyone instead of knocking them out.

Rainsmercy wrote:
Alien Love Gardener wrote:
tanstaafl wrote:

I'm behind everyone; I've only finished the first "real" mission (the one to kill the Overseer) and have a question.

Spoiler:

Before you leave for the mission a woman tells you the Overseer is planning to poison her uncle and asks that you spare him. I get to the meeting room, wait for the two to come out and sleep dart both of them. I then throw the Overseer in the interrogation chair and brand him as a heretic (loved that option) and snuck out.

I make it back to Samuel and leave and the mission screen says I didn't kill anyone but apparently I didn't get credit for saving the uncle. Is there something obvious here I'm missing?

Spoiler:

Yep, you missed that the objective updated and told you to stash him in a safe place. A dumpster should suffice.

EDIT:

Ach, tannhausered.

Spoiler:

Huh, when I did it, I sleep darted Campbell, and the captain ran away and I got credit for it.

Spoiler:

I did the same thing as tanstaafl, and totally missed the objective to hide the body. Something to try and remember for next time, I guess! It did get kinda hairy in there after I darted them both, so maybe that's why I missed it...

Purchased today. Looking forward to being able to uncover all these spoiler tags as I get further along in the game.

lostlobster wrote:

Purchased today. Looking forward to being able to uncover all these spoiler tags as I get further along in the game.

Same here, only I'm trying to finish up AC: Brotherhood first. I keep clicking on the thread out of habit of seeing new posts, but basically just skim so I go in as blind as possible.

Puce Moose wrote:
Rainsmercy wrote:
Alien Love Gardener wrote:
tanstaafl wrote:

I'm behind everyone; I've only finished the first "real" mission (the one to kill the Overseer) and have a question.

Spoiler:

Before you leave for the mission a woman tells you the Overseer is planning to poison her uncle and asks that you spare him. I get to the meeting room, wait for the two to come out and sleep dart both of them. I then throw the Overseer in the interrogation chair and brand him as a heretic (loved that option) and snuck out.

I make it back to Samuel and leave and the mission screen says I didn't kill anyone but apparently I didn't get credit for saving the uncle. Is there something obvious here I'm missing?

Spoiler:

Yep, you missed that the objective updated and told you to stash him in a safe place. A dumpster should suffice.

EDIT:

Ach, tannhausered.

Spoiler:

Huh, when I did it, I sleep darted Campbell, and the captain ran away and I got credit for it.

Lots of ways to complete that mission! I didn't do any of that; all I did was

Spoiler:

smash the (presumably poisoned) wine glasses & bottle that were on the table, then ran away. I still got credit for saving the uncle.

Interesting. I

Spoiler:

emptied the glasses, which lead to Campbell swearing, muttering "I guess I'll have to do this the hard way", and invited the captain to come with him to break out the good stuff. He then proceeded to lead the captain to his little den of pleasure, where I assume he would've attacked, but I put them both to sleep while Campbell was opening the door.

To add to the line of spoilers (and this one really is a spoiler!):

Spoiler:

When they go into the private den and Campbell attempts to backstab the captain, you can disable/assassinate him at that moment. The captain will turn around and actually thank you for saving his life, with a bit of an additional blurb about how he's torn between his duty to arrest you and the fact that you saved his life. Then he walks out with his men.

MoonDragon wrote:

To add to the line of spoilers (and this one really is a spoiler!):

Spoiler:

When they go into the private den and Campbell attempts to backstab the captain, you can disable/assassinate him at that moment. The captain will turn around and actually thank you for saving his life, with a bit of an additional blurb about how he's torn between his duty to arrest you and the fact that you saved his life. Then he walks out with his men.

OK, that's pretty darn cool.

The thing I really like about that mission is (late game spoiler)

Spoiler:

If you brand Campbell, you encounter him MUCH later as a Weeper in the flooded district

There's a few cool little cross-mission things you can find if you're careful.
Such as..

Spoiler:

An invitation to the Boyles party in the Madame's room at the Golden Cat or a skeleton key for the Palace in the mission prior to infiltrating it

This song gives me the biggest creeps ever:

I'm sure they're singing it wrong. In the proper one it's er-lye, not er-lee.

Interesting write up on that topic at the bottom of the article: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drunken...

JC wrote:

I'm sure this was already mentioned but the PC version has it's language gimped

In:

My documentsmy gamesdishonoreddishonoredgameconfig

dishonoredengine.ini

bAllowMatureLanguage

set it to True and let the F bombs fly. :)

I had no idea. Thanks!

MoonDragon wrote:

This song gives me the biggest creeps ever:

Creepy, but does it ever fit this game.

Is that in-game somewhere or is there a soundtrack edition?

Dan Bull's Dishonored Rap

Have I said yet, today, that this game is amazing?

If not, this game is amazing.

Wish there was a good general thread for discussing game editorial, but I’ll type this out in this thread.
Kill Screen has a review of the game up right now. I’m not playing Dishonored at the moment, so I don’t know if it’s already been mentioned (not keeping up with the thread). But this ill-conceived flimsy scrawl of a game review really got under my skin.

Specifically, the lead criticism of the game follows:

Don't make players specialize; don't make players wait or work to unlock the best. Just design an open world and let them loose.

The idea that funneling players to leveling up a progressive path is the valid stance in game designing is tone-deaf and detached at best. Rather than just name games that excel at allowing open play (though Far Cry 2 comes to mind), I’m floored that a site that is supposed to be a cut above in critical commentary would argue that Call of Duty is the structure by which all relevant games must strive to copy. There are at least some more tenable critiques of the game later in the piece (binary morality, use of voice cast). With these, at least there is an argument being made.

Yuck.

Thoughts on the intro

Spoiler:

A writer on Dishonored called Gordon Freeman "creepy". I think the same can be applied to Corvo as well. Just like Gordon, all of Corvo's actions are pretty much violent/physical. The intro is really compressed to the point where it goes from body guard to assassin in seconds. To me it seems like, "well everyone thinks I killed the Empress so I should murder them all." I think a little padding would do wonders at least for me. A little more of show and don't tell about Corvo.

The skills of a royal guards' man don't translate well into an assassin. Some of the characters (the inventor especially) says you are the only one who can help. The inventor says here is a creepy mask with no context other than people would recognize you. A plainer mask would probably help let you blend in more than a skeleton mask. At this point, none of the text outside say what a good Empress is or what she has done to warrant such a loss for Corvo other than to clear his name. Emily is a little more interesting. You get to be more of a factor in her life. She has a throw away line "If you won't marry mother, what about me?" that suggests more about your relationships with mother and daughter.

I'm over thinking things. I think Arkane just wanted to get to the action as quickly as possible so you can be a sneaky assassin/thief/psychopath

Ok, so I just made it to the Flooded District.

Spoiler:

Well, how about that sh*t. I bust my ass for these people, and what do I get? A big old knife in the back. Pendleton I half-expected to pull something, so I wasn't totally surprised. But Havelock? Martin? I didn't see that coming. Maybe I didn't have them as figured out as much I thought, but it felt totally out of character. And Piero? I thought he and I had a real - if not awkward - moment when I didn't tell what's-her-name he was spying on her in the bathroom. I did him a real solid, and this is what I get? Fine. I see how it is. My former BFFs better sleep with one eye open, 'cause the kid gloves are coming off.

EDIT:

I read that Kill Screen review. What tripe. Personal opinions on what makes a "good" game aside, the whole article reads like some amateurish attempt at being "critical" that ends up sounding contrived and whiny. "But, but...I have too many choices! The voice actors aren't blowing my mind with Oscar-winner performances! The story isn't one to rival Shakespeare and Byron!".

If that's what passes for "high-brow" games journalism, then I say no thanks.

I'm sure this was already mentioned but the PC version has its language gimped

In:

My documents\my games\dishonored\dishonoredgame\config

dishonoredengine.ini

bAllowMatureLanguage

set it to True and let the F bombs fly.

I'm loving this game...the setting and background just clicks with me and leaves me wanting to know and learn more...my one gripe is that it is starting to feel like we are being held back by current limitations of this console generation. I'm longing for bigger levels with more deeper characters and interactions..more secrets and interesting locations.. This type of game begs for your character to stumble upon a whole series of characters each with motivations and desires that could alter major and minor plot points

TheGameguru wrote:

my one gripe is that it is starting to feel like we are being held back by current limitations of this console generation. I'm longing for bigger levels with more deeper characters and interactions..more secrets and interesting locations.. This type of game begs for your character to stumble upon a whole series of characters each with motivations and desires that could alter major and minor plot points

I agree with you, but on the other hand I go back to my comment about it being deep rather than wide. The reason I give it a pass for not doing more is because I imagine a certain team, with certain talents, given a certain budget and time restriction, and them deciding that they were going to not make the mistake of trying to do too much and instead just do a few things really well. Dishonored seems like the perfect example to follow in that sense. You don't have to make an open world and you don't have to have a thousand guns or enemy types. Hit the stealth, combat, level-building and mystical in equal measure and then polish it.

Maybe they were restricted by technology but it might just have been old-fashioned self-control.

Still, I want to see DLC, sequels, and get some more explanation about how this world works.

Still, I want to see DLC, sequels, and get some more explanation about how this world works.

Yes indeed. I hope it sells enough to get a few DLCs to expand the world. From the few tidbits I've seen here and there it looks hopeful that they plan to do just that, and not just shoehorn in co-op/multiplayer modes/etc.

Arkane Studio’s Executive Producer Julien Roby says Dishonored’s planned DLC includes new characters and continents. Roby tells PC PowerPlay that Corvo’s stealthy missions among the streets of Dunwall represent just the beginning of branching storylines featuring new, playable characters slitting throats and possessing fish in different areas of Dishonored’s sprawling world.

Nicholaas wrote:

Ok, so I just made it to the Flooded District.

Spoiler:

Well, how about that sh*t. I bust my ass for these people, and what do I get? A big old knife in the back. Pendleton I half-expected to pull something, so I wasn't totally surprised. But Havelock? Martin? I didn't see that coming. Maybe I didn't have them as figured out as much I thought, but it felt totally out of character. And Piero? I thought he and I had a real - if not awkward - moment when I didn't tell what's-her-name he was spying on her in the bathroom. I did him a real solid, and this is what I get? Fine. I see how it is. My former BFFs better sleep with one eye open, 'cause the kid gloves are coming off.

Load up an old save before that level and listen to everything the Heart has to say about those guys. You won't be surprised. If the heart told me a guard NPC was evil, they were dead. I know it's randomized, but I took it to heart (no pun intended!).

By the way, I never even got the side mission to save Calista's Uncle. Guess I got on Samuel's boat too fast.

m0nk3yboy wrote:

Just picked this up as an impulse purchase based on the video preview on the home page.
Any heads up for someone starting out? Playing 360, and I'm also going to check out that stealth kill link before I begin.

I hated this game the first night I played it and thanks to this forum I was "born again" with this game and now love it to death. So I'll sum up for you generally about this game that everyone did for me:

This game is NOT Thief. It's not about hiding in shadows, putting out light sources and creating noise distractions. There is no "hidden" meter so don't try to play it like that because you'll just get frustrated. Sitting in a shadow doesn't mean you're "hidden." This game is more about avoiding line of sight and using the verticality of the levels. When you enter a new area, the first thing you should do is LOOK UP. Can you mantle onto a pipe and blink to that roof top instead of trying to sneak behind a garbage bin? Do it. The NPCs tend not to look up that often so use the verticality to your advantage. (really Chrome spell check? You don't like "verticality"?)

Also, embrace the supernatural powers. This is the big departure from Thief. Once I really started to learn how to use the Blink ability, it was second nature. Guard coming at you? Quick blink behind him and choke him out or a knife in the neck. Remember that you can blink while carrying a body, and can turn multiple powers on and off at the same time. You can also turn dark vision on and off while choking someone out. Pretty soon you'll be doing a wind blast, with a quick blink and slow time in one swoop. Pay attention to the way the blink icon changes. I didn't notice until the 3rd mission when I saw another video tip that the blink icon will change to an arrow indicating that you will be able to make a ledge and climb up onto it.

IMO, getting Dark Sight II first is a must because it allows you to see item locations and these can be tough to spot, especially in the xbox version. I also noticed some cases where items were half-way clipped under other graphics and would've been impossible to see without Dark Sight II. Blink II should be your next upgrade, and then Acrobatics which lets you fall from a greater height and jump higher. The Mask Zoom not only lets you visually zoom in, but you can hear the object of your zoom better too. Think you're missing an interesting NPC conversation but just can't blink over there right now? Zoom in and you can hear them.

It's worth doing the side missions in each level because sometimes it will open up alternate (and non-lethal) means of completing the main objective.

Keep the heart out a lot (it was the "Down" quick slot for me on my controller). She says interesting things about each new area you're in, and if you point your icon at a generic or named NPC, you'll get information about them. Also, read EVERYTHING you come across. The reading isn't as long as the books in Skyrim and it really fleshes out the world.

Finally, save A LOT, however, don't be too quick to reload just because you were spotted. You are not a weakling fighter! In fact, you're a bad ass with strong sword abilities and a small arsenal. This game gives you multiple ways to kill people, but challenges your restraint not to. That being said, you can easily fend off 3-4 guards at once between blocking and dart shots and pistol shots. Going no lethal? Block/Parry and use sleep darts. Or blink away up top where they can't get you or blink behind them and choke them out. Deal with the situation, but don't reload unless you're going for that achievement.

Have fun!

Just finished this game and I enjoyed it a lot. Really was a good game, but for some reason it just did not push itself into great for me. I think it was a bit unfocused on it's direction and a little to eh gamey. I did a non lethal run through (save for an accident or two) and it felt odd mostly. Usually the nonlethal method was thrown in your face and barely affected the dialogue (those always used neutral terms ie you dealt with the enemy or something). Broke my immersion. Nice characters and a interesting if a bit haphazard setting (probable needs another 40 hours just to flesh it out more). Oh and one nit bit was that overall it was to easy. I could have ghosted the entire game without killing anyone if I wasn't so lazy. I only ever used the blink power, and just bought abilities to spend my points on something. Had a ton of money with nothing to spend it on, though that was probable cause most things to buy were for killing people. Overall a really good game but just short of great.

Personally I've just given up on any pretense of stealth and turned my game into a guard murdering simulator. And it's a ton of fun. The guards are challenging enough (on Hard) to be a problem if you meet more than a pair in open combat so you have to set traps, take them by surprise or force them into areas where your AOE abilities can overpower them.

Spoiler:

And that's to say nothing of the assassins and the annoying overseers with the anti-magic boxes.

Saw one of those combat videos on youtube, and I thought that might be good for a laugh, so here it is: http://youtu.be/7tvjQ0shMb8
(spoilerish for those that haven't finished 'The Flooded District'.)

Nothing special, but I think it does a decent job of showing off some relatively high speed combat, which, as Faceless Clock says, is amazingly fun. It makes me want a challenge mode, like Batman.