When I had played the first Dishonored more than a decade ago, it didn't took me long to realize that it was the single greatest Videogame I had played up to that point. I had also written a detailed review of the game describing why it was a Masterpiece in terms of all the metrics of Videogame designs, and still continues to be. Which means if you play the first one even in 2024, it'll blow you away all the same.
And while I couldn't get my hands on Dishonored 2 when it came out back in 2016, I finally got around to several weeks ago and after playing through the game in it's entirety for multiple playthroughs (with both playable characters), it was abundantly clear to me that it managed to evolve and improve on it's predecessor in every single gameplay aspect...just as a great sequel should. In fact, looking at the sheer number of ways developer Arkane has managed to expand on the gameplay of the first one, Dishonored 2 can be rightfully said as one of the most finely crafted sequels in gaming history.
But even with all it's gameplay richness and sky-high re-playability, along with all the added technological and Level design flourishes (especially with marvels such as The Clockwork Mansion and the time-bending Stilton Manor), and just being a better game in most ways, Dishonored 2 had (shockingly) failed to match the financial success of it's predecessor. In fact, Dishonored 2's sales figures, while still being reasonably well for a AAA title, just doesn't do justice for the dizzying heights it achieved as a Videogame and also for the myriads of awards and accolades it received. As a game that's frequently (and rightfully) listed among the 'greatest-games-of-all-time' lists, Dishonored 2's sales (around 2.4 million) clearly leave much to be desired.
So is it that somehow the game went much unappreciated, unlike it's predecessor which managed to sell a whole lot more (the first Dishonored sold over 5.8 million copies Worldwide)? Well, not exactly so, and that's what this article will be all about.
While it's true that the crippling performance problems that Dishonored 2 had at launch did indeed put a dent in both it's sales and in public perception of the game, but ultimately it could've easily bounced back from those issues with patches and other fixes so external problems aren't solely to blame for it's lackluster sales. And from my time with the game, it seems that there are some key design choices that Dishonored 2 had made which are far more likely the causes for it's lower sales than anything else.
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| Play your way in Dishonored 2 and the game shapes itself according to your playstyle... |
The first Dishonored (and it's amazing DLC's) had put far more emphasis on the game being a true power fantasy experience which D2 mostly did away with, making sure in every turn that the whole experience remains far more grounded than it's predecessor. I remember in the original Dishonored I could go for insane stunts combining several of the game's supernatural abilities together to jaw-dropping effects that no other game could ever come close. And the game actually encouraged you to experiment and go wild with your creativity with all the Powers it provided, which made the first Dishonored more of a gallery of gameplay fantasies that you'd love to show off and perform over and over again.
And much of that is missing in Dishonored 2 where the devs clearly went to lengths to make sure it's not quite the kind of Power trip that it's predecessor was, even though it features a plethora of supernatural abilities. The gameplay, especially the mana system which regenerates at a considerably slower pace than the first Dishonored, indirectly forces the player to be a lot more tactical rather than encouraging them to indulge in bursts of spectacular gameplay showpieces that Dishonored 1 did.
Also, Dishonored 2 makes the player rely on the core stealth mechanics of leaning, sneaking and carefully observing the movement patterns of enemies a lot more, which makes the game inherently harder and a lot stricter. The devs really wanted the players to be a lot more stealthy while playing the game, and the fact that at two different missions Dishonored 2 basically forces you to go without using any of it's Powers make it awfully clear. And coupled with the much improved detection system of it's AI, Dishonored 2 presents a significantly harder experience than it's predecessor, with a lot more grounded approach towards gameplay.
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| Karnaca's cozy and exotic feel makes it one of the most vibrant cities in gaming... |
To elaborate this further, through the 'Bonecharm Crafting' system, Dishonored 2 basically lets you tweak it's myriads of gameplay subsytems individually to your liking, allowing the players to fine tune and craft their own unique blend of gameplay experience. But even though you can significantly speed up the time required for choking out an enemy or move around much faster while crouching there's one thing you can't do much about and that's mana regeneration which, even with a full 4x multiplier, takes far longer than you actually wish it did. But in the original Dishonored, the mana regen was significantly faster (around half the time it takes in Dishonored 2), and so the overall pacing of the gameplay was more fluid and seamless which indicates that the devs deliberately wanted the gamers to take their time in between power usage, even though it's not necessary everytime which does slow down the gameplay quite a bit.
And this is what I suspect had turned away many gamers who were expecting a similar power-fantasy experience akin to the first Dishonored. While the powers are still there and works the exact same ways as they did in the first game, Dishonored 2 requires you to rely more on it's core Stealth mechanics than it's Superpowers and it's designed in ways where the powers are best used only in short bursts and with thoughtfully planned executions. As a result, the game can be a bit less accessible to anyone who's expecting a similar gameplay experience like the first Dishonored offered. And this might be why the game gave the impression that it's a much more tightly crafted and doesn't play as fast and loose like it's predecessor, which would be right in more ways than one.
So that could be the reason why despite being a greater game in lots of ways (except the Story), Dishonored 2 failed to garner the commercial success of it's predecessor. Which is a real shame, cause the amount of work and passion that went into creating this game is monumental, and clearly deserving of a whole lot more revenue than it did.
Another reason could be the nature of the game itself, as an Immersive Simulator which is a highly rare form of Videogames out there, Dishonored 2 has a really Old-School DNA at it's core and doesn't spoonfeed the players quite like many titles of the more popular genres do. While it can be played in a far quicker and casual way, the game ensures that the best experience it can give is only reserved for those who really take the time to study and practice all of it's myriads of gameplay mechanics and underlying systems, and the result is easily one of the greatest gameplay you can get in the modern era of gaming.
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| Moving through a level by shifting between the past and the present is easily one of the greatest Level Design ideas in Gaming, ever. |
In fact, in terms of the sheer gameplay depth it provides, Dishonored 2 can be compared even to the likes of Devil May Cry 5 or games of it's ilk, which is just staggering. The amount of ways you can replay the game and adopt to a different playstyle and get a completely different range of experience is sky-high, resulting in a game that's effortlessly and endlessly replayable.
And of course, no discussion on Dishonored 2 can be complete without mentioning it's timeline altering 'A Crack in the Slab' mission where the player needs to shift between the past and the present to move around a mansion in one of the game's most nerve wracking stealth sandboxes. To sum up how much innovative and groundbreaking everything in this level really is--as a jaded gamer for well over 20 years, it has become extremely rare when I find myself completely blown away by anything in videogames anymore. But the outrageously inventive and ahead-of-it's-time gameplay in this level managed to do just that, and still continues to make my jaws drop every time I re-play it.
So while it is disappointing that Dishonored 2 didn't get the amount of commercial success it actually deserved it doesn't really take anything away from the fact that it's still one of the greatest games ever made and a masterclass in Videogame design (both the Clockwork Mansion and the time bending Stilton Manor is in for gaming Hall of Fame) and you should definitely play it, if you haven't already. So if you can pick this one up (with the Death of the Outsider DLC as well) for a good deal (or even without it), just do it.
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