Dishonored
| Dishonored | |
|---|---|
| File:"Dishonored" front cover.jpg | |
| Developer(s) | Arkane Studios |
| Publisher(s) | Bethesda Softworks |
| Designer(s) | Ricardo Bare Harvey Smith Raphaël Colantonio |
| Engine | Unreal Engine 3 (modified) |
| Platform(s) | Microsoft Windows PlayStation 3 Xbox 360 |
| Release | |
| Genre(s) | Stealth, action-adventure, steampunk |
| Mode(s) | Single-player |
Dishonored is an upcoming first-person Neo-Victorian/steampunk stealth action video game being developed by Arkane Studios and published by Bethesda Softworks. It is scheduled to be released in October 2012 for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 .[2]
Synopsis
Plot
 | This section may need to be rewritten to comply with Wikipedia's quality standards. (May 2012) |
The player controls Corvo Atano, once a legendary bodyguard for the Empress, who seeks vengeance against the Lord Regent who framed him for her assassination. The Empress died in Corvo's arms, and thus he was held accountable. Corvo is not only a fine swordsman and marksman, master-at-arms, and cunning infiltrator, but also possesses great supernatural powers. The game is not presented in open world format, but is instead a series of linear missions. The player can roam The Isles as well as the distant Pandyssian Continent, though the primary setting for the game is the steampunk-esque city of Dunwall.[3] The game is played in first-person, with an emphasis placed on stealth action and the utilization of gadgets as well as the environment to eliminate opposing forces. [4] In the Game Informer cover story, it was mentioned that every enemy in the game (even bosses) can be neutralized non-lethally, if the player so chooses. Lead designers Harvey Smith and Raf Colantonio have described the game world as a "simulation"; if the player encounters thugs harassing an innocent passerby, they can be fought off, but the thugs themselves exist within the game world prior to the event, rather than simply spawning in at a designated time or place. If the player encounters the thugs ahead of time, they can be defeated and the mugging will never take place at all.
Corvo has access to swords, daggers, and guns, including powerful but slow pistols and muskets. His supernatural powers include the ability to freeze time for a certain period, possess any living creature, summon plague animals such as rats, and teleport short distances.
Also, part of the game is an entity referred to as "The Outsider", voiced by Billy Lush. The ambiguous being is described as part angel and part devil, and it is supposedly responsible for all magic in the world. Its motives and nature are shrouded in mystery, but the protagonist, Corvo, made contact with the being whilst imprisoned; the Outsider offered him the chance to exact vengeance on the people who framed him by giving Corvo its mark, gifting the disgraced bodyguard with magical powers. According to lead designers Raf Colantonio and Harvey Smith, the Outsider walks among the mortals of Dishonored's world.
Development
Dishonored is the first Arkane Studios game to be published by Bethesda Softworks since parent ZeniMax Media acquired Arkane Studios in August 2010. The game is being developed by a team that includes lead designer Harvey Smith, known for his past work on the Deus Ex franchise as well as Thief: Deadly Shadows, Arkane founder and co-creative director Raf Colantonio, who worked on Arx Fatalis and Dark Messiah of Might and Magic, while Viktor Antonov, the man who designed Half-Life 2's iconic City 17, is lending his talents with Sebastien Mitton, Art director, to Dishonored's world.[5] The game blends inspirations from a pantheon of modern classics: The oppressive atmosphere and paranoid politicking of BioShock, the graceful bloodletting of Assassin's Creed, the murky morality of Deus Ex, and the stealth and shadow of Thief.[6]
References
- ^ a b c News: Dishonored October release date announced - ComputerAndVideoGames.com
- ^ Goulter, Tom (12 July 2011). "Dishonored: Bethesda's new assassination game reacts to your level of violence". GamesRadar. Retrieved 20 July 2011.
- ^ Miller, Matt (15 July 2011). "The World of Dishonored". Game Informer. Retrieved 20 July 2011.
- ^ Biessener, Adam (12 July 2011). "Getting To Know Dishonored". Game Informer. Retrieved 20 July 2011.
- ^ News: Bethesda's Dishonored is official - big talent on board - ComputerAndVideoGames.com
- ^ Dishonored Preview: Cloak and Dagger – PlayStation Blog