Dishonored: The Knife of Dunwall

I was hostile to the concept of DLC in the past, so I’m only now playing The Knife of Dunwall seven years after playing Dishonored. I was worried that I’d be completely out of my depth without that muscle memory, but while this expansion is certainly not accommodating for latecomers, I’m confident that its difficulty is appropriate for most. One advantage to such a gap in play is that I’m aware in advance of the follow-up expansion’s existence, so this one’s minimal upgrade opportunities and abrupt ending don’t feel quite as disappointing. The fact that all of the “new” abilities and tools are merely variations of old ones is disappointing in any context, however. Of course, I’ll never say no to more of Dishonored’s stellar gameplay. The three levels here are among the game’s best, being both expedited and invigorated by the protagonist’s supernatural steampunk movement and stealth arsenal. The base game’s penchant for open-ended solutions returns, but unfortunately, so does its stunted, heavy-handed writing.