Imagine, for a second, the intricate and layered level design of Dishonored paired with the puzzle solving of Hitman and the emergent combat of, say, Far Cry. Then sprinkle in superpowers. In fact, you don’t really need to imagine it because there’s almost ten minutes of gameplay footage above: Deathloop looks utterly superb on PlayStation 5.
It’s nothing we haven’t seen before, of course – there have been dozens of trailers and showcases since this title was announced – but it’s a good one, and we daresay if you aren’t already sold on the premise then you never will be. This is Deathloop and it’s out on 14th September – personally, we’re pretty darn excited.
[source youtube.com]
Comments (32)
It's always looked good in gameplay trailers, but I just can't get excited about Deathloop. Don't really know why! I'm sure it'll be a great game as well.
It does look good, but I feel it's sucess as a game will live or die on how well it collates and presents all the information one gathers during a loop. If I have to remember the 8 visionaries schedules from loop to loop, well, that just ain't gonna happen.
I personally love Arkane and think they are one of the best game designers in the business, but they sadly do not appeal to the mainstream. I don't think this will sell well, not because of fear of missing out on a sequal as suggested above (honestly, whose gonna pass up a good game for that reason? Most people also have a MS machine already in their PCs / laptops), but because it's something different and a little unique. Mainstream dogs don't like different or unique, more's the pity.
In one year Playstation is getting Returnal, Hades and Deathloop
I'm experiencing some major deja vu
@ThomasHL Deathloop is a bit different to Hades and Returnal as in it's not procedurally generated levels. It's more like Hitman crossed with The Outer Wilds, which, I think, is a fantastic idea.
Looks like a mid-gen PS4 game. Nothing here changed my mind about it, nor did I expect it to. Will pass.
@ILikeStake Fair enough. Just out of curiosity (because Arkane's games really do deserve to sell better than they do), what is it you don't like the look of (apart from the graphics which aren't that bad, but are stylised) and have you played other Arkane games?
Oh, and whilst I'm asking, what's the appeal of short, sharpened bits of wood?
I'm curious as to how the multi-directional telekinesis works. Maybe hold down a trigger and then flick the left stick in the direction you wanna throw.
@PossibLeigh
Sure, I don't care for the art direction and as I mentioned the graphics don't look PS5 at all. To me, this is an underdeveloped looking game that they are trying to hide behind thinly veiled play-the-same-thing over and over mechanics, just dripping you little upgrades that help you get past the next barrier after dying 10 times.
And yeah I played the first Dishonored and didn't really get into it. I actually remember I was super excited when it came out, but thought it was boring after spending some time with it. I did however like the feel of the game much more than this funky looking style they have going here.
@ILikeStake I agree with you about the style of Dishonoured, which was great, being preferable. They really seem to be going for a 70's kitschy look which might bite them in the arse. The mechanics will be sound and the whole game is built around the loop conceit, but I've gotta agree, it looks quite garish.
I do respectfully disagree with your comment that it looks like an underdeveloped game. I just think that cutting edge graphics have never been their focus. This game will be tight. Tightly plotted and tightly timed.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts!
Death-meh is more like it, just not feelin this one. Graphics look super dated, and the gameplay just doesn’t sound exciting. Maybe on sale…
@get2sammyb
"personally, we’re pretty darn excited."
Wasn't there an article written on Wednesday called
"Soapbox: Why I'm Less Excited for Deathloop on PS5 Than I Should Be"
Hmmmmmmm??
@Futureshark yep, it was a very cringey post.
I love Arkane Studios, they're one of my favorite developers. I also love the Dishonored series as well as Prey. Deathloop should be right up my alley, but I really have no interest in playing it.
For starters, whether it's been officially labeled as a Roguelike or not, it sure fits the bill. I'm not a fan of the genre, and they've joined forces with Souls-like as most copied and overused genre. Kinda hard to think of a Metroidvania sounding title for Roguelike and Souls-like.
Strike one
As much as I love Arkane's games, they definitely do not have the feeling of a top notch shooter with smooth controls like Destiny or CoD. So seeing how much shooting is involved with this, I'd say it won't feel good enough for a Roguelike experience...in my opinion.
Strike 2
Finally, it just looks bland, dreary, and uninteresting.
Strike 3
Deathloop...you're out!
Such a talented studio and definitely looking forward to this. My favorite Arkane game is still Dark Messiah. I had an absolute blast with it and that kick move was lethal.
@PossibLeigh The gameplay may be tight, but I'm afraid the content will be light. That's what I mean about underdeveloped. Like they thought, hey let's focus on 5 hours of gameplay and just make them play it over and over. Don't spend much time on making it look next gen either. Those 5 hours (stretched to 15-20) may play well, but we should definitely expect that anyways, and we should expect a PS5 game to look and feel like a PS5 game. This just doesn't to me at all.
And hey, thanks for understanding opinions are that and not being offended. It's cool to see both sides.
Really shocked by the comments, I thought this looked brilliant!!
Game looks great, I was looking forward to it. They should have waited to announce no more games are coming to playstation until after this releases.
I will be boycotting, voting with my dollars. If Microsoft don't want my money in the future, no sense in giving it to them now.
It's their loss, not mine.
@ILikeStake Nah, I can see where you're coming from, but in reality it's more like 5 hours x 8. This will be a heavily layered game. A loop lasts a day, so that's potentially 24 hours of content (more likely to be 8, I guess). Each visionary and NPC will have their own routines for the entire loop. The one thing this won't be is light on content.
As I said to someone on Eurogamer, it's a matter of perspective. Would you get annoyed at having to restart a level of Hitman due to fluffing up? Failure and repitition are part and parcel of videogames, Deathloop just presents it in a more overt, tongue in check way.
But, yes, excellent to have a civil discussion about our differing thoughts! We don't have long left to find out for real. Cheers, chap.
@LeeHarveyOzgod Don't understand this attitude at all. MS made an acquisition as happens in business. They are not raping babies or anything. Rabid fanboyism to a company has always struck me as odd.
Why deny yourself a good game because you feel slighted by business being business?
I think it looks pretty good, the visual style is really nice and the adaptive soundtrack is awesome!
Bit interested to know if there is a save system involved for the casuals
@Kang81 Its not a roguelike.if anything it's the exact opposite. Roguelikes are procedurally generated.
The game is no different to any other game in which you have to restart after dying. Prime example is Hitman. Each level is layered with multiple characters and events on a tight schedule. If you die or otherwise mess up you need to start that mission again. Deathloop is exactly the same, except the mission is longer and it has given a narrative reason for restarting. It's literally no different to a traditional game other than in the way the mechanic of retrying is presented with a justification that fits the narrative.
Crazy how people aren't getting that from the extensive looks at the game that we've had.
@Futureshark oh, that's a good question! Hopefully one can create a snapshot save state at any time which is deleted as soon as you start the game again, like Souls games. Just like what Returnal desperately needed.
@PossibLeigh
Ok, so is it a start over at a checkpoint, or start over completely from the start again? If I die on the final boss type enemy,, do I have to fight them all over again? Because it seems marketed as starting all over again like that.
If that's the case, it's taking elements of a RogueLike, it doesn't have to be procedurally generated to borrow ideas from Roguelike games.
So many games today are borrowing roguelike and souls like mechanics. I just want to be informed correctly so I can base a purchase decision on a game. I dont enjoy roguelikes or soulslike games, or the mechanics borrowed from them, so I don't want to spend money on them.
Hitman is one of the few stealth games I've never gotten into, no idea why to be honest. Is it basically restarting a level over from scratch then?
@PossibLeigh I am far from a fanboy, I am just an adult with limited time for gaming. Also an adult smart enough to vote with my dollars. I have no beef with the situation, I'm not sitting around mad about it, the bottom line is I have a PlayStation 5 and if Microsoft doesn't want my money, they aren't getting it, any of it.
Realistically it's the only chance of them ever reversing their decision.
Again, I'm an adult, my kid actually has an xbox one, I'm not against the console. I just don't have the time to invest in trying to play every game on both consoles.
I wasn't looking forward to it till I watched the trailer but saying that I'll wait the 12 months till Microsoft inevitably put it on game pass
@Martsmall If you are willing to wait a whole year to play the game because GamePass (in this case September 2022), then that means the actual game doesn't really interest you, simple as that. This has nothing to do with value, but actual interest.
Now, if you were really interested in the game you will either play it close to release date or after it gets a discounted (3-6 months after released), but not wait a whole year to do so...
@Kang81 Yes, it has roguelike elements, but as you say, melding together genres is most common these days. I personally find that exciting. This game is not a roguelike, but does have elements.
You're other point is a good one though. They've not yet revealed if a visionary stays dead on subsequent loops, and I agree that is pertinent information. I guess we will find out in reviews!
It's also not mentioned if there is only one opportunity to off the visionaries or if they can be taken out in multiple ways. Hell, it may be possible to just blast your way straight through everyone, but I would expect the game to be more subtle than that.
I expect that each loop will see us trying different things, learning the layout of the island and the schedules of the inhabitants, with the eventual goal being to learn enough to wipe them all out in one go.
Don't know if you're familiar with The Outer Wilds (another time loop game), but that game could be completed in 15 minutes if you know what you are doing. The game is actually about gathering all the info needed to do that final 15 min run. I think this will be the same. Honestly, I think if people give it a chance, you may find it more compulsive than you think. Shame that a price point of £70 is not going to convince anyone on the fence to give it a go.
@Kang81 Hitman: yes, starting the level again, but with more knowledge of what's going to happen where and when and how, meaning you can use it to your advantage. Each level is a multilayered clock of intricate interaction that you get to play around in. Deathloop will be like that on a grander scale. Possibly the scale will be too great, as you suggest.
@LeeHarveyOzgod Fair enough. I don't think you not buying their last PS game will possible make MS reverse their decision, and by doing so you're potentially missing out on a great game. The ink is dry on that deal and there is no going back. Why is MS exclusivity any different to Sony exclusivity? Other than the fact we are more likely to have a MS powered machine in our houses anyway, it's not.
This games called Deathloop, which pretty much promises that this is a closed narrative. Dishonoured 2 wasn't directly connected to Dishonoured 1 and if there is a DL sequal, it will probably be stand alone, but that is all just conjecture on my part.
Tha ks for responding and my apologies for spalshing the 'fanboy' accusation round.
@PossibLeigh if it was fallout I'd be playing, honestly I don't have enough time for gaming to worry about missing an occasional game.
@LeeHarveyOzgod Amen to that, brother!
I've seen so much Deathloop I think I will pass, wait for it to be $20 New in 2 years.
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