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Dishonored: The Brigmore Witches
Score: 91%
Publisher: Bethesda Softworks
Developer: Arkane Studios
Media: Download/1
Players: 1
Genre: Stealth/Action

Graphics & Sound:

Dishonored: The Brigmore Witches takes you to even more new locations with Daud, AKA, "The Knife of Dunwall." You revisit some old locations as well, as you backtrack through the sewers and the prison that Corvo went through in his story. You’ll also visit an old run-down manor on the shore. We’ve seen plenty of run-down manors in Dishonored already, however, so this is not a huge breakaway. However, the vine-covered Witches and the glowing spectral Hounds are new, interesting enemies. You’ll witness more horrors (and perhaps a commentary on modern medicine as well) related to the ever pervasive whale oil as well, in a gang-run textile mill with a surprise secret.

Sound has not changed much since the last DLC, The Knife of Dunwall, but everything sounds just as good as ever. The voice acting, again, is top notch. The atmosphere is eerie and dark. It’s practically a new, mini version of Dishonored, which is a good thing.


Gameplay:

Dishonored: The Brigmore Witches, starts off boldly by dropping you right into a fight between Daud and Corvo. The dramatic start leads into a progression of more discovery and more introspection from Daud, and a now fragile relationship with his crew, some of whom are contemplating betraying Daud. He doesn’t believe (even with the Outsider, witches, and other happenings that anyone else might believe to be divine) that there’s any grand, outside force shaping his fate. He doesn’t believe evil is punished, even his own. But he does want to take control of his life and make up for his mistakes. And so Daud begins this final chapter of his story to take revenge on Delilah and her coven, the Brigmore Witches. Whereas the last DLC left you with more questions than answers, this one wraps everything up fairly nicely. Corvo becomes as much of a hero as he could ever be, by the end.

A new power is introduced in this DLC, unceremoniously called Pull. It’s a fun distraction, being able to use your dark powers to pull objects and, later, bodies toward you. It has its limits, and other enemies will definitely notice their buddy being magically yanked away through the air. It’s really not useful unless you’re trying to take down the last enemy or just have some chaotic fun.

The Hounds that stalk alongside the Witches are also a new problem to deal with. They can’t be killed with simple weapons, as you’ll soon find out. There’s a trick to it, and I’ll leave it at that. Dealing with the Witches, of course, is also a new challenge, as they can teleport around Daud, use magic, and summon plants to help them in their fight. You won’t be able to deal with them in the same manner as the guards and thugs you’ve met in the game so far.


Difficulty:

Dishonored: The Brigmore Witches is add-on content that veterans of the series will breeze through on lower difficulty levels. Normal offers just enough of a challenge so that you cannot charge through it blindly and make it out to the end. As always, Dishonored offers ways to challenge yourself outside of simply finishing each level. The way of stealth is always much harder than the way of chaos. In addition to being more difficult, sometimes you’ll get interesting information you otherwise wouldn’t have gotten if you go down the difficult path of stealth.

Stealth is difficult, mainly because your path is not always perfectly laid out for you. As always, stealth is not reliant on darkness in Dishonored, but rather on line of sight. So while you might feel naked in the sunlight, as long as you’re out of the view of an enemy, you’ll be fine. It takes some adjustment if you’re accustomed to other more traditional stealth action games.


Game Mechanics:

Dishonored: The Brigmore Witches hasn’t changed much in the overall mechanics, even with the new Pull power. Again in this DLC, you can choose to play as you like to play, and be the silent ghost or the unstoppable fighter. And the enemies might be a bit different, but the play style remains much unchanged.

This is a worthy conclusion to the DLC story, and a great wrap up for Dishonored. While it could have been a more spectacular ending, with even more twists and turns. Honestly the ending isn’t all that shocking, and it ties up some loose ends with the Empress’s daughter that we would expect to see tied up. Still, it’s satisfying. Daud is a great anti-hero, surpassing Corvo in many ways. If we ever see another Dishonored or a sequel, I would hope that it follows in the footsteps of the dark, existential Daud rather than Corvo, the blank slate.


-Fights with Fire, GameVortex Communications
AKA Christin Deville

Related Links:



Microsoft Xbox 360 Dishonored: The Brigmore Witches Sony PlayStation 3 Skyrim: Dawnguard

 
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