Deathloop

Repetition begets perfection

So I have trouble when it comes to Arkane's newest Bethesda-fuelled adventure, Deathloop.
On one hand I positively love the idea of a new Arkane game, especially one that looks built on Dishonored's bones and doesn't penalise us for going on murder sprees like it feels the game was designed for. But on the otherhand there's the question of exclusivity that sort of ruins the affair for someone like me who wants to play the game on a decent platform, not a console. It sucks that Playstation are in this state of securing constant 3rd party exclusives because it's really starting to get in the way of some of the greatest series' in gaming. Final Fantasy is being affected, Sqaure's Avengers was affected and now Arkane's library is starting to feel it too. (Is Starfield going to be announced as a Playstation exclusive next?) But I can put away my distaste for a little bit in order to get a good look at this new side of itself that Deathloop is showing.

First of all, and yet again, I would commend Deathloop on that 70's theming to its material and world which sufficiently distinguishes it from Dishonoured in look at the very least. And secondly I'd commend the gameplay which does the same in a much more practical sense. Somehow the developers have managed to create a game that feels like Dishonoured (With guns, melee and Blink abilities) yet has moved on from that stealth style gameplay into all-out action. I think that's enforced by the smoothness of weapon switching, as well as the snap of aiming, and the general fluidity of navigation; this looks like a game designed to be good for shooting in every regard. Of course, I'm merely talking about the sense for this game that I pick up from a trailer, and these are really the sorts of opinions that need hands-on to be sure about, but even from a glance we can ascertain enough to know that it at least looks good. (Hopefully it feels just as good)

As a recap for those that have yet to watch this trailer or read literally anything about this game (as it's story is no great secret) the premise goes like this: you play as a Hitman who is stuck in a timeloop on an island in which the only way out is to kill 8 whacky audacious targets before the end of the day else they'll be sent back to the start. To help them all they have at their disposal is an abundance of guns, a smattering of recycled Dishonoured abilities and memories of their previous loops. Thus it's up to the player to do that they can in order to break the cycle without getting killed in their attempts or by the second player, a mysterious assassin who seems to similarly be aware of the timeloop and yet only wishes to kill the protagonist, for whatever twisted reason. Will any of these story set-ups ever come home to roost through the life-cycle of the story? It's hard to say but I hope so. (I've already got a pretty good idea as to the identity of the assassin.)

This trailer in particularly introduced a interesting snag to the scenario, as apparently 24 hours isn't enough time to kill all eight targets before being reset. (I'm sure the speedrunner community will have something to say about that.) Thus this trailer introduces the art of performing set-up challenges in order to draw out two targets in a position where they can be killed together, immediately meaning that strategy and puzzle solving has entered the formula. For the trailer in question we see a party held by one of the targets which could be attended by another one as long as they are prevented from making an important discovery at the beginning of the day. Getting them both together at the same place would, I'd imagine, make the place a bit more heavily guarded but the resulting double kill will be worth the extra hassle.

Now to be clear, this sort of 'set-up' event isn't exactly alien to Arkane's established style. Indeed, they actually had something similar in Dishonoured wherein the player would activate and exploit opportunities that could isolate targets, but whereas those seemed to be more chances for creative or audacious kills, in this game they approach it from a coldly logistical angle that I, as a Hitman fan, appreciate. Because make no mistake, this is exactly the sort of 3-dimensional puzzle solving that one would expect out of IOI in their Hitman games, and if you know how I feel about their level design you should know that this is a comparison I make with the absolute utmost of praise. Just the opportunity to influence NPC pathing and trigger events allows for a world of creativity and player control to enter the equation, and I wonder just how many of these 'set-up's the developers will provide. Also, I wonder if there'll be some secret 'ultra-event' to unite the whole island that'll take a crazy amount of set-up. I'm already buzzing with speculation!

Although if there's one thing I'm kind of at a loss towards, which is strange considering how much we've seen of this game in the few reveal events that we've had, it's the sort of difficulty we're looking at. And that may sound off-hand but if what I appear to be seeing implied is true, than this could really effect the sort of game we're looking at. What I mean by that is, whenever we see gameplay of this title it's rarely of prolonged firefights where both sides eat lead, but quick bouts of ultra violence with an abundance of death as the player dances across the battlefield. And whenever the player get's shot once, as we've seen in a trailer, it's used as an opportunity to demonstrate the 'Deathloop' aspect of the game in which they're bought back to the beginning. What I'm trying to ascertain is thus; is this just some marketing magic or does the player really go down to a single bullet? Because in a game about 'live die repeat' wherein every guard is exactly where they were last time and it's all about perfecting your route, it almost makes sense for the protagonist to be this extreme glass cannon. If you could eat bullets and spit them out like a COD protagonist there would be no need to strategize. But are we going so far as to head towards insta-death? Because if so then this is a completely different game to the one I went in expecting...

Whatsmore, I'm slightly concerned about the role of the secondary character in this game, as they have yet to be explored in the marketing to any significant degree. We know that this antagonist is player controlled and that their primary duty is to hunt down and kill the other player, but I worry if this doesn't seem a little dull compared to their opponent's tasks. The other person has to deal with level layouts, guard postings, set-ups and all the miniscule complications that they introduce, whereas this antagonist just has to kill them and move on. Seems a little boring, is all. And yes, we don't know if this Assassin is even aligned with the folk on the island, so she may have to work her way around the guards too, but is still doesn't change the fact that this feels more like the Dark Souls 'Invade' mechanic ballooned into being a whole half of the gameplay. I'm just not sure how many people are going to sign up just for the opportunity to troll maybe one person an hour. (That's assuming this feature relies on matchmaking like it actually may not.) But until we know more, if we ever know more, it's hard for me to specifically criticise so I'll remain quietly dubious.

I think one of the reasons I keep gravitating towards this game is because of the way it weaponizes it's replayability into a core theme of the story, and I love that barefaced admittance of what you are. It's the same reason why other people love the Just Cause games despite them lacking interesting narratives most of the time, because it's all about what the player can do with the tools provided to them. I generally hope for a little more out of my games but Deathloop has hit me at such a point where I'm overwhelmed but all these big engrossing experiences and am open for a title that's just simple to the point and probably won't take more than 5 or so hours to get through on a good run. And what's more, it's a AAA Rougelike, and that's unique all on it's own! (No the half-assed modes taped onto Far Cry 5 and Shadow of War as DLC do not count.) Right now all I could wish more for this game would be if it was actually accessible to me, exclusivity sucks sometimes...

Deathloop

Die, Die again

What a tragedy. You know I was really, honest to goodness, excited about this title when it was first announced, I truly was. I was one of the few people in my circle of contacts not rolling their eyes at the premise or the fact that is was 'just a cinematic', (I really need to get into a topic about that later on because I have some strong thoughts in that regard) I saw the potential of this game and really couldn't wait to get ahold of it. And when I saw it pop up at the Playstation event I literally whooped, happy in the knowledge that this wasn't a title that was getting swept under the rug but something that Arkane and Bethesda were proud of! Only- it was at the Playstation 5 reveal event and most of those games turned out to be exclus- oh no. You didn't. After everything we've been through, all the promises that you've made; Bethesda have you really gone the exclusivity route? (Why is this studio so deadset in insulting it's fans, this is freaking wild, it has to be intentional. Either it's intentional or they're playing 5D chess right now and we're all plebeians.)

Yep, that's right. Arkane Studios first next gen title is shaping up to be a Playstation exclusive for at least the first year of it's life, which means that the first person shooter which looks like it has the potential to be hard-as-nails and trail-and-error based; is going to be exclusive to PlayStation  controllers. (Is there even a name for how dumb this is? Oh wait there is, it's called: 'clueless greedy moron syndrome'.) I hate to really hone in on this point but as you can tell it really riles me up. I despise exclusivity culture and the manufactured air of fomo it tries to establish. I can just about stomach it when tied to a game that was funded and published by the studio who covets that exclusive access (I'm genuinely surprised that Death Stranding has come to PC; Sony were absolutely within their moral rights to hold onto that one) but for games like these, where the name was purchased after the fact, it's honestly sickeningly gross. Bethesda have shrunk even further down my list of respectable studios after this one.

And I suppose the reason why this honestly, truly, gets to me is because, like I said, I really do like what this game is trying to achieve! Deathloop is, like much the title implies, a game about a man who's destined to die and repeat the moments of his life over and over again until he can find a way out. The only fun twist on this idea comes in the way that the man in question is a hitman, and the task he has to complete, at least as far as he and we are aware, is the assassination of several high profile targets. That means for every single mistake that he makes, every bullet he catches and every roof he falls off, there's a lesson to be learnt by the player in order to make that final ultimate run. There's such a delicious level of game-ness to that concept inherently that it's truly amazing that it's taken this long for such an idea to make it into the gaming world, but now it's here and it looks as though Arkane have executed it absolutely beautifully. (If one can judge a promo.)

What makes it doubly as exciting, is the fact that Arkane have already built an incredibly solid framework for this sort of gameplay and, judging from the gameplay trailer, this seems to be what they've used. Dishonoured's first person stealth action gameplay was notably simple and exciting to get ahold of to the point where it was almost a detriment to the stealth of the game, because going around killing was just so much fun. You were agile, deadly and fast, capable of sliding, climbing and peeking around corners; with just a little bit of adjustment you can easily see how such a control scheme could be adapted for a title that focused heavily on action, and Deathloop does exactly that. In terms of narrative this really helps the player settle into the shoes of a skilled assassin and, if Dishonoured remains an inspiration, will probably pave the way for some seriously ingenious moments and unexpected gameplay feats down the line. (Shoutout to that moment in 'Knife of Dunwall' where I accidentally sniped the target from the building across from his fortified home. )

We really see that Dishonoured DNA come out in the gameplay trailer wherein it appears that our Hitman has a device on his arm that allows him to literally have the power of the Outsider. I mean he can teleport, he has telekinetic abilities, I even think I saw a little time disruption. (have we checked this guys hand for the mark? This might be an unofficial Dishonoured sequel) That being said, it's the pacing of the title, and the updated physics, that make the powers feel a lot more dynamic than they did in Arkane's previous series. (At least from the trailer) Top that up with the variety of weapons that the player seems to have at their disposal, in stark contrast to the single pistol that Emily and her Father were subject to, and you have quite the toolkit for wrecking up this little island. Now of course the trailer plays up the action and chaos a little, but I don't think it's a hundred miles away from the gameplay itself; this looks like the kind of title that encourages violent action over stealth. (Although, being an Arkane title, I'd imagine the ultimate choice of approach lies with the player.)

If there's one thing that I still feel hasn't been adequately explained thus far it's the second assassin that appears to have a distinct hatred for the protagonist and is trying to kill him. Is this meant to be some sort of pursing main antagonist that'll keep the story going, or is this another player? (I'm unsure about how that works out) Well according to the interviews that have been put out this rival assassin is a playable character, but I don't know how that'll work out for the overall game, or rather what it says for the structure of this game. As it appears to be sold, this is a giant game of cat and mouse between two players from start to finish, but then is this even a full length game at all? Are you telling me that this entire game is basically a long form online death match? Are there going to be levels? Matchmaking? Some sort of mulitplayer components? I feel like an inherently simple and effective premise is slightly muddied with this addition that really needs to be properly explained long before launch. As it stands I have no idea what it is I'm getting into, and I'm confused about if this is supposed to be a full-fledged $60 game or a one-multiplayer-mode $30 title. (And I certainly have a preference for the former right now)

But whilst I'm still enjoying the unique aesthetic perspective of this title I can't wrack my little old head too hard. The marketing for the game has adopted this quaint 80's theme to it and even the game itself has this 80-era game-show type vibe in it's bright flashing signs and technicolor world spaces; it's another heaping of 80's nostalgia, no doubt, but I find it endearing none the less. (And that's not because I have any personal nostalgia, mind you, I was born well after the 80's) There's something Tarantino-esque about the marketing for this title, and though I may not be the biggest fan of his later movies, I cannot deny that the man has an eye. So yes, Deathloop has every single ingredient to be a great game, it's just such a shame that the publishers are such arses.

Without the exclusivity angle this game would absolutely be on my must-have radar, but I can't support that kind of crap so I have to scribble this promising-looking title off my list. I'll still be paying attention, but just so that I can see what I'm missing. If you're not perturbed by such things, then by all means have at this cool looking game from a provenly talented developer that is finally getting their chance to make new things and expand. I wish them all the luck in the world and hope that they finally wriggle out of the shadow of Dishonoured like they've apparently wanted to do for a while now. (Shame that Prey didn't sell so well, I liked that game.) So with that out of the way I'll now proceed to search for some other game to take this one's place in my hype chart; like, for instance, the next I'm talking about...