It’s not hard to talk about some of 2016’s biggest video games, even ones that are primarily shooting galleries, in terms that sound mature and universal. Watch Dogs 2 is a satire on Silicon Valley. Mafia 3 is an examination of racism. Deus Ex: Mankind Divided is about transhumanism and conspiracy politics.
It’s difficult for me to describe Dishonored or its sequel, which was released a couple of weeks ago, this way. Dishonored 2 isn’t allegorical or self-critiquing. It’s not a knowing pastiche of a well-loved genre, or a subtle character study. It’s a game about a young empress or her grizzled father getting revenge on an immortal witch in order to restore a fantasy steampunk monarchy, using supernatural powers granted by an emo folk deity. And yet the game has a very specific, rare kind of maturity: a commitment to pitch-perfect, solidly crafted melodrama.
Yes, you get magic powers from an emo folk deity
Dishonored 2 is a classic example of the “immersive sim” — a genre where detailed worldbuilding and consistent mechanics give players many paths to every goal. In this case, the mechanics include swordfighting, guns and crossbows, stealth, and an array of special abilities like stopping time and shapeshifting. It’s set in a quasi-Victorian world called the Empire of the Isles, ruled by the young empress Emily Kaldwin with the help of her father and bodyguard Corvo Attano, protagonist of the first Dishonored.
Dishonored 2 takes place 15 years after the original game, whose conflicts were wrapped up neatly enough that remembering them isn’t really necessary. Emily is deposed in the first few minutes by a vengeful, dramatically glam witch named Delilah Copperspoon, apparently a long-lost relative. Depending on the player’s choice, either Emily or Corvo will escape the palace, while the other is turned to stone. Whoever you pick must reach the island of Serkonos, where Delilah’s co-conspirators can be found and systematically eliminated — either killed or somehow rendered harmless.