by Jack Grimme, Contributing Writer
About 12 years ago, Arkane Studios released Dishonored. It was not their first title, but it did help put them on the map, and certainly brought the studio to my attention. To this day, Dishonored is in my top 10 games of all time. And ever since, I have been searching for the same level of inspiration and passion in their subsequent releases. Dishonored 2 was a huge disappointment that I have yet to fully recover from. Prey and Deathloop were both enjoyable, but still lacked the magic I found in my first foray with the studio’s work. Even going into last week with the release of their newest title Redfall, I still had hope that I would get those feelings I have been craving for the past decade. The cooperative nature of this new release had me even more sure that we were finally getting something fresh. Unfortunately, Redfall seems to be another lifeless game that fails to live up Arkane’s magnum opus.
Redfall is a cooperative first-person shooter where players must use their wits, weapons, and supernatural abilities to save their town, which is besieged by a legion of vampires and their cultish followers. I found the hook intriguing, and at this point am willing to try out any game that has a cooperative story mode. However, I will say that I did not get to play this game with any friends. I originally intended to try it out with some pals on my new PS5, until I unfortunately learned the game was exclusive to Microsoft (because Microsoft owns Bethesda Softworks, which owns Arkane Studios). I still decided to give the game a fair chance, and was more than happy to pick it up for “free” since I still have an Xbox Game Pass subscription.
I also want to be clear and state that I did not complete this game; I played through several missions, got the hang of the main mechanics, and explored the world as much as I could. Unfortunately, almost everything I interacted with just feels so bland. The gunplay and movement are run of the mill. The abilities of the four playable characters are relatively cool, but not spectacular. And the most egregious part of all is the enemies, more specifically the behavior of the AI. I always play on the default setting of the game for my first playthrough. I generally feel like that is the level of difficulty for which the game is optimized, and it allows you to experience the story without being bogged down by unnecessarily hard sequences. And even though you play as one of the most wanted people in a town infested with vampires, I never once felt at danger or remotely challenged by the game.
I understand that I did not make it to the end and there is, presumably, a difficulty curve that I missed. However, throughout my entire time with the game, I could stand still and survive for minutes in a full-on firefight. The distinct lack of pressure or stakes, mixed with dull gameplay, had me snoozing through the bulk of the gunfights. This is another issue that could potentially be remedied by playing with friends. Maybe working together to plan out attacks and synchronizing abilities is a large chunk of the fun. But that is not a worthy excuse by any means. If your game offers single player, it should not rely on other sources for the player to enjoy their experience.
After I finally realized that the main gameplay loop was not going to be the primary draw for me, I told myself that they could potentially make up for it with a unique world and engaging characters. Dishonored absolutely shines because of the deep, rich cast of characters you met throughout Corvo’s journey. I am not purely reviewing this game based on how it compares to one of my personal favorites; I understand that is unfair. However, it’s important to mention because it proves the studio is capable of writing great characters, dialogue, and quests. Unfortunately, I was disappointed in this regard as well. The non-playable characters (NPCs) read off the most uninspired dialogue with little to no enthusiasm in the delivery. It makes minor conversations a chore, and cutscenes the perfect opportunity to get up and stretch your legs.
I know I have been ceaselessly wailing on this game from the jump, so I should note that it is not the worst game I’ve ever played. It reminds me of one of the shooter games at an arcade where you get to grab one of the plastic guns and burn a few quarters to fight off zombie hordes. If you have Game Pass and find yourself in a game drought, you may have a decent time mindlessly playing Redfall, and catching up on a show in the background. However, I do not recommend spending the full retail price of $69.99 on it. The clunky mechanics and lack of a meaningful story is much easier to swallow when you are not forking over a chunk of your paycheck.
I also will note that I have not given up on the studio just yet. They have a unique style and perspective that should work more often than it does. I am confident that one day they will rediscover the spark that made Dishonored so indelible.
Score: 5/10
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