Whoever is making the DLCs for the Watch Dogs series needs to be given control of the main games. Don't get me wrong, it's not perfect - it's still built on the frame of the base game, meaning the mission structure is mostly the same, it's still largely repetitive and slightly too easy. But the things this DLC does right are fascinating to me, because it feels like it's getting closer to the place Watch Dogs wanted to be when it all started - a focus on how ordinary citizens are affected by the actions of society's bigger players.
Aiden Pearce is still far from being a fun-loving guy, but watching him try to reckon with how his actions have affected his now-adult nephew Jackson is compelling, human drama. Jackson is the one who introduces Aiden to the questgivers in the DLC, and together they paint a much different picture of what "resistance" can look like. With a single protagonist (well, two) to focus this DLC around, the contrast between Aiden's gunslinging and the compassionate mutual aid focus of the questgivers is especially prominent.
The result here is a story that cares much more for its characters and the connections they make than anything in the base game, a work that is supposedly all about random people coming together. Every mission feels like a lesson for Aiden or Wrench about the value in connecting with other people and learning to help others in a way that doesnt involve murder. It's not flawless - the presence of the black market dealer is an especially strange inclusion - but I was surprised at the way in which this DLC seems genuinely compassionate at times in a way I didn't expect from a Ubisoft game. If they were willing to be a little more brave and decouple this story about the consequences violent vigilantism can have from the gameplay about how fun violent vigilantism can be, there's a possibility we could've had something special. That's asking for a lot, though, and I think asking Ubisoft for a game without combat that isn't explicitly made for kids may as well be a pipe dream.
I'm looking forward to finishing this (it's a lengthy one) and I'm hoping I don't have to come back and revise this due to the story shooting itself in the foot. I would love for this to be a send-off for Aiden (and for Wrench, who has concerned voicemails from Marcus about the fact that Wrench is putting himself at risk again). But I'm afraid that Ubisoft's status as a AAA developer will result in them clinging to these series mascots instead of giving them a graceful, dignified exit that they probably don't deserve.
Aiden Pearce is still far from being a fun-loving guy, but watching him try to reckon with how his actions have affected his now-adult nephew Jackson is compelling, human drama. Jackson is the one who introduces Aiden to the questgivers in the DLC, and together they paint a much different picture of what "resistance" can look like. With a single protagonist (well, two) to focus this DLC around, the contrast between Aiden's gunslinging and the compassionate mutual aid focus of the questgivers is especially prominent.
The result here is a story that cares much more for its characters and the connections they make than anything in the base game, a work that is supposedly all about random people coming together. Every mission feels like a lesson for Aiden or Wrench about the value in connecting with other people and learning to help others in a way that doesnt involve murder. It's not flawless - the presence of the black market dealer is an especially strange inclusion - but I was surprised at the way in which this DLC seems genuinely compassionate at times in a way I didn't expect from a Ubisoft game. If they were willing to be a little more brave and decouple this story about the consequences violent vigilantism can have from the gameplay about how fun violent vigilantism can be, there's a possibility we could've had something special. That's asking for a lot, though, and I think asking Ubisoft for a game without combat that isn't explicitly made for kids may as well be a pipe dream.
I'm looking forward to finishing this (it's a lengthy one) and I'm hoping I don't have to come back and revise this due to the story shooting itself in the foot. I would love for this to be a send-off for Aiden (and for Wrench, who has concerned voicemails from Marcus about the fact that Wrench is putting himself at risk again). But I'm afraid that Ubisoft's status as a AAA developer will result in them clinging to these series mascots instead of giving them a graceful, dignified exit that they probably don't deserve.
jobosno
2 years ago