Deathloop is a really fun game that is definitely a unique and cool spin on the immersive sim genre. I had a great time and was engrossed in the narrative the whole way through, while being slightly let down by the ending.
Deathloop goes all in on guns, which makes the gameplay lean more towards creative combat than the creative stealth you might expect from an Arkane game. Colt can definitely get by taking people out silently, but it is usually more effective and more fun to go in guns blazing. I didn't really even find the single stealthy ranged weapon in the game to be that effective, which seems like a purposeful choice to push you more towards the chaotic firefights that make the game more fun.
The weapons feel great to use and cover most of the bases, with a couple of flavors of shotguns, pistols, and rifles. The Heritage Gun was definitely my favorite and is on par with Destiny 2 Scout Rifles in terms of fun. I had some minor problems with the ammo UX... I found it difficult to figure out what ammo types I was using and having a loadout with two guns that take the same type feels pretty bad.
I found most of the special powers in the game to be less interesting because of this. Karnesis is the "go loud" ability, sewing chaos through the enemies, but I didn't feel like it got me more than shooting someone in the face did. Same for Aether, which is the most stealthy power, since the basic stealth functionality works well enough and shifting to combat isn't really a punishment.
I used Shift and Nexus throughout the whole game, which were both fun and interesting, but I would have liked to have been forced to make harder decisions about my loadouts.
The structure and systems of Deathloop are where it really shines. Arkane made some really great choices in limiting the number of places you can explore while also giving them a means to change (over the course of the day). This makes learning the nuances of all the levels in their various states very rewarding and also plays directly into the plot and various side objectives. Time manipulation and retention of information by Colt is used in very cool ways throughout the game.
It is very satisfying to make a plan at the beginning of the day, go to the right areas at the right times to make events happen according to your plan, and get the reward of a cool gun or furthering the plot.
The environments, art, and level design are all great and unique. Arkane always kills it in this regard, and the style of Deathloop doesn't disappoint. There is a ton to look at and explore and every part of every level is memorable, making navigation and learning of the levels a breeze. Simultaneously, there is so much to explore in each area that you will be finding new hidden and out of the way areas even on your tenth visit to a level.
The narrative is very interesting, with a lot of sci-fi magic hinting at how the loop functions and what happened in the past to get us to this point. It sort of fell apart for me in the third act though. The finale itself fell a little flat for me, though it does make sense in the context of the characters and story. There also seem to be plenty of references to Dishonored (including the slabs themselves being reminiscent of the mark of the Outsider), seeming to hint that this is some future timeline of the world Dunwall exists in, which is kind of neat.
I really loved this game. It was super satisfying and interesting to play through and I really like that Arkane is attempting to take the genre in new directions. If you like immersive sims, great combat, or interesting game structures you should definitely give Deathloop a shot.
Deathloop goes all in on guns, which makes the gameplay lean more towards creative combat than the creative stealth you might expect from an Arkane game. Colt can definitely get by taking people out silently, but it is usually more effective and more fun to go in guns blazing. I didn't really even find the single stealthy ranged weapon in the game to be that effective, which seems like a purposeful choice to push you more towards the chaotic firefights that make the game more fun.
The weapons feel great to use and cover most of the bases, with a couple of flavors of shotguns, pistols, and rifles. The Heritage Gun was definitely my favorite and is on par with Destiny 2 Scout Rifles in terms of fun. I had some minor problems with the ammo UX... I found it difficult to figure out what ammo types I was using and having a loadout with two guns that take the same type feels pretty bad.
I found most of the special powers in the game to be less interesting because of this. Karnesis is the "go loud" ability, sewing chaos through the enemies, but I didn't feel like it got me more than shooting someone in the face did. Same for Aether, which is the most stealthy power, since the basic stealth functionality works well enough and shifting to combat isn't really a punishment.
I used Shift and Nexus throughout the whole game, which were both fun and interesting, but I would have liked to have been forced to make harder decisions about my loadouts.
The structure and systems of Deathloop are where it really shines. Arkane made some really great choices in limiting the number of places you can explore while also giving them a means to change (over the course of the day). This makes learning the nuances of all the levels in their various states very rewarding and also plays directly into the plot and various side objectives. Time manipulation and retention of information by Colt is used in very cool ways throughout the game.
It is very satisfying to make a plan at the beginning of the day, go to the right areas at the right times to make events happen according to your plan, and get the reward of a cool gun or furthering the plot.
The environments, art, and level design are all great and unique. Arkane always kills it in this regard, and the style of Deathloop doesn't disappoint. There is a ton to look at and explore and every part of every level is memorable, making navigation and learning of the levels a breeze. Simultaneously, there is so much to explore in each area that you will be finding new hidden and out of the way areas even on your tenth visit to a level.
The narrative is very interesting, with a lot of sci-fi magic hinting at how the loop functions and what happened in the past to get us to this point. It sort of fell apart for me in the third act though. The finale itself fell a little flat for me, though it does make sense in the context of the characters and story. There also seem to be plenty of references to Dishonored (including the slabs themselves being reminiscent of the mark of the Outsider), seeming to hint that this is some future timeline of the world Dunwall exists in, which is kind of neat.
I really loved this game. It was super satisfying and interesting to play through and I really like that Arkane is attempting to take the genre in new directions. If you like immersive sims, great combat, or interesting game structures you should definitely give Deathloop a shot.