izigame.me

Dishonored is a stealth game where you sneak around as an assassin and strike at enemies from the dark—or at least, that's what I feel like the game is supposed to be. Instead, the game gives you the option to choose mercy and only subdue enemies, which influences the gameplay and ending.
I played through the game, challenging myself by not killing any of the enemies and doing a no-kill run. To achieve this, you will have to do things differently to disable key targets without killing them, leading you to do side missions or get certain side objectives. This was a lot of fun, and the story points involved in the game around these mini objectives felt like they really enhanced the story in a fun and unique way. To the point where I felt that if you didn't do them, you were probably missing out on what I feel is a big part of the game. Of course, you can do them and still kill anyway, but there isn't really much of a point in doing so.
Of course, if you choose not to kill, you pretty much get to use none of the weapons and do no combat for the biggest part of the game, leading you to miss out on a different aspect. Luckily, this game is pretty short, so it's encouraged to do multiple playthroughs. However, this brings with it the downside of having to play through the same story twice, even if there are slight adjustments.
The powers in this game, if you go the no-kill route, are kind of overpowered. The Blink ability basically allows you to almost do away with any stealth as long as you look where you're going. To a point where I wished they'd nerfed it a bit. The rest of the powers worked well enough, though most of them are geared toward killing. So using them in a no-kill run isn't doable, making you once again miss out on half the fun.
The AI for the enemies is alright, though sometimes after getting spotted, they'll linger a tad too long for my taste after you've hidden yourself. They can't find you but will just stare in your direction, making you turtle down until the AI resets itself.
Otherwise, the only other problem I've had with the game is that NPCs die too easily. Lay a guy on a staircase, and he rolls down and dies. Jump off a small ledge holding someone, and you toss them to the floor like they've got an egg for a head and you want to make pancakes. Try and hold them while climbing a chain, and you'll drop them as soon as your eyes looked at the word "chain" 5 seconds ago. This is kind of frustrating if you're trying not to kill the characters and it autosaves at new areas and key points, making you have to reset.
Other than this, the gameplay loop is fun and enjoyable, and it's a very compact story that's enjoyable all the way throughout. The art style for the game gives it a very painterly flourish, making it look less aged than it actually is, encapsulating a certain style befitting the world and story it represents.
The voice acting in this game is also great, but it does get held back by characters' mouth movements due to how dated the game is, which even the art style can't hide here.
Overall, definitely worth a play, and when discounted, this game is cheap as hell.