For those who don't know, I've been a big supporter of Dishonored since it's release; with an overwhelming gameplay, a storyline very usual to Bethesda Games players and a lore as large as Elder Scrolls to dive into, Dishonored quickly became one of the instant classics of our time. The Knife of Dunwall was the first DLC to add onto the single player experience and originally, I wasn't too impressed. Barely an hour of gameplay and the same routine once again. My exact words were: "I won't be waiting for The Brigmore Witches with bated breath." and sadly, this comes into the case too many times. The Brigmore Witches takes place shortly after the events of the last DLC, you are greeted by Corvo who aches to kill you in cold blood. After a short fight, Daud wakes up in his bed choking a fellow assassin. As he comes to his senses, the game begins.
While nothing new has been added into the game since the last DLC, the new gadget of a small blade was attached to Daud's wrist. This may possibly be a shoutout to the Assassin's Creed series but whether or not is it, fans of both sides are highly criticising the game for it. Regardless, the return of Arc Mines and all the other add on content was a massive plus and a major help.
The gameplay is more or less the same, with a massive help coming from your previous save in the KoD, but still the game holds a challenge one way or the other. The first mission requires you rescue Lizzy Stride, the leader of the gang The Dead Eels and one of the only people to have a working boat. The mission to Coldridge Prison is a fun one but relatively quick. I found Lizzy accidentally and the controls weren't guarded in a difficult way. Even in finding the evidence to Lizzy's whereabouts or how to turn off her safeguards, veteran gamers won't have much to do otherwise.
The second mission was the main bulk of the DLC is set with The Dead Eels who control most of Draper's Ward against the Hatters who wage an ongoing street war to control the richest part of town. She only asks to dispose of her usurper Edgar Wakefield from her boat and she will loan it to him. Aiding her continues as you need a new fuel engine which, funny enough, the Hatters have a spare. There are many ways to work through this; he can kill the leader of the Hatters (an old man named The Geezer who has his HQ rounded up to expel toxic gas at his death), bribe his nurse or the quickest way, simply ask for it. I'm unsure whether or not Hatter followers deaths come into play but this option is by far the easiest. Since I've given away half the gameplay/storyline already, I'll stop there.
Once again, this mission can be damn short if you choose it to be. With the final assault on the Brigmore Witches and the ending in sight, there isn't much I can say that hasn't already been said. The gameplay is as great as ever, the new animations for AI deaths and killing motions are brilliant and the set up for the new areas are interesting and unique. The Gravehounds and the abilities of the witches are top notch and add in great character to the game, but they are slightly overpowered for such simple characters, especially seeing as their leader was under hyped, practically powerless and her abilities are mostly just for show (if you take the Low Chaos option especially) and do little to nothing compared to her followers. The storyline is interesting and can capture fans easily but that doesn't excuse the flaws such as the cracked gameplay, rendering time between scenes, flat-toned audio and vocal cast and so on. In the wise words of a fellow review: "A game's a game, it's supposed to be fun not feel like a chore." I was joyful for the last chance to roam in the city of Dunwall and while it was a good ride, it wasn't worth it. Little more over an hour once again: maybe it should've been put out together, maybe a little more time in the oven but either way, for fans or people just generally interested, this can be fun but it can be a little more of a chore than it should be.
Dishonored - The Brigmore Witches DLC - D+
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