Arkane Studios' first-person action game Deathloop launched recently to an impressive critical acclaim. Arkane's genetic blueprint is evident in Deathloop as it harnesses familiar first-person features and UI that can be seen in their previous games, such as titles from the Dishonored franchise.
As Deathloop players attempt to master the time-loop and assassinate targets, the protagonist's left and right hands are suspended in frame and equip or wield a number of items, weapons, or abilities. From a visual and mechanical standpoint, Deathloop and Dishonored are comparable. But fans have begun to find other visual consistencies between the two games that are more cut-and-paste than their gameplay systems.
Extremely_Volatile and a myriad of others have already found Dishonored 2's repeated assets in Deathloop, which include lavish cabinets as well as "working tools and other gadgets lying around." Essentially, this means that Arkane has chosen to populate certain environments with furnishings and props that have existed in its previous games, however consciously. Of course, many might find these reused furnishings to be alarming since they were pulled from another game entirely, despite there not being an explicit connection to it.
Though this can potentially disrupt immersion for some players, it is simply an idiosyncrasy to others that they have acknowledged due to their time playing Dishonored. Reused assets are not uncommon in a lot of installments from a single developer and, when executed well, these assets may not be perceived or noted with such interest at all. The fact that people have spotted Dishonored's unique furniture in Deathloop demonstrates how appreciated Dishonored is, that individual assets such as those are remembered.
Perhaps it is just a matter of the two games not being connected that startles fans, since Deathloop features Dishonored's unique assets nonetheless. But efficiently reusing assets has proven to be a tactful way for developers to avoid superfluous expenses, particularly while development has been underway during a global pandemic. Rad_Dad6969 comes to Arkane's defense, claiming that they appreciate the studio for having reused assets and textures. Rad_Dad6969 states that "instead of blowing their budget trying to make something new look good, they took their old stuff and made it look better."
With Deathloop receiving praise in its first week of launch, it is clear that these reused assets have not bothered a larger portion of its playerbase. Instead, players continue to admire Arkane for its fluid first-person action and creative storytelling within gameplay.
Deathloop is available now on PC and PS5.