The verdict on Dishonored is in: infusing the design inspirations of Victorian-Era London with first-rate gameplay and absorbing exploration, Arkane Studios and Bethesda have turned the city of Dunwall into a city we don't want to leave. Fortunately, the feeling is mutual.
Bethesda has announced plans today for three upcoming Dishonored DLC packs. The first, "Dunwall City Trials," will be releasing this December and features a tenfold set of challenge maps, while the following two, both releasing in 2013, look to add unique singleplayer campaigns to the game. Unlike the troublesome "limited exclusive" windows Bethesda has used for Skyrim DLC, each of the offerings will release simultaneously on the Xbox 360, PC and (you can breath now) PlayStation 3.
Dishonored's third DLC is apparently too distant to disclose, but the official Bethesda Blog gave a thorough outlining of its first two offerings.
Priced at a slim $5, "Dunwall City Trials" will subject players to an array of AI challenges - horde-like arena modes, time trials, assassinations - and will introduce support for online stat-tracking, leaderboards and achievements. The second (and we're guessing slightly more expensive) add-on is slated for Spring 2013 and composes a singleplayer, narrative-based campaign around the supernatural assassin Daud - the leader of a following known as "The Whalers." Check out the full announcement below:
Dishonored: Dunwall City Trials, being released in December for $4.99 (or 400 Microsoft Points), will include 10 challenge maps that will test and track your combat, stealth and mobility skills. Ten distinct trials await challengers — including an arena battle against waves of enemy AI, a gravity-defying run of drop assassinations, and a race against the clock. Dunwall City Trials also features a whole new set of achievements and trophies as well as a global online leaderboard that will establish the greatest assassins for each challenge.
The second and third add-ons for Dishonored will be coming in 2013 and will each feature story-driven campaigns. Pricing on these two packs will be revealed closer to launch.
Daud, the leader of a group of supernatural assassins known as ‘The Whalers’, will be the focus of the second add-on pack, scheduled for release in early Spring 2013. Make your way through new Dunwall locales and discover Daud’s own set of weapons, powers and gadgets in this story-driven campaign. How you play and the choices you make will impact the final outcome…
Additional story details on the third add-on pack will be revealed closer to its launch next year.
Despite releasing in close proximity to XCOM: Enemy Unknown, Assassin's Creed III, Halo 4, Call of Duty: Black Ops II and so many more, Dishonored's stellar reception (read our review) has assured its relevance well beyond the crowded holiday season. Campaign DLC should perpetuate that even further.
As of right now Dishonored co-creator Harvey Smith remains ambivalent about a sequel - "part of me would love it if the vault door was just closed and that’s it," he said earlier this month - but with so many different play styles and so many different pathways inherent to the game already, Arkane Studios has the potential, even through post-release add-ons, to expand greatly on the legacy Dishonored has created.
So: you've read Bethesda's initial announcement; what do you want out of Dishonored DLC?
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Source: Bethesda Blog