Deathloop

While I've been enjoying having a bit of a lull before the gaming season gets really busy here soon (in the midst of writing this, it already is), I was desperately looking for some new games to play right around the time Deathloop came along - take note developers!

Throw in some surprisingly incredible reviews - particularly a perfect score from IGN - and the timed PlayStation 5 exclusive had my interest, even if its spiritual predecessors from Arkane Studios are overrated in my opinion. Though I've never reviewed a Dishonored game on my site, I've played both of them, often resulting in partial enjoyment. Personally, I find them to get a bit dull and frustrating. A section in Dishonored 2 where I was trying hard to do stealth and I was spotted on a roof top from a enemy's who distance was absurd (probably half the map away) sits distinctly in my mind as a good representation of the games that encourage stealth but are relatively "cheap" about it. 

Deathloop then, is a pretty large departure in a lot of ways, keeping many of the same, awesome "powers" you see in Dishonored, but upping the pace and gunplay across an entirely new story, suite of characters, and environment. Though I may be alone on an island in my opinion of the Dishonored games (they're good, not great), I found that Deathloop was my favorite game from Bethesda/Arkane Studios...until it wasn't. 

And there in lies the issue with Deathloop: it's an incredible game when it's throwing new stuff at you, but the time loop nature of it all eventually catches up with it (and the player) to create a dull, repetitive slog near the endgame. 

It's got that distinct 60s/70s vibe

Big sci-fi circle thingy? Check!

Deathloop is a distinctly different "time loop" game than ones I've reviewed - and mostly loved - previously, Hades and Returnal. With an ingenious approach, Deathloop is actually more akin to a campaign, just one where you control the path more than most first-person-shooters. Because of this, the first several hours of Deathloop are incredibly captivating and intriguing, introducing a time-loop game that is constantly changing and allowing you to explore, while pushing you forward to a story's climax. This is controlled by a "home" screen that breaks down your missions into acquiring powers/weapons and hunting down Visionaries - the powerful villains that you must eliminate. In fact, you have to eliminate all 8 of the Visionaries in a 24 hour time period because the whole game is set on a single-day cycle. You get to pick where you go, from 4 different maps, across 4 different day times: morning, noon, afternoon, and evening. The maps and things you can find/access in each map change across different times of day, leading to a game that keeps a high degree of exploration and "newness" throughout...until it doesn't (to emphasize my earlier point). 

While I applaud Deathloop's approach - it really is one of the most unique games I've played in a while - it hits a wall in the final 25% where I was consistently bored and completing some of the final tasks felt like chores so that I could push through to the ending. Largely, this is because the game forces you to pick up power-ups from Visionaries multiple times, meaning that across your playthrough you'll likely need to do the same day/map combo 2-3 times with the same exact objective each time. Periodically, I'd find new things across the many puzzles that are hidden throughout the island maps, but not at all like the first 75% of the game where it felt like it was consistently throwing new things at me. 

"Oh my...what a big...scope you have."

In addition to the repetition near the end, I was also getting bored because my version of Colt was so powerful that dying often took me messing up badly. Between the overly-difficult stealth of Dishonored and the way-too-easy gameplay of Deathloop, it's clear to me that balance is not this developer's strong suit. Once you unlock some of the more powerful weapons and powerup trinkets, not to mention actual powers (aka "slabs"), you can infuse them with an in-game currency to "keep" them from loop to loop. This in-game currency is bountiful, too much so, to where I had infused my entire loadout early in the game and kept the same one for probably > 50% of my playthrough. Part of this could be that there's not enough variety in the trinkets or weapons; you can sacrifice these repeat finds for tons of the in-game currency making it easy to infuse what you really want to keep. Either way, it takes a game that's semi-challenging at the beginning and makes it void of much challenge or need to search for a "secret" powerup or weapon.

The challenge remains - and can make some of the game's highlights and lowlights - by inserting a real person as the primary Visionary, Juliana, to hunt down Colt. These interactions will likely be some of the most intense gaming moments I've had of 2021 as Juliana killing you sends you all the way back to the beginning of the day, meaning that if you're at a night-cycle mission, it's going to hurt...bad. She's outfitted with powers too and often can get the jump on you, but this is particularly well balanced because she has to kill you 3 times (you get 2 "freebie" deaths each "loop) whereas you only have to kill her once. 90% of the time I was able to defeat the other player, sometimes on my last life, and the times I was unsuccessful they were really good players, rushing me to where I almost had no time to react. I found it was incredibly satisfying to get the jump on other players, particularly with a machete execution, and this implementation is an smart way to make the game somewhat "multiplayer". Unfortunately by the end, I was quite adverse to whenever the "Juliana is on the hunt" would appear and on the final mission I legit had to quit and start over because the player I was against was so patient, annoying, and talented that it risked me having to start the whole day over again. At that point, I just wanted to see the ending so I was not about to lose 1-2 hours of gameplay. In terms of playing as Juliana, I only did this briefly and the results were mixed. I often found myself waiting for 5+ minutes in order to find an opponent and Juliana's starting gear is weak so it was hard to make an impact until I got a few more iterations under my belt. 

Why is kicking enemies off cliffs so satisfying? 

Complaints aside, one area that Deathloop hooked me (and never let go) was its story and cast of characters. This is one of the few games where I read most of the collectibles scattered throughout missions and it's one of the few games that actually builds off these: almost every collectible paper/recording you find leads to some sort of mini mission or piece of knowledge on how to approach a different mission. The core story is also great, featuring a heavy sci-fi hook of Colt being stuck in a time loop, having to kill all the Visionaries within 24 hours, in order to get a face to face with Juliana, his arch-nemesis. The writing is humorous and fantastic, with both Colt and Juliana being engaging, genuine characters. And the sub-stories of the other Visionaries also intrigue, even if they take a backseat to the more exciting central plot. The ending may have its critics (plus there's multiple ones), but I found it darkly intriguing, even if it feels like it comes at you fast once you enter the game's final segment. 

Deathloop is a strange game because I wholly recommend it for PS5 owners (and eventually Xbox owners likely next year). The first 75% is stellar and it consistently feels like you're playing a "new" game, with a unique approach to time-looping, and a "choose your own adventure" ability to a story outfitted with vibrant characters. It's a shame then that the newness wears off for a solid chunk of the game, and it's even more of a shame that all of the decisions leading to that effect could have been avoided. I do wish it had stayed consistently engaging, because if so, we'd maybe been looking at a "10/10" from Rath's Reviews to add on top of its [over] praise from other outlets. 

CONS

• Lack of balance in difficulty later on
• Colt gets too powerful
• In-game currency to "keep" items is too plentiful, especially once you start finding repeat weapons/trinkets
• Enemies aren't super smart to begin with, nor do they have great aim
• Repetition sets in at about the 3/4ths mark, largely driven by needing to collect power-ups from visionaries multiple times
• Juliana multiplayer segments grow old when you're near the end, trying to get through the game
• Lack of enemy variety and much weapon variety
• Juliana side of multiplayer comes with incredibly long wait times

PROS

• I loved the story the whole way through. Great sci-fi elements and a dark, but intriguing ending
• Fully-fleshed out core characters in Colt and Juliana with a ton of personality
• Exciting, fast gameplay that learns a lot of lessons from Dishonored. Good combo of powers, gunplay, and stealth
• The Juliana multiplayer moments can be wickedly intense and fun
• An incredible game when it's introducing new things to you and keeping you on your toes
• The approach to time/death loops is genius, with 4 maps, spread across 4 times of day, revealing a host of possibilities/secrets in each unique combination
• Visually stunning on the PS5 with a distinct visual art style

Rath's Review Score | 8/10