It Changes!

My stealthy adventures in Dishonored 2 are continuing and I have to admit that the second time around feels great.  I also have to admit to some extremely shameless save scumming to maintain my ghostly status (so far, I've only been spotted twice--not good enough for the achievement aaand to cap it all off, it happened on the first level of the game.  I regret not immediately going back and reloading my save--oh well, too late now.).  It's always interesting to me how my opinion about a game can change quite a bit with subsequent playthroughs.  I enjoyed Dishonored 2 the first time around, but am finding that I'm liking it more this time around.  (Spoilers ahead for the Dust District/Aramis Stilton's Manor level!  If you haven't played it before, avoid like the rat plague!)

Paolo and the Howlers?

Byrne and the Overseers? ...or

One of the levels that I absolutely hated during my first playthrough was the combo Dust District/Aramis Stilton's Manor.  This level presents a scenario with many choices that can impact the story--Emily/Corvo can choose between two warring factions--the Howlers; a local gang that enjoys extorting shop owners and robbing people--they are led by the mysteriously powerful Paolo, a guy who supposedly can't be killed (unless you kill him twice in one day).  Option B is to leave the district in the hands of the Overseers--a zealous religious sect that is determined to eliminate any traces of witchcraft and/or connection to the Outsider (a semi-deity who grants Corvo/Emily their powers).  At face value, both choices have their downsides--the Howlers are thugs and criminals who only have their own best interests in mind and the Overseers don't care how many innocent people they harm in their quest to seek out any magical influences.  Luckily, a third option presents itself as you progress through the level--one of the Howlers was making some side cash by drugging people and shipping them off to the mines to become laborers.  It turns out there are exactly two crates available...just waiting for the morally questionable leaders of both groups!  It's perfect :D

The first time I played through the Dust District section I was irritated by the fact that the solution presented itself in a very simple fashion, but then turned out to require a lot more work.  In seeking out the solution to unlock the extremely tricky riddle lock to Aramis Stilton's Manor, you learn that one of the Howlers carries the solution to the riddle.  So, you sneak your way through the Howler base....only to find out that the aforementioned Howler has been nabbed by the Overseers and is being held in their compound.  Now you have to sneak across the other side of the level and through a base that is crawling with Overseers.  With some skillful sneaking into the office of the Vice Overseer, you learn that the Howler has expired while in custody (not surprising given the track record of the Overseers), and the code is actually locked up in the Howlers base (you get the key with the note).  It's back over to the Howlers base to find the location of the office and riddle solution.

Having played through this section twice now, I actually like the narrative and design.  Rather than simply seeking out the most obvious and quick solution, players are presented with an initially unavailable third option that requires some patience to discover.  There's also the option of completely avoiding the entire thing by puzzling out the solution to the Jindosh lock (it's a particularly nasty logic puzzle).  To me, solving the riddle would mean skipping all the bonecharms/runes and the design of the entire level, so I usually give it a cursory glance and then head off to find the solution (and all the runes/bonecharms in the process).  It's kind of genius though.

After you've chosen your desired path and found the riddle solution, you enter the dilapidated manor of the mining baron Aramis Stilton.  At one time Stilton was one of the elite in Karnaca, but now he is nothing more than a broken man trapped behind crumbling walls.  I was initially irritated by aspects of the manor level--it's one of those levels where they decide to take away your powers and I always kind of hate that.  With a little bit of exploring you are able to find the location of Aramis Stilton and learn that he's incapable of telling you anything about the circumstances around Delilah Copperspoon's immortality.  Instead, the Outsider appears and presents you with a unique object that allows you to shift between the past (three years prior) and the present time.

The timepiece allows you to view and shift between timelines.

Navigating the level involves shifting between timelines--much of the manor is blocked off in the present.  The past timeline presents a much more accessible manor...the downside is that it is chocked full of guards and staff who don't appreciate strangers sneaking around.  The magic of the level is figuring out how to manipulate the timeline to avoid guards, to alter the layout of the manor (your actions in the past can impact the condition of the manor in the present), and to locate the various runes and bonecharms scattered between them.  It's like two different levels packed into one.

At first I hated the manor level--it took awhile to get used to the time changing mechanic and the past manor has A LOT of guards.  Now that I've played it twice, I have found that I enjoy the time changing mechanic and that it is very useful for avoiding guards and moving stealthily through the level.  The level is great and offers a refreshing change from the rest of the game.