Dishonored: Death of the Outsider review: Enough bite to keep things interesting

Arkane Studios will forever be characterised by a relentless pursuit for more: more pathways, more abilities, more approaches to problem-solving. That's no less true of their latest creation Death of the Outsider, an extension chapter to Dishonored 2 – a game that, in itself, echoed its predecessors but still felt innovative in its own right.

By far, the smartest choice here is in its choice of protagonist, with Death of an Outsider checking in on one Billie Lurk (voiced by Rosario Dawson). She's known to fans of the franchise as having quite the colourful history: a street urchin turned deadly assassin, who betrayed her mentor Daud before escaping into a life as enigmatic sea captain Meagan Foster, which is where we meet her in Dishonored 2.

There's enough intrigue already established there that Billie's story feels immediately intimate, and engaging, as she goes on the hunt for Daud in an effort to earn his forgiveness.

When they finally meet, Billie's mission becomes an earth-shattering one for the world of Dishonored: the death of a god. Specifically, the Outsider, who has spent centuries meddling in mortal affairs. Occasionally, a chosen few are granted with supernatural abilities drawing power from his lair, the Void: essentially the basic set-up for why Dishonored's protagonists so far – Corvo Attano and Emily Kaldwin – have such cool tricks up their sleeves.

Death of the Outsider imbues Billie with four of these abilities (with a slight twist), but there's an easy balance created here: her powers are familiar enough for players to dive into without hesitation, but differ enough to feel fresh. Displace, for example, is a standard teleport power with the addition of a ghostly marker, though the real kick is the ability to transport yourself inside of a person's body and explode them from within. Foresight freezes time and allows your mind to explore your immediate surroundings, Semblance allows you to steal someone's identity, and Void Strike will help clear your way of enemies.

You can also listen to rats. It's a cute addition that doesn't particularly add anything to the game unless you're a dedicated fan of solving riddles delivered exclusively in high-pitched, childish voices, but the effort is appreciated; it's impressive to see so much put into moulding Billie into a hero of her very own, to the point it's almost a shame she wasn't offered her own full game, as opposed to this five-mission addition.

Speaking of, Death of the Outsider's levels certainly aren't as individually memorable as the Clockwork Mansion or Dust District levels of Dishonored 2. Which does and doesn't matter to a degree: it feels more of the same, but since the original game flourished already merely on the intricacies of its environment design and atmosphere, that doesn't feel like much of a burden. What's more interesting, in fact, is the addition of new side missions available in the form of contracts; tasks that have enough of a level of intrigue and problem-solving not to feel like arbitrary pit-stops.

What's been removed, however, is the Chaos system; though you can just as easily play as a silent assassin who never gets caught, or a monstrous fiend who throws grenades every which way, those actions no longer have any effect on the story outside of the usual achievements. It's a little frustrating for those used to seeing Dishonored's gameplay as essentially binary, since the game's design seems less focused on the ability to complete missions in a dual manner; some of the contracts, even, outright demand murder or for you to remain utterly undetected.

A game of compromises, perhaps. Yet, it's hard to feel frustrated with Arkane's lack when the studio has gone so out of its way to offer more, to be in a process of continual creation. In that way, Death of the Outsider hits the nail on the head when it comes to additional game chapters: it's a sink straight back into the comfortable and the familiar, but with a quick bite to keep attention from slacking.