How to Stop Hating Dishonored Stealth Mode

[The_Scrivener]

I picked up Dishonored pretty much right when it came out, got a few hours in and then it lost my interest. I found the same frustrations everyone else found: it's obnoxious to make the stealth part so much more difficult/unnatural and have it give a "darker" outcome. (No clue what that actually means since I'm again, pretty early on.)

Yesterday, I tried again and it was a marvel. I stopped having to kill dudes. I stopped getting pissed off.

What I learned:

-Every gaming instinct you have is telling you to kill when you're caught and when you're cornered. Simply don't do it. That's it. Just don't. You can push through, you can sprint, you can blink (No, really, blink like crazy. Blink is how you get through this game. It lets you escape almost anything just by pointing the blue blur in a random direction beyond your foes.)

-Blink. Then blink some more. Blinking to higher locations got me out of virtually every enemy chase down I got caught up in. Blinking to higher ground is the King of Spades in this game.

-Save more than you'd think. You can do two things: a.) You can have the flow of the game maintain and never save and kill or b.) You can save frequently, have the flow interrupted somewhat in exchange for challenge and almost never have to kill anyone.


In short: blink high up/swallow your pride and save.

I love this game now.

 

[Rack]

That's how I played it but I still hated it immensely. Loading times were only 3 or 4 seconds even on a standard drive but the flow was just plain awful. I'd love a mod that stopped the entire map aggroing when you were spotted once and added at least SOME options for non lethal play. By default it's just save scum city.

 

[Rastien]

That's how I played it but I still hated it immensely. Loading times were only 3 or 4 seconds even on a standard drive but the flow was just plain awful. I'd love a mod that stopped the entire map aggroing when you were spotted once and added at least SOME options for non lethal play. By default it's just save scum city.

Just a heads up on the aggro front it is preventable there are these like siren stations? make sure the gaurds don't run and ring that bastard as once it rings ALL FUCKING HELL BREAKS LOOSE and any gaurd in 200 mile radias will be springing for you to cut your jacobs off.

Also i found a fair few options for non lethal play, sleep darts, chain blinking and suffocating people, possesing them if you get caught out and walking into an unoccpied room then knocking them out, Free running mode maxing agility and blink so people can never catch you, also with agi double jump you can jump on peoples head for a boost and escape ^^ Time freeze is also good for non lethal play for getting by pesky guards.

 

[aceman67]

Here's what I do: Stop playing it, un-install.

Problem solved.

 

[SonOfMethuselah]

I loved Dishonored. The gameplay, anyway. The story is pretty inconsequential. Never had a problem with the stealth, even on my ghost run. Also, I don't know what stealth games you've been playing that tell you to kill everyone when you get caught, but that was never my instinct.

Still, glad you found some way to enjoy the game. It definitely deserves the attention: it's one of the most intriguing new IPs to hit in a while.

 

[Exius Xavarus]

My very first run through Dishonored was a Mostly Flesh and Steel/Clean Hands/Shadow run. Meaning no upgrades, no kills, no detection. And on Very Hard. I had absolutely no problem with the stealth. All you need to do is watch the guards, move when you won't be seen to a place you won't be seen at, and keep going. Also, I think it's just your instincts that tell you to kill everyone when caught. My instincts told me to reload the game or die when I got caught.

 

[Woodsey]

Stealth isn't that difficult. It's difficult to never, ever be spotted, sure. But stealth on the whole is not difficult.

 

[ResonanceGames]

It's also really important to turn off the notifications over the guards' heads. It gives the stealth a much more organic feel. Instead of discovering the invisible line where they start to see you and milking that knowledge every time, you suddenly have some doubt as to how aware they are of you.

Also, crank the difficulty all the way up.

 

[kyogen]

My first run was a shadow/clean hands run on very hard. I don't hate the stealth in Dishonored at all. I quite enjoy it.

I also love the fact that players can change map and menu settings, pick their powers or choose to use no powers at all, and determine the state of the environment by the consequences of their own actions. Arkane made their game so that players could effectively tailor the difficulty to their own preferences.

 

[Waaghpowa]

The only thing about the stealth was how it was telling me that I had killed people when I know that I didn't use lethal abilities nor did I drop their unconscious bodies off ledges, roof etc.

 

[Azure23]

The only thing about the stealth was how it was telling me that I had killed people when I know that I didn't use lethal abilities nor did I drop their unconscious bodies off ledges, roof etc.

Odds are you left the bodies in locations where the rats could get to them and eat them, had that problem myself the first time i tried to do a no kill play through

 

[Waaghpowa]

The only thing about the stealth was how it was telling me that I had killed people when I know that I didn't use lethal abilities nor did I drop their unconscious bodies off ledges, roof etc.

Odds are you left the bodies in locations where the rats could get to them and eat them, had that problem myself the first time i tried to do a no kill play through

I still didn't "kill" them, it's not my fault that they have a monstrous ravenous rat problem. I've played other stealth games where deaths are only counted if they're done by you.

 

[Rack]

That's how I played it but I still hated it immensely. Loading times were only 3 or 4 seconds even on a standard drive but the flow was just plain awful. I'd love a mod that stopped the entire map aggroing when you were spotted once and added at least SOME options for non lethal play. By default it's just save scum city.

Just a heads up on the aggro front it is preventable there are these like siren stations? make sure the gaurds don't run and ring that bastard as once it rings ALL FUCKING HELL BREAKS LOOSE and any gaurd in 200 mile radias will be springing for you to cut your jacobs off.

Also i found a fair few options for non lethal play, sleep darts, chain blinking and suffocating people, possesing them if you get caught out and walking into an unoccpied room then knocking them out, Free running mode maxing agility and blink so people can never catch you, also with agi double jump you can jump on peoples head for a boost and escape ^^ Time freeze is also good for non lethal play for getting by pesky guards.

By and large that wasn't the problem, if I disabled the alarm upon spotting me they'd run back and alert all the guards near them, who would in turn alert all the guards near them and so on until the entire level was looking for me. That said most of the time I'm my own worst enemy in that game, if I'm only spotted by a single guard possession will get me out of it, if there are two or more then time stop plus improved sleep darts would get me out of it. The only problem is quick load would get me out of it at the cost of zero resources and I just couldn't resist it.

 

[Rack]

That's how I played it but I still hated it immensely. Loading times were only 3 or 4 seconds even on a standard drive but the flow was just plain awful. I'd love a mod that stopped the entire map aggroing when you were spotted once and added at least SOME options for non lethal play. By default it's just save scum city.

Just a heads up on the aggro front it is preventable there are these like siren stations? make sure the gaurds don't run and ring that bastard as once it rings ALL FUCKING HELL BREAKS LOOSE and any gaurd in 200 mile radias will be springing for you to cut your jacobs off.

Also i found a fair few options for non lethal play, sleep darts, chain blinking and suffocating people, possesing them if you get caught out and walking into an unoccpied room then knocking them out, Free running mode maxing agility and blink so people can never catch you, also with agi double jump you can jump on peoples head for a boost and escape ^^ Time freeze is also good for non lethal play for getting by pesky guards.

By and large that wasn't the problem, if I disabled the alarm upon spotting me they'd run back and alert all the guards near them, who would in turn alert all the guards near them and so on until the entire level was looking for me. That said most of the time I'm my own worst enemy in that game, if I'm only spotted by a single guard possession will get me out of it, if there are two or more then time stop plus improved sleep darts would get me out of it. The only problem is quick load would get me out of it at the cost of zero resources and I just couldn't resist it.

 

[GoaThief]

Only thing you absolutely need to do in Dishonored is turn off the magic destination marker from your HUD in the game options. It changes the game from a quick charge to that 150m navpoint to exploration and much more interesting routes/options that you would have most likely missed in your previously linear movement.

Roads, buildings and the like are all signposted correctly too so if you listen to what NPCs say finding a POI shouldn't be too much hassle. I believe this is how the devs originally wished the game to be, but it would no doubt be very confusing for people new to games and/or low skilled.

 

[distortedreality]

First playthrough, majority of it was stealth, some killing where I couldn't avoid it, got the "good" ending, don't see what the problem is.

 

[BLAHwhatever]

1: strangle them to unconciousness
2: Grab the body
3: Look at all the stuff around you
4: Choose the most awesome way for splatterkills, explosions, whatever.
5: Make a killscreen of every f***er you blow up/shred/crush/maim/throw of a cliff/drown that's out cold
6: Watch in a slide show

Superfun way to play the game and your own "reflective ending" >

 

[BiscuitTrouser]

The only thing about the stealth was how it was telling me that I had killed people when I know that I didn't use lethal abilities nor did I drop their unconscious bodies off ledges, roof etc.

Odds are you left the bodies in locations where the rats could get to them and eat them, had that problem myself the first time i tried to do a no kill play through

I still didn't "kill" them, it's not my fault that they have a monstrous ravenous rat problem. I've played other stealth games where deaths are only counted if they're done by you.

Youre killing the police force. The less police around the more chaotic the city. Sure some spend some time doing horrible corrupt things. But these are regular policemen. Without them its anarchy for plague infested areas. If an enemy dies and you were in ANY way involved thats your fault. You can play the game like a ghost never touching anything and the game wanted to make a distinction between "Awkward Strangle fest" and "Ghostly" by applying indirect kills too.

Although on one level some rebels fight some guards and lose because of a lightning rod. I de powered the lightning rod when i heard the attack plan and a few guards died in the assault which now worked. Didnt count as me but it probably should have if rats do too.

 

[synobal]

Meh still boring if you ask me. Compared to thief it is terrible, I think partly it is because of the silent protagonist. Also what is up with AI? Its like we haven't progressed past thief level ai for guards. Some day we will get a game with good guard AI.

 

[MrHide-Patten]

Knock out dudes. Arrange them on couches. Instant fun.