Dishonored is one of the best stealth-action games of its generation. Corvo in pestilential Dunwall, magical Void powers, total approach freedom. Infinite replayability, splendid narrative. A masterpiece.
Your verdict
Category
Action Adventure1 player18+
Description
Ambitious action-stealth game from Arkane Studios casting a supernatural assassin hunting the corrupt rulers of a plague-ridden steampunk city. Published by Bethesda, released in Europe in October 2012. Modular occult powers, multiple mission approaches, narrative chaos rating tied to playstyle, and distinctive art direction.
Dishonored review
MAX
Art direction
★★★★★
"Iconic"
4/5
Music
★★★★★
"Excellent"
4/5
Story
★★★★★
"Captivating"
An industrial city with the look of a painting, stylised Victorian architecture and sickly light: Dunwall composes a grimy steampunk of rare coherence. The almost pictorial line of the settings gives a strong, singular identity. This art direction, dense and inspired, stands as a benchmark of auteur level design.
The music weaves the sound of a sick city. The mechanical hum of the whaling town, light-walls and war machines, mixes with supernatural sonorities from the Void, the otherworld from which the hero draws his powers. Between grating industry and unsettling magic, the score gives Dunwall a clammy atmosphere, where technology and the occult answer each other in a single malaise.
The story offers a revenge that can refuse to kill. Each target can be eliminated, but also undone by a justice crueler than death: a lady handed over to her own dungeon, a torturer branded with iron, a noble exiled under a false identity. The game makes these roundabout punishments the true flavour of its plot, where sparing can prove more merciless than striking.
Gameplay
"Masterful"
Teleporting from rooftop to rooftop, possessing a target or freezing time multiplies the ways to tackle each mission, from the silent ghost to all-out slaughter. This freedom of approach, supported by open level design, is the heart of the adventure's richness. An exemplary immersive sim, it retains a suppleness of play that still invites a thousand replays.
Dishonored, Arkane's immersive sim praised for its freedom of approach, steampunk world and powers system, one of the most striking games of its generation. Very widespread, its PS3 collector interest stays modest, the Game of the Year edition being preferred for its expansions. An emblematic but accessible piece, whose desirability rests on its critical aura rather than scarcity.
A questionable morality
Armed with supernatural powers and a well-honed blade, you move through a corrupt city in the name of justice and revenge. Yet the game tallies your “chaos” with every throat you cut, as if to quietly remind you that the man in the shadows mostly leaves a trail of corpses behind. Saving the rightful heir by piling up murders: the contradiction is good for a smile.
Is Dishonored still worth playing in 2026?
Dishonored ranks among the best stealth-action games of its generation, and it has aged beautifully. Dunwall, a Victorian city gnawed by plague and steeped in a grimy steampunk, stays a setting of rare coherence and atmosphere. The powers granted by the Outsider, from Blink to possession, allow an exhilarating freedom of approach, able to transform each mission depending on whether you choose shadow or blood. The chaos system, which makes the world react to your violence, adds real moral depth. A genre masterpiece with near-infinite replayability.
