What we have so far seen of Dishonored has suggested a certain vastness to Arkane Studios’ vision of Victorian London. With multiple ways to achieve your objectives and the freedom to explore and experiment, many may be surprised that the estimated minimum time has been revealed to be only 12 hours.
During a Dishonored Q&A on Bethesda’s official blog, Co-creative directors Harvey Smith and Raphael Colantonio said:
“Play-style matters a lot. Very direct players will probably get through the game in 12 or 14 hours. Explorers who eavesdrop a lot will take twice as long.”
In response to other questions, it was also revealed that: Mana will regenerate only in small amounts, meaning that after using major spells players will require the use of “Piero’s Spiritual Remedy” in order to refill it – and that there are six major active powers, four enhancements (passive powers) and 40 supernatural perk garnering bone charms to be found within the game.
The length, whilst shorter than I had assumed, is not overly concerning as replayability seems to be a massive part of what the team are striving for. The pair even mentioned, when talking about the bone charms and powers, that “no one can have all of these things in one playthrough”.
Twelve hours of running through it quickly and ignoring the side quests and wider exploration is just fine by me, as I certainly won’t be visiting Victorian London in that manner when the game releases in October.
