Mostly recognized for their highly successful Dishonored franchise, Arkane Studios is back once more for yet another exciting new title, this time tackling the concept of time and loops with its anticipated game, Deathloop. While Bethesda has published shooters before, none are quite like this. Does Deathloop have enough variety in its gameplay to stand out? And can it be added to the list of PS5-only experiences that players need to play right now? The answer to those are a resounding “yes.” Curious? Read on for our Deathloop review.

Groundhog Day

In Deathloop, you play as a Colt, a character who has seemingly forgotten everything about himself, and for reasons unknown to him, is stuck in a time loop of having to relive the same day everyday, over and over again. If he dies, he wakes up back on the beach he started on, and if he makes it through a full day, well, he still wakes up on the beach.

Colt isn’t sure why this is happening, and despite having a complete loss of memory, he has implanted messages all over the mysterious island of Black Reef in hopes of guiding himself through this ordeal.

Unfortunately for him, he’s not the only one who knows he’s in a time loop, as antagonist Julianna is on a constant hunt for him; trying to change Colt’s mind about breaking the loop and just living out his eternal life doing the same thing everyday all while being hunted like an animal by the inhabitants of Black Reef. Yeah, no wonder he wants out despite not remembering anything.

That’s the premise of Deathloop, and anyone familiar with the roguelite genre knows that for every death had, and every step taken, the story of said game slowly begins to unveil itself. Deathloop is no exception to that rule. However, unlike many roguelikes and lites, Deathloop takes on the incredible, high praising planning system that was featured in Dishnored, and doesn’t entirely rely on being random.

Everyday, everyone spawns again, saying the same thing, and doing the exact same tasks. A tiring process to have to live through, but Colt isn’t one to follow those rules, and he has to face off against unique ability-enhanced humans called Visionaries, This begins the journey of a thousand loops in hopes of killing them all in a single day to break that loop.

This is all broken up into four different times of day across multiple stages in a single day.  At first, that doesn’t seem like much, and starting out it isn’t, as you’ll find yourselves hammering through the loops, making quick and easy progress. However there are only so many times before you realize that doing the same thing over and over again isn’t the answer, and it’s here that Deathloop truly shines, in not only it’s story, but also its robust, highly innovating gameplay.

Breaking the Loop

Deathloop, like many roguelites, embeds itself with the idea that dying, or completing a loop is critical to its overarching plot and gameplay. However, as I previously noted there isn’t a real sense of randomness due to the days being the same, outside of maybe a Visionary being in a different spot than last time.

That’s not a bad thing — far from it, because that same, incredible, free choice combat that the Dishonored series is known for is back and even more magnificent than ever before.

Depending on the way you play could alter the story and and therefore offer unique opportunities. I’m a full gun blazer myself, but if I wanted, I could go around sneaking and listening to the various NPC enemies. Doing so usually lead to side missions that will get me closer to a Visionary.

Sometimes it’s as simple as finding a hidden door, but more often than not, taking your time and exploring the vast segmented island of Black Reef leads to missions that’ll take place over multiple loops.

What makes this all so satisfying however is how everything ties into one another. For example: if on the first day I killed one of the Visionaries, then I could subsequently miss out on potential plot lines as that character is no longer part of the story.

However, on the other hand if I kept that Visionary alive, then I may end up missing out on other killing opportunities for other targets. There is a cause and effect play happening here, as every action does feel like it has a critical role in the story. I don’t think I’ve played a game quite like Deathloop before, at least in its massive scope.

Furthermore, while the day does reset, Colt possesses the ability to keep certain things intact. Some of these are story-related, while most are for gameplay. Weapons for example can be carried over, but not before infusing them with the games main currency. If you die, you lose that weapon completely unless it’s gone through the infusion process.

It’s the same deal with character abilities, which come in the form of slabs and are earned by killing Visionaries. Like Dishonored, players should expect to see some crazy abilities, from invisibility, teleportation, to telekinesis, and so much more. It won’t take long before you’ve become a complete master of these traits, wreaking havoc everywhere you go. I made it a priority to see just how fast I could clear a zone out without being detected. It’s just sheer fun.

With Dishonored I often found myself reseting a level just to replay it again with a different gameplay style. The same holds true here, only the loop aspect of it really helps as it allows you to continue playing over and over again, just to explore those different possibilities. You don’t need to restart because the game is going to do that for you anyway, so you might as well take the opportunity to see where those mistakes lead.

That’s a huge strength that Arkane Studio has masterfully delivered with Deathloop, and while the title does have a definite end, the journey to get to it is one that has many roads to take.

I will say, probably my only complaint I have about Deathloop is that it doesn’t do a very good job at explaining mechanics to the player. The start of the game feels like an odd one, because of how much it wanted to push us forward by telling us it’s okay to ignore exploration and just run through the campaign. It’s made clear real quick why, but the amount of tutorials and walls of text that get’s thrown in at the start did feel a bit overwhelming.

Thankfully, the game’s natural progression helped alleviate that as every loop after encouraged freedom, and exploration of all the unique mechanics.

One Loop I’ll Gladly Stay In

Deathloop, without question, is a groundbreaking masterpiece that has been beautifully crafted from the very talented developers over at Arkane Studios. Sure, you could argue that it’s basically Dishonored, but I’ve never pegged a title down for being more of what people loved.

This is the case of a studio understanding that, improving on every aspect of what they originally created, all while evolving it to newer heights. Deathloop is everything you would have hoped for (and more) from the makers of Dishonored, cementing their own studio status as one of the greats. Gamers, be excited, as while it’s been a long journey to its release, Deathloop is certainly one time loop you’ll want to experience.

Score: 10/10

Pros:

• Core gunplay is fun, along with the arsenal of unwise weaponry. Arkane Studios sits alongside Insomniac Games for well crafted, outrageous weapons.
• The story starts slow, but is told excellently through its loop mechanic. Everything feels like it has a reason for happening, and it pays off big ones pieces start coming together.
• Player freedom is like no other game out there. The amount of ways to approach a situation is insane, giving gamers all the reason to go back to play.
• All the characters, including the visionaries, feel relatable and are so much fun to observe on screen. While there aren’t any tear jerking moments, there are loads of smile inducing ones.
• Black Reef Island is crammed with things to do and discover. Exploration is highly encouraged and pays off.

Cons:

• Wasn’t a big fan of the multiplayer, so I didn’t touch much on it. You play as Julianna who is the main protagonist. There is some lore to be learned and fun to be had from this mode, but I would have much preferred a full singleplayer story for her side of the tale.

A review code Deathloop was provided by the publisher and played on PS5. You can read SP1st and MP1st’s review and scoring policy right here