Did you watch the new trailer for Deathloop? If not, go and do it right now. It was easily the highlight of last night’s State of Play event for upcoming PS5 titles. Slick, exciting, and tactical, it looks like premium Arkane - one of the best, most stylistically distinct triple-A video game developers around. Also, if you haven’t already, play Dishonored 2 and sort your life out.
Since the Deathloop trailer aired, I’ve seen some people wondering what it’s all about. All you really need to know is that Deathloop is a cool action/stealth game about assassinating targets and using powers in inventive ways, like yeeting people off cliffs. Oh, and another player can invade your game and yeet you off a cliff. There’s lots of yeeting involved, basically. But if that doesn’t sell you on it, let me break down exactly what’s happening in the trailer.
Straight away at 0:03, we get a look at our stomping grounds: Blackreef. Set during the swinging ‘60s, Blackreef is a fictional landmass inspired by the Faroe Islands. Previously an army base and the home to strange experiments, Blackreef now hosts the world’s biggest party, where rich revellers dance, drink, fight, and fuck without consequence. The entire place is stuck in a timeloop, resetting every time the clock strikes midnight.
Is Deathloop Multiplayer?
At 0:07, we hear Julianna taunting our protagonist, Colt, and we get a glimpse of her flipping him off. Brash and larger than life, Julianna is a bit like Mr. X from Resident Evil 2 Remake - a relentless force that can appear at any time to mess up your plans. Julianna can either be controlled by AI or another player, and is kitted out with guns and supernatural powers. Yes, it’s Mr. X via Dark Souls invasions, and I can’t wait to be a full-on bastard.
Fast forward to 0:15 and we see Colt land on an ashen beach. This is likely where you’ll be thrown back to if you don’t manage to break out of the loop. It’s a bit like a roguelite, where failure is an intrinsic part of the process, but that’s also a part of its charm. It’s a big old puzzle box where, over time, you learn the most efficient way to kill loads of rich people. Bliss.
Deathloop Visionaries
You see, Colt doesn’t want to be at this party, and the only way for him to escape is to kill eight targets called Visionaries. These are spread out across the island, and you have to work out how to take them all out in a single day, with each level you attempt taking off a chunk of time. It’s a bit like how you plan days out in Persona, but blended with the sandbox levels of a Hitman game. Except here, you’re not just considering AI routines in each level - you’re learning what they do at specific times, studying the optimum order to take targets out, and analysing which actions influence the rules of following levels.
At 0:17, we see one of these Visionaries - Rambling Frank. Yes, Deathloop wants you to kill the DJ.
Over at 0:40, we get a glimpse of what looks like your base of operations. Here’s likely where you’ll be choosing what targets you want to go for - hence the intel board - while also equipping yourself with weapons and gadgets best suited for the task. Rather than having all your powers and weapons available at once, Deathloop asks you to mix and match for the mission at hand, taking a combination of powers and weapons you’ve unlocked so far into each mission with you.
Deathloop Powers
We’re shown one of Colt’s powers at 0:53, allowing him to turn invisible and slip past guards. While handy for getting through areas with AI, this power could be key to losing aggressive Julianna players. I’d imagine it works similarly to the Semblance power in Dishonored 2, draining of power faster the more quickly you move.
At 1:00, we see one of Julianna’s powers, which could act as a good counter to Colt’s invisibility. This power is called Masquerade and allows her to assume the form of NPCs on the island. I can see this being paranoia-inducing for stealthy Colt players, where every enemy you creep up on could potentially be another player waiting in ambush.
1:20 shows another Colt power that looks like Deathloop’s version of Dishonored’s Blink - a short-range teleportation power. Though because Deathloop doesn’t judge you for going loud, this take on Arkane’s signature move allows you to teleport into people to send them flying to their death, if you fancy it.
Straight after that, we see Colt’s Karnesis power - a telekinetic jolt that allows you to pull people into the air or throw them left or right. In this clip, we see it used to launch someone into the air before lobbing a sticky grenade at them. Later, at 2:05, we see it used against Julianna to throw her into the air, fill her with bullets, and toss her off a cliff.
What Is Deathloop?
Move on to 2:16 and we get a glimpse of the AEON logo. This is the firm behind the looping party at the end of time. These mofos need to die.
Ten seconds later, we see partygoers throwing themselves to their death for the lols. What’s a little bit of death between friends who get to do it all differently tomorrow/today? Like the game’s tagline says: if at first you don’t succeed, die, die again.
So yeah, it’s a first-person Hitman game with Dishonored-style powers and Dark Souls-style invasions. It looks rad, different, and I can’t wait to play it. Look how smooth and agile it is. Look at the style. If I could shag a game, it’d be this one. Thanks for reading.