Watch Dogs Legion and Bloodlines Review
Review Date: 12/07/2021
It’s been a while since I sat down and wrote one of these, but I need to get back into it. Yes I know that the game has been out for a while, but given the release of the first DLC Bloodlines, I can do a double review quick and easy.
That’s right people, JoKishler is back with a review for Watch Dogs: Legion and Watch Dogs: Legion Bloodlines. The third instalment in Ubisoft’s hacking master game, Legion takes us into London and playing as operatives from our favourite hacktivist group DeadSec. The game begins with us controlling a spy, diffusing bombs planted by a rogue group called Zero Day. While our lovely budget 007 manages to save Parliament, all hell breaks loose, and DeadSec is blamed for it all. Now without giving it all away, shit goes down, freedoms are revoked, private security is the norm and well DeadSec is dead … or are they …
Watch Dogs: Rebuilding
One of the coolest and I think the most intriguing things about this instalment of the game, is that you can play as anyone. Yes ANYONE. See that old granny on the bench looking like the Queen. You can recruit her. See the stoner over there? Recruit him too. Hell, you can recruit anyone from a random in the street to one of the captains in the private army, to even low-ranking thugs in the Clan Kelley gang. Ubisoft allowed us to play as anyone and at any time. Now, yes, they nailed this concept. But there was a downfall, and probably one of my issues with the game. So obviously they can’t be ultra-creative with the recruitment missions and a game this ambitious MUST HAVE some repetition. But damn after a while, I found it annoying, a tad exhausting and frankly easy.
You see, once you start recruiting someone who can get you access into specific areas, your game becomes a cake walk. Look, I’m not saying you can’t make it more challenging and send a doctor in full scrubs into a police station and think he won’t be recognised when he is releasing a prisoner, but that defeats the purpose of recruiting a cop or detective. Alright, alright, look great concept, well executed just a bit … bleh after a while, especially when the voices don’t match up with the character. That was just an annoying pet peeve of mine.
The range of characters is quite dope, I won’t lie. I loved having a spy and their special abilities to use with their spy watch and invisible car, or even a professional hitman who has the ability to knock out someone with their gun. Each character has their abilities and weapons of choice with some being incredibly unique to their character style. Look I can’t do it justice by explaining, but it is quite awesome. I found myself constantly recruiting, making my team incredibly diverse and strong and just a complete unit of a team.
Watch Dogs: Compelling
strong points. Coupled with the lovable and very unique AI Bagley, the story takes us on a journey through London figuring out who blamed DeadSec for the earlier bombings, who is Zero Day and why the hell is London gone to crap. The story alone, is a reason enough to play the game, especially given how your protagonist is completely unique. The story will always play out the same, no matter who you choose, but after a while you will begin to have some favourite character. But besides the story itself, the side quests are just as awesome. With their own little storylines, fun easter eggs and references to other games, Ubisoft has given us a phenomenally intriguing single player game with plenty of content, twists, turns, sickening realisations and, in my opinion, an ending that was kind of predictable.
Watch Dogs: Playstyle
The playstyle of the game is great. Taking the parkour style of the previous game, with more things to hack like drones you can jump on and fly yourself, to spider bot gadgets, Ubisoft has done a stellar job to giving us a game that we can approach in any way we see fit. You need to infiltrate a Clan Kelley base, either go in as a member you have recruited, walk in, walk out and easy peasy. Or choose a hitman, who can sneak around faster and has an instant gun knockout. Or or or … be literally an old lady, jump onto a cargo drone, fly it in the air, put your spider bot down and do it that way. Legion gives us plenty of ways to complete the missions and quests and never restricts us to how or who we can play with.
Personally, I found myself using the spider bot a lot more than anything else, using the right operatives to infiltrate with minimal trouble and played it as best as I can to a stealth game. Which is the perfect set up for our DLC review.
Watch Dogs: Legacy (Bloodline Review)
The Fox, Aiden Pearce is back people, a bit older, questionable fashion style and well still a badass. And let’s not forget the loveable mask wearing nut, Wrench with his crazy ideas and antics. Together, in London for a short stint but just awesome story. Set immediately after the intro mission of the main game but before the main storyline, Bloodline gives us control of Aiden working as a fixer to steal a device for some rich client, remembering his nephew Jackson is in London and hopefully looking to meet up, Aiden’s routine style of completing a job is interrupted by none other than Wrench. The story that follows is one incredibly funny, captivating and without a doubt a great addition to the Legion game itself.
With DeadSec currently not available, and London just beginning to feel the pain that is the private militia that is Albion, Aiden’s journey to complete his contract, keep his nephew safe and attempt to not kill Wrench is short but a great change of pace. But wait there is more, after a while, you get to play as Wrench, with a sledgehammer, his own weapons and abilities, the story is filled with laughs, jokes and throwbacks to previous games.
Watch Dogs: Conclusion
Ubisoft’s third instalment in the Watch Dogs franchise was a great change of pace and playstyle. While the characters are unique in their own right, customisable in weird ways, and although the voices are a bit whack, Legion plays as a great game with a very in depth and intriguing story. Bloodlines is a great introduction to the game and giving us old protagonists in a new setting was welcomed and definitely something to show that this game has potential. Watch Dogs: Legion builds on the previous games’ strengths, adding great visuals, smooth gameplay and a storyline worth exploring.