Watch Dogs: Legion Review – Rise of the Masses

Watch Dogs: Legion Review – Rise of the Masses

Nov 13, 2020 0
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The return of Watch Dogs: Legion brings both a new chapter in the hacktivist-filled series as well as an interesting way to play it. In this latest installment, The London branch of DecSec—a worldwide hacktivist organization—is framed for a devastating terrorist attack perpetrated by the mysterious entity Zero Day.  DedSec and its members are hunted down by Albion—a military organization currently occupying London under the guise of keeping it safe from further terrorist threats.

You Choose How to Play!

As with any of the games in the Watch Dogs series, style of play is entirely up to the player as such players can hack security cameras to scout ahead and take a stealthy approach or try to run in blind and take a more direct route.  Typing challenges include hacking servers, stealing software and hardware, and infiltrating hostile zones to destroy objectives. A significant addition to this new installment is the prolific amount of drones flying around London. It adds a good amount of diversity to the gameplay, either through hacking security drones to fly around an area or riding construction drones to rooftops.
Construction Drones in the London Skyline

Drones in the London Skyline

You Choose Who to Play As!

New to Watch Dogs: Legion is the lack of a main character.  One would think this would be detrimental to the storyline; however, the Play as Anyone feature remedies that. At the start of the game, players will have the option to choose their first operative and are given a range of twelve different characters with different abilities. As the game progresses, players can recruit people to join DedSec right off the street, gaining their loyalty through a side mission.  Even more interesting is the Permadeath mode offered at the beginning of a new game.  Players are given the option to double down on the ability to play as anyone since turning this mode on at the beginning of the game will do just as intended; if your operative dies in combat, they are removed from your roster. One thing to note, the choice to use Permadeath is only available at the start of the game and cannot be adjusted mid-campaign. As you cycle through operatives, players will notice that each operative has a different skill set to bring to the cause. Some abilities allow for quicker recovery times, while others allow for better combat capabilities.  As is the risk of recruiting everyone, some recruits may be detrimental to the cause, bringing nothing special to the table, as they’re just a regular person.
Anyone can join DedSec

Anyone can join DedSec

Problems still Loading…

As with many gaming experiences, there are some drawbacks and issues.  One of the most noticeable ones is … the abnormally long loading screens. Watch Dogs: Legion is littered with loading screens for a game that is designed to change characters often and fast travel around London. A 10 to 20-second loading screen every time the scene or operatives change can be devastating to momentum and can easily allow players to lose interest.   Since the next generation of consoles has arrived, it will be interesting to see if these times shorten with newer hardware.  Some minor issues include a bit of a clunky driving system and people speaking to your current operative as if they are the main character instead of being just one many.

How Will You Take Back London?

For returning fans of Watch Dogs, this title is a wonderful return to the franchise, and it brings up a fresh new way to play the game. The play as anyone feature is highlighted when playing with Permadeath and gives a much-needed sense of strategy when selecting Operatives.  For those new to the series, it can be a bit of a challenge getting into the swing of general game mechanics, but it has a relatively small learning curve.  Aside from the longer than normal loading screens, the open-world experience of Watch Dogs: Legion allows for a great gaming experience.    Check out our latest article, Hyrule Warriors Age of Calamity First Impressions: Start of the Storm A huge thanks to Ubisoft for the early copy of Watch Dogs: Legion for review on Xbox One.
Legion1 PC240 playstation53 Ubisoft58 Watch Dogs: Legion4 Xbox114
About author

Nick Mammoliti

I enjoy long walks on the beach, followed by copious hours spent inside avoiding the sunlight. All kidding aside, as a creative person I am constantly on the lookout for an experience when I play games. I have been gaming since I could form memories and I have a preference for games with a good narrative. That being the case, Writers Mind in Halo: Reach holds a special place in my heart.

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