Watch Dogs immediately introduces players to the game's protagonist Aiden Pearce. The star isn't really hero material, but instead, he turns vigilante after witnessing the death of his niece and sister right before his eyes. Rather than becoming a broken shell of his former self, Aiden uses his vast knowledge of electronics, technology and hacks in order to get revenge. The storyline includes plenty of likable characters that Aiden will come across during the game that include a goth fellow hacker and a silent but interesting friend. The story is spread across many missions, and most players will take at least 10-20 hours to complete the game from start to finish. Watch Dogs features a strong storyline even in spite of a less than perfect protagonist.
Watch Dogs is most easily compared with the open world gameplay of the Grand Theft Auto and Saints Row series, but instead of a gritty, boundary pushing satire storyline or a wacky game full of aliens and superheroes, players will find technology and hacked based missions and interactions. Missions in the game are laid out just as any other game in the genre and require Aiden to drive from one location to another to begin a mission, and objectives include tailing missions, stealth missions and other tasks commonly seen in these types of games. Watch Dogs isn't a copycat game though, hacking allows players to perform special tasks including using different security cameras to guide an NPC out of danger or using a hack to destroy enemies cars in pursuit. The game never seems to have too many similar missions, and the many can play out multiple ways and even allow players to have the freedom of continuing to play when detected in a stealth mission, failing to rescue a priority target or otherwise mucking up a primary objective.
Hacking is a big part of gameplay in Watch Dogs, but it doesn't exactly revolutionize the gaming industry in the way some fans were led to believe. During many missions, players can typically choose between infiltrating an enemy's location through stealth tactics and using hacks to distract or confuse guards in order to progress. As soon as an enemy spots a player though, all bets are off, and it becomes far more important to switch to the gunsablazin tactics seen in most other open world games. Aiden can soak up a lot of damage too, so playing the game in a traditional style is viable and almost easier than using hacks. One area where hacks become borderline necessary is during chase sequences however. Enemy vehicles have a tendency to keep up with players really well and can seemingly catch up quickly even after being caught in a wreck. Luckily, using one of the many hacks to disable cars will typically end a chase very abruptly and will allow players to escape with relative ease.
When they work, hacks in the game are a pretty amazing site to behold. Ending a chase sequence by raising a barricade at the last second thereby causing enemies to crash their vehicles into it head-on is really exciting, and it's always a blast to ignite a grenade an enemy is still holding before they realize what is going on. Watch Dogs also features more subtle but still highly enjoyable hacks such as hacking into camera feed for surveillance purposes or hacking into someone's phone in order to obtain personal data on them. Most hacks are executed with a simple push of a button, Square or X on PlayStation and Xbox controllers respectively. This doesn't mean players will want to be constantly spamming the button while moving around the in-game world, and it's definitely nice not to need to remember a complex series of buttons in order to perform certain hacks on the fly.
Watch Dogs includes plenty of things to do outside of the game's main campaign and storyline. The open world of Chicago is vast and is completely unlocked from the beginning of the game. Players will find all sorts of fun things to do in the city including playing chess and poker. There are also a ton of side quests in the game such as gang hideout missions and other secondary quests that mimic very similar missions from the main storyline. Players will also find random encounters with other players online, similar to Dark Souls invasions, in which one player enters another player's world and attempts to hack them without being spotted. Other multiplayer modes include online races made complete with hacks for all players and CtOS app support that allows players to enjoy some Watch Dogs fun even when away from their game console.
Players that enjoy Watch Dogs on Xbox 360 won't have a problem adjusting to the game's slightly less impressive graphics. Watch Dogs is a nice looking game across all platforms, next generation or not, although no version of the game compares to the elaborate promotional trailers for the game. It is noteworthy however that both the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 versions of the game don't come with Decryption multiplayer mode, which challenges players to locate a hack a file found around the city before the game's other players reaches them, or an online multiplayer free mode. Watch Dogs is best played on PlayStation 4, Xbox One or PC, but it's not a bad game by any stretch on older consoles.
Watch Dogs was one of the most hyped games to ever release in the entire video games industry, and it turned out to be a pretty great game. Exploring the open world of Chicago in Watch Dogs is a lot of fun and really interesting. There are dark themes present in the game as well as a very interesting storyline, but hacking various electronics across the city keeps the game from being just another Grand Theft Auto clone. Watch Dogs easily stands up to the heavy hitters in the genre and should be a very profitable new series for Ubisoft moving forward. Watch Dogs doesn't exactly live up to the pre-launch hype and deliver a game that truly revolutionizes the video game industry in the way fans thought it would, but it should at least teach gamers to temper their expectations for games before launch, at least until new games are revealed next week at E3. Look for Watch Dogs today from Ubisoft.
Watch Dogs is now available from all major retailers for the MSRP of $59.99 and can be purchased for PlayStation 4, PlayStation 3, Xbox One, Xbox 360 and PC. Watch Dogs is rated M by the ESRB for Blood, Intense Violence, Nudity, Strong Language, Strong Sexual Content & Use of Drugs and Alcohol. For more information on the game, check out the official Watch Dogs website.
Game Features:
- Online Multiplayer 1-8
- Open World Based on Chicago
- Use Hacks to Escape Enemies and Gain New Information
- DLC Support
- Trophy/Achievement Support
Game Information:
Developer & Publisher: Ubisoft
Platforms: PlayStation 4, PlayStation 3, Xbox One, Xbox 360 (reviewed) & PC
Release Date: May 26, 2014
