In Dishonored 2, players will return to the Empire of the Isles, but this time they'll experience most of the game in a new setting. While Dishonored 2 begins and ends in Dunwall — the bleak industrial city of the first game — most of the action takes place in Karnaca, often referred to as the Jewel of the South. The capital of Serkonos — which is the southernmost island in the Empire — Karnaca is a dazzling Mediterranean-inspired metropolis with distinctly different culture and style.

Corvo Attano returns in Dishonored 2, but this time he's not alone. He's now joined by his daughter, Emily Kaldwin. Fifteen years later, both characters have grown. Now 25, Emily is no longer the innocent child from the first game, but a powerful figure who rules the Empire. And Corvo, having restored his daughter to the throne, once again serves as the Royal Protector. On the anniversary of the death of Emily's mother (and Corvo's lover) Jessamine Kaldwin, an otherworldly usurper seizes the throne, leaving the fate of the Empire hanging in the balance.

Players will choose to play as either Emily or Corvo, fully voiced with their own perspectives and emotional responses to the events transpiring around them. Emily is voiced by Erica Luttrell. Corvo is voiced by Stephen Russell. Other actors in Dishonored 2 include: Vincent D'Onofrio (Luca Abele, Duke of Serkonis), Rosario Dawson (Meagan Foster, Captain of the Dreadful Wale), Jamie Hector (Vice Overseer Liam Byrne), Pedro Pascal (Paolo, leader of the Howler gang), Sam Rockwell (Mortimer Ramsey of the Dunwall City Watch), and Robin Lord Taylor (The Outsider).

Dishonored 2 releases to the general public tomorrow, but people who pre-ordered the game already have access to it today, but judging from the comments on the Steam forum, Dishonored suffers from serious performance/optimization issues such as slowdowns inlarge open areas, weak textures, dips in framerate, crappy subtitles, and anti-aliasing.

As such Bethesda has issued some tips & work arounds.

We are aware that some of you may be encountering issues with Dishonored 2 on PC. Please take a moment to review our recommendations to help better your experience.

Systems

• Check to ensure that your machine meets the game’s minimum requirements and that you are not running any other programs in the background. If your system is on the lower end of the spectrum avoid setting presets to High / Very High / Ultra which will decrease your performance.
• If your PC meets the Recommended Specs we encourage you to play with High settings for a more consistent 60fps experience. Only PCs that far exceed those Recommended Specs should opt for Ultra settings.

Windows

• Dishonored 2 was tested against the latest updates for Windows 7/8/10 -
• Please check your system to ensure you have the latest Windows updates for your OS version.
• Please visit our support page for more information on how to update Windows - https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/help/12373/win...

DirectX

• Dishonored 2 was tested against the latest update for DirectX - please check your system to ensure you have the latest version of Direct X. Please visit the following support page for the latest version of DirectX -https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/kb/179113

Video Card

Update Your Graphics Card Drivers
To ensure you are getting the best performance out of your graphics card, you can download and install latest drivers (based on manufacturer) here:

• NVIDIA: 375.70
• NVIDIA - http://www.nvidia.com/Download/index.aspx
• AMD: 16.10.2
• AMD - http://support.amd.com/en-us/download

Tips for getting for best performance

General recommendations

• Avoid using Alt-Tab when playing. Relaunch the game if you see performance dropping after using Alt-Tab.
• Avoid having background applications running in addition to the game.

Video Settings

• If you have performance issues, try lowering the resolution.
• Use 1440p resolution only if you have a very high-end GPU ( GTX 1070/1080 or equivalent)
• Keep the V-Sync activated, especially if you have large framerate fluctuations.
• If you have framerate under 30 fps, adjust the “Adaptive Resolution” between minimum (50%) and default value (75%).

Advanced Settings

• Use the “Auto” presets: this should adjust your visual settings without impacting your framerate.
• If you still have performance issues with “Auto” presets:
• Try deactivating the “TXAA Anti-Aliasing”
• Try lowering the texture details

If you experience performance issues, you can contact Bethesda Customer Support at http://help.bethesda.net/ with your DxDiag file for further troubleshooting.

Information on creating a DxDiag file and contacting customer support can be found here - http://help.bethesda.net/app/answers/detail/a_id/2...
Or contact us on Twitter @BethesdaSupport

Emily and Corvo have their own unique supernatural powers. Corvo's powers return from the first game, but each has been extended and enhanced. Corvo's Possession power, for example, can be upgraded so you can chain from host to host — or you can instead hide in corpses or sleeping enemies. Emily's Far Reach mobility power can be upgraded to allow you to steal objects from afar, or you can upgrade it to yank enemies toward you and take them out midair.

The Dishonored series is all about options and exploration, and Dishonored 2 takes that to the next level with deeper choices and even more ways to play. The game has many different pathways through each mission, but also different approaches — stealth or combat, lethal or nonlethal — and a wide array of supernatural powers that dramatically change the experience.

Dishonored 2 will deliver classic Dishonored gameplay, with missions that include many pathways to explore, creative approaches to reach your targets, and a myriad of ways to combine powers, tools and abilities to tackle any situation. "But this time we've put a greater emphasis on big, interesting mission themes — either from a gameplay or a fiction standpoint — making each mission a wildly unique place to explore" Smith said. Here are three examples: