Dishonored 2's New Game Plus update lets you combine Emily and Corvo's powers

Want to Domino a group of guards together, Possess one, then walk him directly into a deadly Wall of Light in Dishonored 2? You'll be able to once New Game Plus mode arrives. Arkane Studios and Bethesda revealed that the new campaign option coming in Dishonored 2's Game Update 1 will let players use the full set of Emily and Corvo's powers regardless of who they pick at the beginning of the game.

I can't overstate how cool this will be for players who enjoy mucking around with the game's detailed, reactive simulation. Combining powers in useful/disturbing ways is one of the greatest pleasures of the Dishonored series and this literally doubles your options!

“If you've ever wanted to make higher-powered characters, now's your chance," Dishonored 2 creative director Harvey Smith said in a post on Bethesda.net. "If you've wanted to play Emily Kaldwin with Possession or Devouring Swarm, or Corvo Attano with Domino, now you can. We've been having fun with it here at Arkane Studios, and we hope you will too.”

New Game Plus will also let you retain all of the runes and bonecharm traits that you unlocked in your previous playthrough so you can get a head start. And yes, you do have to complete the game at least once before you can go mad with powers or else it wouldn't be much of a New Game Plus mode.

Dishonored 2 Game Update 1 will be released on all platforms on December 19. Then a Mission Select screen and more custom difficulty settings will follow in in January. Arkane hasn't announced any plans for paid DLC expansions like it did with the first game, but it may not need any if these free updates continue.

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Connor Sheridan

I got a BA in journalism from Central Michigan University - though the best education I received there was from CM Life, its student-run newspaper. Long before that, I started pursuing my degree in video games by bugging my older brother to let me play Zelda on the Super Nintendo. I've previously been a news intern for GameSpot, a news writer for CVG, and now I'm a staff writer here at GamesRadar.