I've been playing it for the past couple of days. It's pretty good, I'm taking my time exploring every part of the map. The gameplay is pretty much Deus Ex Hr mixed with some AC. All pretty familiar stuff, Blink and Possession add some variety.
Blink is a bit finicky to use with a controller, not really suited to quick getaways, and it has dropped me short on several occasions while the icon indicates I can make it. The description is wrong too, a short range 'teleport' would not set off trip wires, yet blinking through one does.
Yet when it works it is very satisfying. Nothing like blinking right behind a guard, choking him unconscious with the speedy charm, and blinking back up a rooftop before his buddies can respond.
I'm trying not to get detected and kill as little as possible, but the AI is erratic. Sometimes blind, sometimes with psychic awareness. And when they have spotted you they'll throw stones or fire bombs with perfect accuracy. Unless their buddy is in their way, which will be an unfortunate victim in that case. Escaping is best done by blinking up a roof, they'll loose you pretty quickly. While staying on ground floor and hiding hardly ever works. Load times are pretty long on console so I rather kill or escape when detected instead of reloading to get the nagging no kill and ghost check marks at the end of each mission.
Exploring the world is what draws me in most in this game. The architecture and artwork are great. Listening in to peoples conversations is fun and there are lots of things to find. I can't leave a safe uncracked or a door locked. The areas are pretty big too, some do get reused between missions though. And there are plenty of ways to go through levels, well except the bridge one I'm currently in, which has a lot of funneling going on.
In my opinion Deus Ex HR's gameplay slightly edges out Dishonored, but Dishonered's world is a bit more fun to explore. And it looks beautiful too, and no annoying boss fights as of yet!
