

This opening section is a thrilling introduction to the basics of stealth, combat and hacking – showcasing many of the abilities you’ll be using throughout the 20+ hour campaign. You are a member of DedSec, an underground resistance movement intent of bringing the corrupt higher powers in our world to justice by any means necessary. Legion begins with you infiltrating the Houses of Parliament to disarm one of many bombs placed across the city. But I had fun in this eccentric adaptation of London, even if I failed to find the Trusted Reviews offices amidst all the hostile drones and random police attacks. It’s an enjoyable and compelling open-world adventure, but one that seldom pushes the genre forward, and doesn’t execute upon its own ambitious ideas enough to remain memorable. Its core “play as anyone” mechanic never quite reaches the potential it could have in what is essentially a goofy spy caper inspired by the likes of Kingsman and James Bond. Ubisoft Montreal has decided it wishes to both have its cake and eat it, but its thematic ideologies are constantly clashing with a gameplay formula that doesn’t improve upon previous entries in any significant way. It takes a genuine concern that has plunged our country into dire straits and plays it for laughs, while also trying to establish itself as a tongue-in-cheek homage to British popular culture. It’s a morbid premise, and one that at times can land far too close to the bone when discussing issues of immigration, police brutality and the very real and ongoing cultural divide caused by the 2016 referendum.

Watch Dogs Legion is an open-world adventure set in a dystopian vision of Britain’s capital, where a widespread terrorist attack has resulted in London being forced under paramilitary rule as every aspect of the populace is scrutinised through the surveillance microscope.
