More than all these problems, though, Watch Dogs is an exhaustingly self-serious affair, a morose, almost laughless dirge that has endlessly stoic (and therefore relatively boring) characters doing very violent things without any sort of catharsis or emotional relief on the player. Compare this to GTA V, which is considerably more outrageous and profane than this game, but benefited from stronger writing and a greater sense of self-awareness in particular: horrible things happen, but there's a tonal balance, which makes it a game that's much easier to play for hours on end, whereas after a few hours of Watch Dogs, players may feel drained from the lack of lightness. Sure, you can glean some amusing information from the city's NPCs (there's a character called Chuck Norris, for instance), but as for the story itself, it's not compelling enough to earn the 20 hours of straight seriousness it sets players up for. It's not naturally a particularly happy one, but even a little gallows humour would have gone a long way. Have you started playing Watch Dogs yet? What do you think so far? Let us know in the comments!
Stay at home dad who spends as much time teaching his kids the merits of Martin Scorsese as possible (against the missus' wishes).
General video game, TV and film nut. Occasional sports fan. Full time loon.
