A Memorial for All The People I’ve Accidentally Killed in ‘Dishonored 2’

I really, really like Dishonored 2. I think it's brilliantly designed, honoring player choice in ways that most other big games only dream of, with multiple valid approaches to any given situation.

Playing as a mostly stealthy, almost entirely non-lethal Emily, I'm having a ball.

I never even tried to play non-lethal in the first Dishonored—favoring stealth, but being totally cool with killing dudes when I inevitably screwed up. This time around, though, the Shadow Walk power lets me out of sticky situations, so I'm able to play as a semi-goody two shoes, no matter how wildly uncoordinated my approach.

But, those many, multilayered systems of Dishonored 2 mean there are consequences to every action. And no matter how careful I am, it seems a body or two will sadly fall prey to something in most levels (let the record show, however, that I had fully clean runs through the second and third missions. I would like a medal, please.). Rats. Bloodflies. Fire. Heights. Their fellow soldiers.

The hazards are many in the world of Dishonored, and some of my oh-so-gently knocked out enemies ended up getting a little bit dead throughout my travels. This is an ode to them.

To Mortimer Ramsey, who I killed because I was still sort of getting used to the controls and just didn't care:

Ok, look. I'm going to be honest. Before I had the mark of the outsider, I killed a lot of people. The fun of a Dishonored game, to me, is having weird powers and seeing how I can use them to get around and find all the secrets and so on. Un-powered Dishonored 2 is way too hardcore of a stealth game for me, so I murdered and sprinted through the entire "Long Day in Dunwall," to get to the good stuff and start in on my proper low-chaos playtime.

I'll also blame this on being a little unsteady at the controls, because hey, it'd been years since I last did the Dishonored dance and I'm terrible at games. Sorry, Mort. It was time for your muerte.

To the asshole Howlers who followed me through a hacked "Wall of Light" in the Lower Aventa district:

You were the first people that I accidentally killed that I decided not to quick reload afterwards and try again. You murdered me like eight times in my attempt to grab a rune that was "hiding" in plain site, so I was already mad. When I rewired the light gate, I sort of thought you'd be smart enough not to follow me through it and get zapped, but you did, and I laughed a whole bunch. I'm sorry.

But you guys really are the worst.

To the Witches that I think got friendly-fire toasted by their friends (or were maybe chomped on by gravehounds?) in the outer grounds of the Manor:

Ladies, I'm sorry. I think you are actually the coolest people by far in the entire game. In a world of stuffy guards and mean Howlers and terrible food, you took over a museum and turned it into this rad coven so you could practice spells, drink tea from chandeliers, and give each other undercuts.

I really just wanted to hang out with you!

I'm honestly not sure what happened here. I just know I was in Shadow Walk, I knocked a couple of you out, there were gravehounds making scary noises, and one of you was totally dead after our encounter, when I walked back through the area looking for bone charms. Your face was a little bloody, but, otherwise, maybe you could be resurrected or something!

I will buy you a cup of tea and we can chill on a chandelier, talking about life, man.

To the Bloodfly husks that I "gently" sleep-darted and placed in the recovery position, spooning one another, in an apartment in the Dust District:

I'm actually really sorry, guys. You charged at me for killing the bloodflies that zombified you, but I wanted to give you another chance in life. A change to one day seek out Dr. Hypatia and maybe get cured, to once again bask in the sun with a plate of Serkonan figs.

I put both of you in the recovery position like a good EMT, and cuddled you up against each other for warmth. I even put you both on some nice "high ground" by a nest, because, hey, you seem to really like bloodfly nests.

But, uh, a bunch of rats ate you anyway. Whoops.

To the Overseer Guard that fell from the rafters after I knocked him out in the Vice Overseer's Office:

Oof. I feel a little bad about this one too, buddy. You see, I had just upgraded my far reach power so I could grab bodies, and I was playing with it a little, and I mayyy have dropped you like forty feet, directly on your head.

I used the heart on you previously, and dear old mom told me you were a pretty good guy. That your underlings looked up to you and you'd look the other way and let them have little treats sometimes.

Here, I left you a plate of potted jelly eels in your memory. You're welcome.

I am still, hilariously, not done with the game. I'm sure there will be a few more accidental deaths in this world. I'm sure the game will blame me, as usual.