Watch Dogs 2 Game Director Confirms Non-Lethal Playthroughs

In a recent interview with GameSpot, Watch Dogs 2 game director Danny Belanger confirmed that players will be able to complete the game’s story campaign without killing anyone.

When asked if Watch Dogs 2 supports fully non-lethal playthroughs, Belanger responded: "Absolutely. One of our goals is to support non-lethal. We’re trying to do more than that, but right now what I can say is, definitely non-lethal is possible. And it’s actually one of the values we want to push in this game."

Belanger later elaborated on his statement that the team is "trying to do more," affirming the team’s commitment to accommodating non-lethal approaches: "It might be difficult depending on some set piece missions or things like that, but being non-lethal for sure. We will support that. That’s the mandate we were giving to the team."

Though Watch Dogs 2 is an open-world game that allows players to equip a variety of firearms, it also includes a taser pistol, hacking abilities that stun enemies, and other tools that should support non-lethal play. During his recent hands-on time with the game, GameSpot editor Scott Butterworth never fired a single bullet.

More and more action games have supported non-lethal playstyles in recent years, including Metal Gear Solid V, Dishonored, and Deus Ex: Human Revolution. Human Revolution was widely maligned for its boss battle--which forced players into combat scenarios regardless of how they chose to play the rest of the game--so hopefully Watch Dogs 2 can avoid similar pitfalls when it launches later this year.