Watch Dogs: Legion's procedurally generated group of hackers pulled off something unique at launch, but they didn't really make for compelling protagonists. It was fun to explore the different ability sets, but the missions across London never felt like they were anything more than endless side activities stripped out of another open-world adventure. The release of Watch Dogs: Legion - Bloodline adds the character focus that the main campaign sorely needed with the help of a grizzled Aiden Pearce and Wrench from Watch Dogs 2. Not only do players get to bring these two iconic characters into the main story, but Bloodline presents a 6-8 hour prequel campaign that feels like the follow-up that series fans have been waiting for.
Splitting its time equally between Wrench and Aiden, Bloodline manages to connect both characters in a real way while honoring the wildly disparate games they came from. Both characters have also aged considerably since their first appearances, and that's a major part of Bloodline's satisfying narrative, helping to provide players with a look at how they've grown.
It may be hard to believe that a game starring Aiden Pearce could be worth playing in 2021, but it seems that Bloodline fully understands the true nature of the vigilante that tore up the streets of Chicago back in 2014. Aiden heads to London partially to reconnect with his nephew Jackson, a now 26-year-old rebel hooked up with the local resistance. Jackson stands up to Aiden when they meet, making him finally own up to his life up to that point as an egotistical anti-hero going up against the world for his own selfish ends. It feels like equal parts referendum and redemption for Aiden's adventure, and against all odds, Bloodline succeeds in that goal.
Players not interested in Watch Dog's ongoing franchise maintenance will find that the gameplay itself hasn't changed much from Legion's main campaign. Both Wrench and Aiden are souped-up characters compared to the average London citizen, which does make the grind of hacking, sneaking, and shooting a little more palatable. There are a host of side missions that provide further upgrades for the characters, but they are definitely not required to get through what is ultimately a pretty breeze set of story quests. The locations and some of the characters are also recycled from the main game, although there is a brand new tech CEO to defeat in typical Watch Dogs fashion.
Not only does Bloodline manage to connect the dots and deliver a satisfying character arc for Aiden Pearce, but it also saves the main campaign from mediocrity simply by dropping the familiar Watch Dogs protagonist into the story. Recording unique mission dialogue for both characters means that Legion suddenly feels much more like a proper entry in the series. There are still some times where players will need a specific type of character, but most of the missions can now be completed by characters with a built-up backstory rather than a procedurally generated passerby.
This one small change from anonymity to recognizability makes Watch Dogs: Legion - Bloodline a vital addition. It's the best story content in the series since Watch Dogs 2's main campaign, and it effectively redeems the story of the original game by acknowledging the cognitive dissonance of Aiden Pearce's rampage through Chicago. Anyone who jumped on with the second game likely won't get a lot out of these revelations, and it's still probably not a great idea to spend 40 hours with 2014's vision of a hacker just to play this DLC, but anyone who's been with Watch Dogs since the beginning will find a lot to like here.
Watch Dogs: Legion - Bloodline is available now on PC, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, and Google Stadia. Screen Rant received an Xbox Series X code for the Watch Dogs: Legion Season Pass for the purposes of this review.