Good narrative is becoming more and more common these days. But back in the late ninety’s early two-thousands narrative was barely being utilized in mainstream gaming. Sometime after System Shock 2 but before Fable and Mass Effect a game came out called Deus Ex, That seemed to have everything: A
risky story that tied the games set pieces pieces properly, game mechanics and a progression system that no one had seen before, and finally art and designs that one one had created yet. It was the perfect game to usher a new millennium. But my article today isn’t about Deus Ex directly, Its actually about one of the games in the series Human Revolution. And it does was so few other games have ever done, made a proper sequel that equals the original.
The first thing you notice while playing the game (other than the strong use of gold and black a choice the games director used convey a cyberpunk renaissance) is the amazing design of the buildings and how everything looks. Everything is designed in there future
as straight lines and mass produced products. It creates an atmosphere that you can get lost in (much like sound in games, if sometimes you cant notice something that means its doing it’s job).Its not just the the graphics but rather the anesthetics you experience while playing the game. The narrative that you experience is only heightened by the graphics.
The game mechanics of the game also help the story. Your a super soldier but your still just one man versus hundreds of enemy’s. Luckily you have augments that both are useful and add to the lore of the Deus Ex universe. Things like the Icarus landing system or the infolink are functional, practical and well implemented. Take your time while playing to enjoy this part of the game, as being a cyborg is amazing (insert archer cyborg joke here).
SPOILER ALERT AHEAD
The narrative as I may have mentioned a few times is wonderful. Adam Jensen goes threw his story arc of trans-humanism. The augments in the game are pushing people apart, fighting about being pro-human or pro-trans. There questioning what does it mean to be human, and what point do we stop being human with technology. Adam is a blank slate at times so that the player is allowed to make his own inferences and assumptions of what to think. It actually allowed me to have really good little conversations with a friend of mine over mortality and humanism.
While things like the Illuminati in the first Deus ex were hot topic in the 2000’s they seem passive by today’s standards. The game introduces them this time more as companies fighting in a capitalistic war-zone over resources and ideas. They work threw shell companies creating wealth gaps and hurting everyone except the player. Even Adam is creating as part of there experiments into pushing the bounds of augmenting humans.


