Deus Ex™ GOTY Edition

The game that others should try to emulate. The level of interactivity with the world and its objects is high. No game has such a deep level of immersion. You can play the game in so many different styles, from a blast 'em out shooter, to a sleuthing mystery to a sneaking spy game. Littered everywhere in the world are items to read (that just might give you the password to unlock that door without using a multitool!) and every character's story is quite well-developed. Play this game enough times at least to see each of its multiple endings!

Other reviews have emphasize Deus Ex's gameplay, I want to emphasize its story. The writing in this game and some of the literary devices used is on par with some of the finest works of literature. The game's writing is like Shakespeare, in the sense that the dialogue seems content to spout crude jokes one moment, then suddenly slam you with insightful commentary the next. This is a game where your boss will call you out for workplace sexual harassment when you accidentally walk into the woman's washroom while exploring, then a different character will comment on the use of tax codes to deprive individuals of their wealth and consolidate that financial power towards powerful corporations. Here are some quotes that I can recite from memory - The West, so afraid of strong government, now has no government, only financial power. - The checks and balances of democratic institutions were made, precisely because human beings saw how unfit they were to govern themselves. - When government surveillance and intimidation is called "freedom from terrorism" or "liberation from crime", freedom and liberty have become words without meanings. Deus Ex is undeniably a work of literature, that has become more and more relevant, as our own present reality grapples with the issues of accountability, data privacy and artificial intelligence, and the overriding of rule of law by financial power.

I played it for the first time last month (2021) and I really enjoyed it even if it feels a bit dated (mostly graphics and controls). The game design was top notch, and so ahead of the curve that in some ways remains unparalleled even today. Make sure to explore every nook and cranny and quick save all the time! The soundtrack deserves a special mention - instantly iconic.

This is a reference game we have here, a game so well balanced that one can play inflitrator or with the big guns, and sometimes both. I remember raiding an enemy base, throwing EMP grenades at bots outside, then hacking into the security system to make the turrets attack my enemies.. oh such bliss.... How many FPS (I know this is also a RPG) have such a replay value in single player ? How many games can you talk about 12 years later like that ? The graphics are old for sure, but gameplay, fun, scenario... it's still shiny as new ! :D Now stop reading and try it, my copy never left the shelf ;)

Deus Ex is like a cheezy action-thriller movie with terrible acting and over-the-top ridiculous storytelling and gloriously bad visual effects that you can't help but enjoy the hell out of because its such a purely entertaining hot mess. And then you start paying attention to the story and the characters and realize how well-written and compelling it all is... And then you become invested in the worldbuilding that remains alarmingly relevant no matter when you revisit it... And then you run into Sandra in the middle of California. What the HELL is she doing out here? You hope she knows what she's doing, but at least she got away from that punk JoJo. Wait a minute... you killed JoJo. What is she running from? Sure, the 'Ton had seen better days and her dad was kind of a blowhard, but at least he cared enough about her to try. You hope she sees that some day... And then you think 'did JoJo really deserve to die?' How many people have you killed at this point? Dozens? Hundreds? He was just a low-level gang-banger in Hell's Kitchen, and now you're sniping Area-51 military bots with a crossbow as you turn invisible to elude men in black who are working for a secret branch of the Illuminati aiming to take over the world via techno-omniscience. Hell's Kitchen seems like a lifetime ago, and yet it was only... today? Wait, really? That was today? That can't be... If only you had iced *REDACTED* as quickly as you did JoJo. You knew she was lying to you the moment you accidentally broke into her apartment through the maintenance elevator. You could have simply walked in the front door, but you just had to see what those "renovations" on the fifth floor were all about, didn't you? And now you're supposed to be the one to decide the fate of humanity? You don't even know how to swim! Or you do and you regret it. And now you've played the game over 15 times, and realize games haven't gotten any better since 2001, and they don't have to.