Deus Ex™ GOTY Edition

Deus Ex is one of the finest experiences in gaming. The amount of choice a player has in any given situation was super refreshing for the time, and over a decade later I'd still heartily recommend the experience. Download some of the texture packs and skill point fixes, but other than that go in blind - make your own decisions based off what you think is best and live with the consequences. There are no right answers! It's a shame the sequels weren't nearly as good.

This game (and to a lesser degree the sequels) totally revolutionized gaming for me. I've been playing first person shooters since Wolfenstein 3d, but this brought a new element: Choice! There are multiple ways to accomplish almost any objective in game. Often the path you choose changes the outcome of something further down the line... which means you can play this game multiple times and it will be a different experience. Sure the graphics are a bit dated now, but the gameplay and story still stands up. If somehow you've never played Deus Ex, install it now and thank me later. If you have played it, re-install rinse and repeat.

I tried Wolfenstein 3D for an hour or two back when it came out, didn't like it much (in part due to the violence), and since then hadn't tried any FPS games until I picked up Deus Ex last month. And I loved it, particularly the stealth / nonlethal aspects. I did download the Deus Exe version, the OpenGL 10 support, and the New Vision textures, and thought it looked really good. My kids really enjoyed watching me play, too. :-)

Awesome game. On top of the gameplay(which gave the player an unprecedented amount of freedom), it's also got one of the most well built, deep, intriguing game worlds I've ever seen.....With things like global electronic surveillance, shadowy groups manipulating entire governments for mutual benefit, genetic engineering, nanotechnology and... Wait, are we still talking about a game here?

It is strange that a game that is so obviously a product of it's time can be so timeless. Soaked in the paranoid conspiracy theories of the '90s, Deus Ex manages to perfectly capture the mystery and feel of the classic X-Files series, mix it with pulp cyberpunk inspired by William Gibson's work, and to form this into one of the greatest action RPGs, nay the greatest game, of all time. And this is no action game with RPG elements, this is an RPG through and through; much like it's predecessor System Shock 2. This game does not hold your hand, you are free to play the game how you want to, with all the consequences that might entail. You can be a stealthy sleuth who leaves his enemies unharmed, moving about the masterfully crafted levels undetected. You can be a manly rambo killing everything in his wake. Graphically it could use a bit of a facelift, but the gameplay and story are enough for anyone to look past it and sink into the world it creates. My sole complaint is that it should not be Game of the Year Edition. It should be the Game of Every Year Edition.