DEUS EX: HUMAN REVOLUTION Preview

As gaming has progressed through time the idea of choice has played a bigger and bigger part: what better way to feel immersed into a game's world and story than to allow the player to make decisions which directly impact how events play out? This idea of choice was pushed forward by a handful of revolutionary games with one of the best at the time of release being Deus Ex. Deus Ex had huge sprawling maps which left you with multiple angles from which to tackle any mission. You could choose to augment your character in a large number of different ways, but your choices didn€™t stop at character and simple mission planning; they extended to which faction you would side and develop relationships with. Thinking back to this masterpiece of gaming (not my opinion alone I€™m sure) it's only right that I would be so excited to see it's follow-up Deus Ex: Human Revolution making its way to all platforms later this year, thanks to Eidos Montreal and published with help from the mighty Square Enix. So what do we know about Human Revolution already? Well firstly it's a prequel, set in the huge neon cityscape of Detroit a few years before the original Deus Ex in 2027. We will follow the story of Adam Jensen a security officer working for Sariff Industries - the front runners in developing augmentations that allow anyone to €œupgrade€ their own natural strengths and abilities, a concept which has caused controversy around the city. After an attack on the facility Jensen is left badly wounded and has to be augmented to extreme levels to survive. The story will provide the chance to explore the grand neon city and learn more about the conspiracies and conflicts that are so intertwined with the concept of augmentations and making the human race more than what we are born. From what has been shown of the game so far it's abundantly clear that Eidos have spent a lot of time crafting an incredibly beautiful world - think Blade Runner mixed with Final Fantasy. The gameplay is true to the original, focusing on blending RPG elements of deep character customization (you can even upgrade your shoulders to handle the recoil of any weapon that much better) and important choices to make within the story, with a serious first person shooter experience. The gameplay is built upon Eidos idea of €œthe four pillars of gameplay€ meaning in any given situation you can choose to tackle any issues using stealth, social, hacking or combat. The stealth and social elements have been shown in some depth already, the combat has been brought right up to date with the introduction of a substantial cover system as well as a matched melee system which doesn't feel like a last resort in a fire fight. With the stealth side of things using some clever little ideas along with the big ability to go completely invisible for a small period of time. Eidos have really shown that they care about this franchise and they want us to care too, proof of this is to see how fan feedback effects the games development. In a new preview of the game a feature called augmented reality was shown which allowed you to see the world through the eyes of Adam Jensen. This included highlighting key objects and mission points in yellow, however this caused a stir amongst many gamers, seeing this as an odd distraction from the over all style. So after gaining this feedback Eidos were quick to take heed and add in the ability to turn this feature on and off at leisure. A small change I€™m sure most will think but a big step in showing that yes our opinion does matter. One thing I should mention is multiplayer, Eidos have made a clear decision that there will not be a multiplayer mode within Deus Ex. I€™m sure there are some gamers out there who are unhappy with this step, and possibly this could effect the franchises continuation, but I for one think this is a good move. Why spend time making a multiplayer mode which would, no matter what, struggle to knock the top few off their pedestals (Gears of War and MW spring to mind) while possibly cheapening the Deus Ex experience, when you can put all your effort and creative man power into making an immersive shooter with some serious depth. Overall I€™m wholly excited for this game, Eidos have put a lot into making it the best it can be and from everything I€™ve seen so far it seems they are definitely on track, with what seems like a nice balance between neat ideas and gadgetry to a serious combat system. Deus Ex: Human Revolution is due August 26th, 2011.