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In Defense of Deus Ex 3...
"Detailed" knowledge of Deus Ex 3 has been floating around the airwaves for but a matter of days, and already the elite are in uproar. It's the first press details of Fallout 3 all over again. I consider myself part of the elite; those gamers who've been gaming for over a decade and a half at least, and constantly lament the good old days. And Deus Ex was probably part of the best old days by all means. But it's time to move on. Deus Ex was brilliant, but not perfect. It was stunningly well designed, yet many design features are laughable by todays standards. It's time to move on.
What made Deus Ex great? For me it was the detailed, deep and all but realistic plot. It was about the excellent dialogue and thought provoking philosophy that drove its characters. It was the way you could fine-tune your character for any number of roles, from tanking in with a GEP gun, to hyper-pacifism. It was about the enormous variety of approaches to any one situation. It was about the trenchcoat and shades; future agent chique.
And to me, from what little information we have, I do genuinely believe Deus Ex 3 is on track.
From a gameplay perspective:
Auto-Healing: Admittedly, I was shocked at first. Genuinely shocked. But think it through - you're a frickin cyborg guys. Some form of auto-repair makes sense compared to magic health kits. And we know nothing about how it works otherwise - what's to say that you can't upgrade it via stats or augmentations. What if it's simply just one of the ways you can customise your character?
New stealth: Again, a little concerned at first. Honestly though, have you ever actually tried to use shadows in the name of stealth? It's not really that easy. Moving quickly behind cover, or blending into your environment (by that I mean, the people around you). That's real stealth. As big a fan I am of Thief, the shadow mechanic is basically unique to Thief - given Garrett is actually trained in the art of melding with shadows if you actually read into the backstory. It just doesn't seem right in other games in my opinion. Especially the likes of Deus Ex with its claims to comparitive realism.
The augmentations: They sound bloody fantastic. They are perfect additions to any cyborg secret agent's armory. Personal bungee jump? Smashing through walls? I don't know about any of you guys, but those are exactly the kinds of tools you'd want for alternative routes, snatch operations or avoiding fire fights. Remember we're not dealing with the Nano-augs of Deus Ex 1 or 2. These are mechanical bio-augs. The kind Agent Navarre or Hermann had in Deus Ex. They're going to be a bit more in your face. Granted, they do have to be done right, the martial arts aug, and the "claymore" aug sound almost like insta-win buttons. Hopefully they'll be a bit more complex than that.
"Personal marksmanship skills": Good frankly. I hated it in the first game. Hopefully you won't simply be able to pick up certain weapons and be able to use them right away, but I hate statistic based aiming in first person games. Total immersion breaker. Good. I don't care how much you prefer statistic based aiming, I hate it. Besides. If you want to go through the game guns blazing, it might as well be fun.
That's basically all we know for gameplay.
Art/Setting Direction
I've read a fair few comments by people on the art/setting direction concerned that it looks too futuristic for a prequel - that Deus Ex's todays world 50 years down the line look seems to have been abandoned. Yes it has. And it's for the best - our world today already looks more futuristic than that of Deus Ex to be quite honest (have you seen the likes of Dubai?). It's also perfectly clear that the best games are distinct in their aesthetic - Bioshock, Fallout, Half-Life 2 or Thief for example. All are very distinct with their design, and it suits their backstory entirely. Deus Ex is a world embroiled with the Illuminati and the Knights Templar and references to Da Vinci and all kinds of dusty old philosophers. Surely it should be gifted with design suitable for its grand plot overtones? I think so.
Also, we know for a fact that in the 25 years between 2027 (presuming Deus Ex 3 ends in the same year it starts) and 2052, the US had gone through civil war, massive earthquakes and general social distress. Societies go backwards as well as fowards. And for all those who want their hobo fires and hookers back, we've already been told that Shanghai is a two tier world of rich on the top and poor in the slums below. Don't worry. The grime will be there. The social commentary, will be there.
The Bottom Line
Basically, I think it's important to stress that these are very, very early days. We simply don't know enough about the game to make any true judgement as I see it. What we do know is that yes, they will make some changes, and no, not everyone will like them. That's the problem with doing a sequel/prequel. We know that it's got an incredibly strong aesthetic direction, and one quite distinct from anything else out there.
Myself, I can't wait to find out more.
What made Deus Ex great? For me it was the detailed, deep and all but realistic plot. It was about the excellent dialogue and thought provoking philosophy that drove its characters. It was the way you could fine-tune your character for any number of roles, from tanking in with a GEP gun, to hyper-pacifism. It was about the enormous variety of approaches to any one situation. It was about the trenchcoat and shades; future agent chique.
And to me, from what little information we have, I do genuinely believe Deus Ex 3 is on track.
From a gameplay perspective:
Auto-Healing: Admittedly, I was shocked at first. Genuinely shocked. But think it through - you're a frickin cyborg guys. Some form of auto-repair makes sense compared to magic health kits. And we know nothing about how it works otherwise - what's to say that you can't upgrade it via stats or augmentations. What if it's simply just one of the ways you can customise your character?
New stealth: Again, a little concerned at first. Honestly though, have you ever actually tried to use shadows in the name of stealth? It's not really that easy. Moving quickly behind cover, or blending into your environment (by that I mean, the people around you). That's real stealth. As big a fan I am of Thief, the shadow mechanic is basically unique to Thief - given Garrett is actually trained in the art of melding with shadows if you actually read into the backstory. It just doesn't seem right in other games in my opinion. Especially the likes of Deus Ex with its claims to comparitive realism.
The augmentations: They sound bloody fantastic. They are perfect additions to any cyborg secret agent's armory. Personal bungee jump? Smashing through walls? I don't know about any of you guys, but those are exactly the kinds of tools you'd want for alternative routes, snatch operations or avoiding fire fights. Remember we're not dealing with the Nano-augs of Deus Ex 1 or 2. These are mechanical bio-augs. The kind Agent Navarre or Hermann had in Deus Ex. They're going to be a bit more in your face. Granted, they do have to be done right, the martial arts aug, and the "claymore" aug sound almost like insta-win buttons. Hopefully they'll be a bit more complex than that.
"Personal marksmanship skills": Good frankly. I hated it in the first game. Hopefully you won't simply be able to pick up certain weapons and be able to use them right away, but I hate statistic based aiming in first person games. Total immersion breaker. Good. I don't care how much you prefer statistic based aiming, I hate it. Besides. If you want to go through the game guns blazing, it might as well be fun.
That's basically all we know for gameplay.
Art/Setting Direction
I've read a fair few comments by people on the art/setting direction concerned that it looks too futuristic for a prequel - that Deus Ex's todays world 50 years down the line look seems to have been abandoned. Yes it has. And it's for the best - our world today already looks more futuristic than that of Deus Ex to be quite honest (have you seen the likes of Dubai?). It's also perfectly clear that the best games are distinct in their aesthetic - Bioshock, Fallout, Half-Life 2 or Thief for example. All are very distinct with their design, and it suits their backstory entirely. Deus Ex is a world embroiled with the Illuminati and the Knights Templar and references to Da Vinci and all kinds of dusty old philosophers. Surely it should be gifted with design suitable for its grand plot overtones? I think so.
Also, we know for a fact that in the 25 years between 2027 (presuming Deus Ex 3 ends in the same year it starts) and 2052, the US had gone through civil war, massive earthquakes and general social distress. Societies go backwards as well as fowards. And for all those who want their hobo fires and hookers back, we've already been told that Shanghai is a two tier world of rich on the top and poor in the slums below. Don't worry. The grime will be there. The social commentary, will be there.
The Bottom Line
Basically, I think it's important to stress that these are very, very early days. We simply don't know enough about the game to make any true judgement as I see it. What we do know is that yes, they will make some changes, and no, not everyone will like them. That's the problem with doing a sequel/prequel. We know that it's got an incredibly strong aesthetic direction, and one quite distinct from anything else out there.
Myself, I can't wait to find out more.