Deus Ex: Human Revolution Reviews

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Written by WorstUsernameEver on August 23rd, 2011

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While Deus Ex: Human Revolution can't be the revelation that Deus Ex was in 2000, it's an achievement nonetheless. It's a visionary, considered piece of work, and while my thoughts drift to the things that could have been and the compromises made due to the possibilities of video games in 2011, they're just as quick to consider playing through it again. Human Revolution is a smart, rewarding piece of transhumanist noir that does justice not just to Deus Ex, but to the fiction that inspired it.

Deus Ex: Human Revolution falls just short of perfection, then, but it is, nevertheless, an amazing game, which will confound those who persist in tarring games with the brush of mindlessness. The future it presents may be worryingly dystopian, but by God, it's fun to explore on the safe environment of your console.

Despite the quality of the combat, the emphasis on gameplay options, the diverse set of augmentations and the substantial side-missions, what will stay with me about Human Revolution is its focus on creating a rich, believable world filled with interesting characters, themes and conflicting ideals. The mere fact that it aims for such lofty narrative heights is commendable, the fact that it achieves them is worthy of celebration.

JP: I'm willing to overlook some of the minor imperfections in DEHR, because it does so many things right. Most of all, the game world itself is just an absolute joy to explore. Yeah, it has its seams and hiccups that remind you it's a video game, like when civilians standing in a group perform the exact same idle animations in perfect sync, but its vision of 2027 is the most exquisite, spot-on video game distillation of William Gibson since the 16-bit Shadowruns. If you told me Jensen's name was Case and he was exploring Neo-Kobe rather than Heng Sha, I'd say, "Oh man, this is the Neuromancer game I've always dreamed of." That's not a veiled criticism about the game's lack of originality, because it still manages to feel like its own thing. The transhuman future depicted here is pretty depressing, but it feels convincing... which makes it even more convincing.

While the game is plenty long, dramatically it wants for a stronger third act with its own city hub to explore. Its closing chapter will also prove divisive. But such things are hard to resent when its 30-plus hours offer such a dense experience, rich in choice and saturated with credible detail and powerful, intriguing ideas. From its sluggish, restrictive start, Human Revolution opens into a world of scintillating possibility in which your actions' significance reaches far into the future. And with something like that difficult future approaching fast, Human Revolution achieves a rare accolade: it's not just a great game, but a timely one.

No matter what genre of play you prefer, Deus Ex: Human Revolution is bound to fit the bill. It is a brilliantly constructed game that sets up a world and then sets the player loose, allowing you to explore as you see fit. From the art direction to the genre-bending gameplay, Deus Ex: Human Revolution is a landmark in game design that is sure to be referenced in the years to come. Buy it without hesitation.

Perhaps the strongest compliment I can pay Eidos Montreal is this: with its grand design, dynamic play and sheer wealth of ideas - not to mention its old-fashioned pre-occupation with air vents - Deus Ex: Human Revolution is reminiscent of the best efforts from the golden era of PC gaming at the end of the 90s. It's a modern release imbued with the finer qualities of an age gone by.

It's the world and your actions that keep you truly invested in Human Revolution, then. Exploring the city-hubs exposes you to the society that augmentation has built, side-missions investigating cover-ups and foul play casts an image of a sick species. E-books and newspapers lie scattered around for you to read, a record of humanity's inevitable implosion. As a piece of fiction, Human Revolution extrapolates the fears of today into a future imperfect, of economic collapse, of riots in the streets and the gulf between rich and poor widening to critical levels. It's a startlingly relevant piece of work, marred by the most benign and unnecessary of flaws. But in this age of scripted rollercoasters and linear bug hunts, the thinking man's freedom of Deus Ex provides a fabulous example of interactive entertainment, if not quite the revolution the title promises.

As with the original Deus Ex, the more you peer and focus at any individual element of Human Revolution, the more you'll notice the cracks. The combat isn't the best you'll ever play, the dialogue not the punchiest, the stealth not the sneakiest.

But that's missing the point. Human Revolution is a game to take as an entire experience, where you can shift at will from having exciting gunfights to crawling around in vents, and where every victory is all the sweeter for knowing you chose to do it that way. It's a game which can persuade you to spend an hour painstakingly invading enemy territory undetected, not because you have to or because you're expecting any great reward, but because you feel Adam Jensen should be good enough to do it. It's a game where the 10mm pistol you pick up at the very start can still be your weapon of choice when the end credits roll, but where choice itself is your most powerful one throughout.

Above all else though, it's a game that paints a dark vision of the future you won't want to live in, but definitely shouldn't miss the chance to visit right now.

Although the game world has plenty of room for more stories told by future titles, this story comes to a very definitive end. That's something rare in big-budget games today, especially when they take place in an established franchise. But a real conclusion just confirms why this game deserves so much praise: by the end of the game's impressively long run time, you're left satisfied by the story and the characters within it.

This is the Deus Ex game we've been waiting for.

Despite some flaws, playing Deus Ex: Human Revolution has been a true pleasure from beginning to end. This new episode in the franchise clearly is worthy of the legend and should satisfy all the fans, as well as the newcomers. You will be asked to make many choices in the course of the adventure, and though most of them will not affect the main quest, it still give the sense that your story is not someone else's. Whatever your decisions, it will be possible to see all the game's endings without having to start over, but it does not mean you won't want to do it. True, the game kind of incites you to play stealth and to let your enemies live, as proven by the experience you gain when behaving that way. Also worth mentioning is the fact that the game is pretty challenging, even in normal mode. It won't take a lot of bullets to die, which, again, will make you want to stay in the shadows, like a thief. From a technical standpoint, the 360 code we got to play had a few framerate issues, a few poor textures here and there, and, above all, a lot of aliasing. Thankfully, such minor details are just a drop in the ocean of awesomeness, starting with the fantastic soundtrack of the game. In short, Human Revolution is a worthy descendant of the first episode and you should not miss it!

If you're one of the masses yearning for substance in the sea of carbon copy shooters and spy thrillers, stop what you're doing this is the game you've been waiting for all these years. Let this pass, and you'll miss out on one of the defining games of the current generation. Don't say I didn't warn you.

It's obvious how much time Eidos Montreal has spent on Deus Ex: Human Revolution and behind the wonderful design is a solid game with a plot that will keep you guessing. This is a quality product in the same class as Dead Space 2 and Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood and I'm sure it will be in many of the 2011 awards lists.

First of all, if you loved the original "Deus Ex," drop everything and pick this game up right now. It's hard to imagine that any fan would come away from "Deus Ex: Human Revolution" disappointed. For those who are new to the franchise, "Human Revolution" is a great place to start, as it acts as a prequel to all the events of the original game (and is far prettier). My only word of warning would be: Don't expect an action game. Even if you're playing with a run-and-gun style, you're going to find this game much slower paced than its action counterparts. It feels more like "Mass Effect" or "Metal Gear" than it does "Halo."

With all that said, "Deus Ex: Human Revolution" is easily one of the best games I've played this year and is likely the best installment in the franchise. The summer gaming drought is officially over.

It may not be as revelatory an experience, and in today's age feels as derivative as it does inventive, but it still has us excitingly discussing tactics and angles of approach with fellow players long after we've finished playing. Surely there's no greater testament to Eidos Montreal's success than that.

Deus Ex: Human Revolution is a proper sequel (prequel?) to the original game. The talented crew at Eidos Montreal succeeded in taking the best parts that fans remember and then adapting them so that current audiences can enjoy the title. There are fumbles present which hint at a larger scope that may have been compromised during development, but the core essence of player choice and flexibility stands true. The sense of reward for each thoughtful approach and calculation brought a smile to my face and made me feel like a complete badass. Just like the original, Human Revolution is at its best when it shuts up and lets you decide how to accomplish your goals. Don't worry, fans they didn't F it up!

Beneath the mixed presentation, awkward animations and the old-fashioned AI there is the essence of a Deus Ex game. Subtle nods to the original such as the grid based inventory system show that Eidos Montreal knows how to tap into that Deus Ex feeling.

In many ways Deus Ex: Human Revolution plays just like it's predecessor, resulting in an overly archaic PC game and lacking all the right modernisation.

But forgive these flaws and underneath there's a decent game too. There are complaints, admittedly, but the deep and intriguing world and storyline will be enough to sustain fans through to its end.

Deus Ex: Human Revolution has happily been worth the wait and is a game that can hold its head up high next to the first game. Jensen isn't the most charismatic character, and the story is a tad patchy in places, but the game's world and its characters more than make up for it. Deus Ex: Human Revolution heralds the arrival of the cyber-renaissance, and it's pure gold.

All things considered, Deus Ex: Human Revolution truly is a game that I feel every PC gamer out needs to own at some point. Whether at full price or at a discount, it's simply an experience that should not be missed by anyone. It's also a game that absolutely deserves to be supported, and it's an opportunity to speak with your wallet. The success of Deus Ex: Human Revolution on store shelves and digital storefronts would deliver a strong message to other developers and publishers out there that these (hardcore) games can exist, and even succeed in this generation.

Deus Ex: Human Revolution is a title worthy of the original's branding. Fans of the series will be delighted at just how much Eidos Montreal has gotten right with this prequel, from the dark cyberpunk visuals to the open-ended puzzle solutions. It tells an epic story full of twists and turns, set atop an incredibly challenging gameplay experience. This is an essential purchase for anyone seeking an alternative to Battlefield or Call of Duty.

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