Deus Ex: Mankind Divided Interview
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VG247 recently chatted up Eidos Montreal narrative lead Mary DeMarle about the choices, consequences, and endings that were present in Deus Ex: Human Revolution, and how they learned from that design experience to pack an even bigger punch for each of these in Deus Ex: Mankind Divided. A sampling to get you started:
This was the first time anybody outside of Warren Spector had been entrusted with the Deus Ex license, and DeMarle and team were extremely conscious of doing justice to what she describes as (a series about choice and consequence).
(But it was only after we had a first draft, we were like '˜Wait, where are the choices for the player?'. Then we had to go back in and start building more and changing it. So I think part of it, too, is that we were learning along the way.)
DeMarle promises that things will be different for Mankind Divided, and that the lesson has been taken to heart. Critical path experiences will be completely different based on your choices, and the ending you receive will be generated from your actions throughout the game no (ending vending machine) will pop up at the last minute. But what makes Mankind Divided interesting, and what some players may take issue with, is that all four possible endings of Human Revolution are canon going into the sequel.
The signal Jensen sounds out at the end of Human Revolution was supposed to be world-changing but when you're up against the globe-spanning Illuminati, you can expect that they'll do everything they can to muddy your message. According to DeMarle, Jensen's broadcast was just one of many, and whatever ending signal he chose was only as useful or meaningful as the public made it.
(When people are caught up in a global tragedy they're not paying attention to the news,) observes DeMarle. (They're focused on the intense emotions of that moment and dealing with it. At the time, it was so chaotic that a lot of competing messages got out, and other forces were quickly able to counter it with disinformation. So by the time anybody was really able to listen, they heard so many different versions that they grabbed the one they feel is right.)
(As they do, we believe what we want to believe.)
