Deus Ex (series)

This article is about the video game series. For the first game in the series, see Deus Ex. For the dramatic device from which its title is derived, see deus ex machina.

Deus Ex
Genres	Action role-playing
Developers	Ion Storm Inc. Eidos Montreal
Publishers	Eidos Interactive Square Enix
First release	Deus Ex June 26, 2000
Latest release	Deus Ex: Human Revolution August 23, 2011

Deus Ex is a series of cyberpunk themed action role-playing video games, consisting of three games: Deus Ex (2000), Deus Ex: Invisible War (2003), and Deus Ex: Human Revolution (2011).

Games

Whilst all three games have distinct settings and story lines, together they explore the methods used by the world's elite to control and manipulate society. Main characters in the series possess artificially acquired superhuman abilities which the third game, Human Revolution, calls Human augmentation.

Deus Ex (2000)

Main article: Deus Ex

Deus Ex is an action role-playing game developed by Ion Storm Inc. and published by Eidos Interactive in the year 2000. The game received almost worldwide critical and industry acclaim, including being named "Best PC Game of All Time" in PC Gamer's Top 100 PC Games and in a poll carried out by UK gaming magazine PC Zone. It was a frequent candidate for and winner of Game of the Year awards, drawing praise for its pioneering designs in player choice and multiple narrative paths. It has sold more than 1 million copies, as of April 23, 2009.

Set in a dystopian world during the 2050s, the central plot follows rookie agent JC Denton, who works for United Nations Anti-Terrorist Coalition (UNATCO), as he sets out to combat terrorist forces, which have become increasingly prevalent in a world slipping ever further into chaos. As the plot unfolds, Denton becomes entangled in a deep and ancient conspiracy, encountering fictional versions of organizations such as Majestic 12 (MJ-12), the Illuminati, and the Hong Kong Triads throughout his journey. The story ends with a final confrontation with Bob Page, leader of MJ-12, and a moral decision for JC Denton to seize power for himself, restore the Illuminati to power, or destroy the work of MJ-12 entirely and possibly create a new global dark age.

Aggregate review scores
As of April 18, 2011.

Game	GameRankings	Metacritic
Deus Ex	(PC) 91.03% (PS2) 82.97%	(PC) 90 (PS2) 81
Deus Ex: Invisible War	(Xbox) 85.36% (PC) 82.98%	(Xbox) 84 (PC) 80
Deus Ex: Human Revolution	(PC) 90.19% (PS3) 89.89% (X360) 89.57%	(PC) 90 (PS3) 89 (X360) 89

Deus Ex: Invisible War (2003)

Main article: Deus Ex: Invisible War

Deus Ex: Invisible War is an action role-playing game developed by Ion Storm Inc. and published by Eidos Interactive. Released simultaneously for Windows and the Xbox video game console on December 2, 2003, the game is a sequel to the critically acclaimed Deus Ex. Invisible War was well-received commercially, holding 80 and 84 scores at Metacritic for the Windows and Xbox versions, respectively, and selling more than 300,000 copies in North America. Despite this, the game's critical reception was not as positive as its predecessor's—for example, PC Gamer gave Deus Ex a score of 94%, while Invisible War received a score of 83%. This was in part due to a number of design choices which led some critics to label the game as being "dumbed down" relative to its predecessor, such as using the same ammunition in every weapon and removing the skills menu completely. It has sold more than 1.2 million copies as of April 23, 2009.

Invisible War takes place twenty years after Deus Ex, in a world being rebuilt after a catastrophic event called The Collapse, where several global organizations offer competing ideologies for how society should function. Following a terrorist attack that destroys the city of Chicago, the player assumes the role of Alex Denton, a sibling of JC Denton and a trainee at the fictional Tarsus Academy, whose support is sought by several organizations. As the game progresses, the player learns of conspiratorial factions which seek to drastically change the world, including JC Denton, who is now partially integrated into the Helios AI. (The story assumes that Paul survived the events of the first game and that JC Denton chose to destroy the Aquinas Router.) The player completes missions for these organizations, learns their true identities and intentions, and in the end decides which organization should rule the world.

Invisible War was designed to allow player choice in both plot and gameplay, with branching plot lines and emergent gameplay elements. This freedom of choice was widely praised by critics.

Deus Ex: Human Revolution (2011)

Main article: Deus Ex: Human Revolution

Deus Ex: Human Revolution is an action role-playing game developed by Eidos Montreal and published by Square Enix, the game is a prequel to the award winning Deus Ex video game.

Human Revolution is set in 2027, 25 years before the first title, where corporations have extended their influence past the reach of global governments and the development of bio-mechanical augmentation by a few elite and powerful companies threatens to destabilize society. The game follows Adam Jensen, the security chief for one of the world's most powerful human augmentation corporations, Sarif Industries. After a devastating attack on Sarif's headquarters, Adam is forced to undergo radical surgeries that fuse his body with mechanical augmentations, and he is embroiled in the search for those responsible for the attack. The events in the game lead to the formation of UNATCO.

The game is cover-based and includes a "takedown" mechanic where Adam will either lethally or non-lethally take down an enemy, or two enemies when he uses a specific augmentation. Thus the game does not feature melee weapons as the first two did. It also does not use multitools, which are replaced by a hacking mini-game.