Hacker News Reader

Comment by thearn4 | Hacker News Reader

This happens to be a very timely article - I've been going through a replay of this game recently. I bought it right after it was released, but only played it once (and very quickly). I'm a huge fan of the original Deus Ex.

View on HN

There's a directors cut on Steam as well that has Valve-style making of markers with developer commentary.

If your first play through involved killing people, try completing the game non lethally (except for the boss fights) for an achievement.

Also: Ceilings of Deus Ex http://imgur.com/a/FDAbV

Also: Michael McCann's soundtrack: https://open.spotify.com/album/4LuVQCHTgUZjuWgUQ7lQbl

Wow, that ceilings link is really cool.

I was also recently listening to that soundtrack. Kind of excited to see this thread, sometimes I think I'm the only person that loves this game.

This game is one of the rare ones that still makes you think. Far too many games, especially in this genre have gone to giving the player exact waypoints of what to do and where to go; totally removing any independent thought from the game and it's story. This genre is overcrowded by the "run here, skip cut scene, now run over here" games.

There were several places during my initial run-through where I found myself having to grab a pen and paper in order to keep track of things like small AI conversations in passing which lead to new side objectives.

Those ceilings. I don’t think I’ve seen any work of visual fiction – game, movie, or otherwise – in the past decade whose art direction felt as genuinely futuristic as Human Revolution did. From amplifying current trends (extrapolating Zaha Hadid into wild, web-covered high-rises) to speculating the black-swans of fashion (a sudden rise of neo-Italian Renaissance couture), mixing in streaks of classic cyberpunk (Hengsha’s city-over-a-city), the game’s aesthetic is immersive in a way not even matched by even its (in some ways superior) predecessor.

The internet joke about the original Deus Ex is that every time it’s mentioned, someone reinstalls it, but I think this just convinced me it’s time to replay Human Revolution.

What I love about the entire game is the use of color. The much maligned gold/black color theme was explained by one of the developers as a theme for when you're around augmented humans.

It looks like in the sequel they're using that even more to indicate the golden age renaissance of augmentation is fading away.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q2kd7F3YFz8

Also McCann is coming back for the score which makes me happy. I still have this soundtrack and listen to it often.

Finally, off the new trailer, anyone see the Megan Reed parallels with the leg augmented guy?

I just finished the game I'd started 2+ years ago, getting Pacifist, Foxiest of the Hounds, and Legend at the same time. Brutally unforgiving, but it really felt like an accomplishment once I was done.

Ah, but did you save Malik on that run through?

I was able to save Malik without killing anybody and (I think) alerting any guards. I had to run around like a maniac with the tazer though. Not fun.

Damn, the OST was so good. I'm glad he's working on the sequel as well.

This is the only story-based game I've played through twice in a row. The second time, I discovered plot elements that I completely missed the first time around.

I am really looking forward to the next one!

Reply on news.ycombinator.com