Deus Ex 2

[J-Man]

A quick search revealed nothing on the conundrum that is Deus Ex 2! So, in true fanboy fashion, I'm starting a new thread on it.

Everyone kinda dislikes it, but if it didn't have those first two words in the title, everybody would love it. The first Deus Ex had massive levels, Invisible War's are tiny. The first Deus Ex also had a shitload of weapons and ammo, Invisible War has "universal ammo" and less than ten weapons.

However, if you stop comparing and focus on the game itself, it turns out to be pretty decent. The essence of Deus Ex is still there; infiltrating a large area using the strategy of your choice, it's just the fact it was created solely for consoles (rather than PC, which the first was made for), so to reduce loading times they made the levels smaller and put less detail in.

However, there is a physics engine and one of the highlights of the game for me was killing a soldier by repeatedly throwing a crate at him when my pistol was out of ammo.

Please discuss.

 

[BlindTom]

I never played the original, but having played the second it seems everything I expected it to be was in fact what it used to be... P'raps a download of the original is in order....

 

[beddo]

I'm with you, I think Deus Ex 2 was quite good but I didn't get very far.

I never really played the first one so I don't have much in way of comparison. I thought Deus Ex 2 was still quite complex and certainly had a better idea of how to pull off branching story-lines than Fable 2.

 

[J-Man]

I never played the original, but having played the second it seems everything I expected it to be was in fact what it used to be... P'raps a download of the original is in order....

It's butt ugly these days, but if you can get past that it is without doubt the best RPG ever made, and probably the best game ever made also.

 

[Dommyboy]

I never played the original, but having played the second it seems everything I expected it to be was in fact what it used to be... P'raps a download of the original is in order....

It's butt ugly these days, but if you can get past that it is without doubt the best RPG ever made, and probably the best game ever made also.

There are many high-res graphical patches and downloads available that make the game look some what current-gen.

 

[J-Man]

I never played the original, but having played the second it seems everything I expected it to be was in fact what it used to be... P'raps a download of the original is in order....

It's butt ugly these days, but if you can get past that it is without doubt the best RPG ever made, and probably the best game ever made also.

There are many high-res graphical patches and downloads available that make the game look some what current-gen.

I've only found the HDTP mod, and that isn't even out yet.

 

[vede]

I played Invisible War for my first time, and was disgusted. Then about a year later, I decided to play it again, and figured out that it's a great game, but a terrible Deus Ex game. So I played it for a long time, right up until I was actually directly

Spoiler

looking for JC Denton in Antarctica

when it was just impossible to see it as a non-Deus Ex game, and stopped playing it.

But I'm very, very much looking forward to what Eidos Montreal can come up with for Deus Ex 3.

 

[Meatstorm]

i haven't played deus ex 2, but the first one was pure genious

 

[space_oddity]

i haven't played deus ex 2, but the first one was pure genious

Likewise. I have big hopes for 3.

 

[Dr. Crowbar]

The story and the rpg element was incredible. But the best part was undoubtedly visiting Joseph Manderleys office and repeatedly throwing the american flag at him while he shouted at you to stop it.

 

[Ionami]

I never played the original, but having played the second it seems everything I expected it to be was in fact what it used to be... P'raps a download of the original is in order....

It's butt ugly these days, but if you can get past that it is without doubt the best RPG ever made, and probably the best game ever made also.

Now, now.... let's not get carried away. It was plagued with bugs. Don't get me wrong I loved it too, but it's nowhere near being the "best" in any category. Besides, that kinda stuff is always subjective anyways.

 

[Washboard]

Deus ex 2 was rubbish in comparison to the origional. the immersion was totally ruined by having to load a new area every 15 secs, and the story wasent as compelling... it made all the same mistakes as Theif: Deadly shadows... and some new ones as well

 

[Charlie-two-zero]

I played original and 2. I quite enjoyed the second one once I stopped comparing it to first one. As a "casual" rpg/shooter it's quite a fun little fling. The game itself however was not difficult, I always I found I had way too much ammo etc...

But as for gameplay and story, I found the Deus Ex 2 pretty entertaining. Bit of a cash in, because it really WASN'T deus ex 2. It was "generic action RPG, cashing in on previous title"... erm... 2. Sure it had a lot of tie ins and the use of implants but I think it picked up way too much baggage by being called Deus Ex 2.

 

[searanox]

I hate it. It completely forgoes what made the original excellent (open-ended gameplay inside a controlled but non-linear world, interesting and memorable characters and storyline, meaningful character customisation) in favour of over-simplified role-playing elements, poorly-done gunplay, stilted and lifeless character interaction, and a truly boring and drab aesthetic. It had so much promise, and I wish that the other half of the development team had won out, because if they had we might have gotten a worthy successor to the original game, or at the very least something that isn't a chore to play.

 

[Charlie-two-zero]

I dunno. Picking up level 3 occular implants that could see through walls, coupled with the gun that could shoot through walls... by the end of the game you get that happy place where you just stand where you are inserted into the map, turn on your implants then shoot everyone.

Well, all but one, then go collect everything through the map, then shoot the last dude, and hey presto you won Easier game play than Oblivion at level 30.

edit: talking about DE2 of course.
full disclosure: I liked DE2

 

[Eagle Est1986]

Now, now.... let's not get carried away. It was plagued with bugs. Don't get me wrong I loved it too, but it's nowhere near being the "best" in any category. Besides, that kinda stuff is always subjective anyways.

It's my own personal best game of all time, surely that counts?
I did love the original, I think I was on my 5th play-through before I even realised that I could save Paul, it was all the little choices like that which made it so good in my eyes.

2 was no where near as good, it lost the atmosphere and excellent story telling of the first although I did sort of like the glass disolving bullets.
Can't wait for 3, gonna have to try my hardest to ignore it and not get swept up in the hype.

 

[Ionami]

Now, now.... let's not get carried away. It was plagued with bugs. Don't get me wrong I loved it too, but it's nowhere near being the "best" in any category. Besides, that kinda stuff is always subjective anyways.

It's my own personal best game of all time, surely that counts?

Right. That's why I said that kind of stuff is subjective.

 

[Nivag the Owl]

I'd totally play um, what did you say Deus Ex 2 without the first two words? I'd totally play 2. I loved Deus Ex but I hadn't actually heard there was a second one until someone complained about it on here. Actually, I think it was the ZP referance to it. But on topic, I try my hardest to forget that it's a part of a series and just play it for what it is, so I think you're right. It's probably an amazing game if you stop caring that it's a sequal.

 

[searanox]

Can't wait for 3, gonna have to try my hardest to ignore it and not get swept up in the hype.

I am incredibly afraid for Deus Ex 3. The art style is good and very faithful to the original game while still appearing original, and the premise of the setting and story we have learned so far is also promising, if somewhat predictable. What I am really concerned about is the addition of things like cover systems, regenerating health (explained away by nano-bots, but the game is a prequel to the first two... uh, technological regression?) and a general emphasis on action and stealth... not that action and stealth are bad, but we have seen nothing of the character interaction in the game, and I'd like to be able to get through the game without killing a single person, as well as be able to talk my way out of most situations.

I'm also afraid that the console development will kill a lot of the complexity. One of the best features of the original Deus Ex is in the redundancy of a lot of the abilities - it doesn't matter if you have three ways to get more effective underwater breathing, what matters is that they all have their pros and cons and can all stack up if you really want to be an amazing swimmer. They tried to get rid of redundant abilities and complexity in the inventory management etc. for the sequel, and that wound up basically destroying half of the gameplay depth. Furthermore, the original Deus Ex is well-known for its strong exploration element, as well as its inclusion of vertical space to scale (the ability to literally jump dozens of feet in the air to climb up skyscrapers is something that I have still not seen in another game to this date). The level design is so brilliant because for any given mission objective, you are given a location to reach and then dropped into the world, and it's up to you how to get there, whether that be by sneaking through ventilation shafts or blowing down the door and a bunch of patrolling guards. I have a suspicion that Deus Ex 3 will be much more rooted in shooting and combat elements, and that its "open-ended world" will really consist of a bunch of branching linear pathways. This isn't based on paranoia, mind you, but by comments made by the developers in interviews and on the official forums. After they introduced cover systems and regenerating health, I pretty much said "fuck it" and gave up most of my hope.