Deus Ex: Human Evolution

[Xamonas Chegwé]

Anyone played/playing this? I remember the original which was fucking ace. I would love to hear that this game is similarly groundbreaking and OSSUM!

[Audley Strange]

I'm playing it and quite enjoying it. The AI can be easily exploited which is disappointing, the graphics are a bit dated and the voice acting is fucking atrocious, but for all that it's still quite fun. It breaks no more ground than the original one but if you dug the original you may well enjoy this.

[Rum]

I'm playing the PC version and I have to say I'm disappointed, especially after all the hype. You expect better graphics on a high end PC than a console and they haven't bothered with textures or shading - it looks like the Sims. I could put up with that except the AI as mentioned above is crap. You can camp behind a door and wait for 'guards' to stupidly mill around just outside and pick them off one at a time. The main character's voice is an obvious copy or attempt to sound like a monotone Clint Eastwood too.

The plotting and missions are well executed though the 'dodge 'em up' approach gets tedious.

I get PC gamer on subscription and they have been bigging this up for over a year on the basis that the original is more or less the best PC game ever. I think they have egg on their faces. Very disappointing.

[Animavore]

Isn't it Human Revolution?

[Rum]

Isn't it Human Revolution?

Yes it is! Missed that!

[Audley Strange]

I've reappraised this after completion and the conclusion I've come to is that this game would have been astonishing at the beginning of this console cycle. But it doesn't do anything that things like Arkham Asylum and other sneak-em-ups have done with more flair more recently.

[Twoflower]

Squid already beat it. He thought it was really good. I enjoyed watching him play it as well.

[Xamonas Chegwé]

I've read reviews that claim you can get replay out of it by playing completely different tactics - sneak and stab v shoot everything in sight v talk your way out of trouble, etc.

I also heard that your style of play affects the plot and the trophies you can win.

Any info on that?

Either way, I will be getting a copy next time I see it in the nearly new shelves!

[Twoflower]

I've read reviews that claim you can get replay out of it by playing completely different tactics - sneak and stab v shoot everything in sight v talk your way out of trouble, etc.

I also heard that your style of play affects the plot and the trophies you can win.

Any info on that?

Either way, I will be getting a copy next time I see it in the nearly new shelves!

Squid was trying to play it without being seen and also not killing anyone in order to get different trophies.

[Marky]

I've played me some of this game recently and it's fun, but not as fun as the original game. The maps are a lot smaller than the first game, seems like a common problem these days, the better the graphics get, the smaller the playable areas are. The multiple paths are still around from the original game, but the fact that the game is very easy means that you find yourself just going through one route and then turning back to try the other paths and see what you've missed. The upgrades are so easy to come by and there are so many of them that you don't really have to specialise in a single area any more, you can just plough points into everything and be ready for every scenario. Also, there are no skills for you to master, so you can fire any weapon like a pro right from the off. There are forced combat sections as well, mostly against 'boss' characters. You can take them out as easily with a pistol and rifle as you can a tranquiliser rifle and stun gun, but the only option is to kill them dead regardless of which method you use.

It has some of the more fun elements of the older game, but on the most part, it feels like a dumbed down shadow of the original. Apart from the graphics, I can't really think of anything that has changed for the better. All melee combat has been replaced by a one click takedown system. Regenerating heath. A stealth system that makes things far too easy to avoid or eliminate silently. No more weapon/hacking/athletic skills. That's not to say it's bad, but it really doesn't compare to the depth first game. At least it isn't Invisible War.

[Rum]

I found that it was just more of the same if one played it as a shooter - OK but nothing special. If you play it in stealth mode it is much more fun. Go for the stealth augmentations - the 'persuade people' ones are ace (can't remember what they are called).

You get three or four times the XP if you take someone down without killing them. Worth t just for that, though you can't always do it.