I was a fan since the first game and the direct prequel by Eidos Montreal undoubtedly returned the series to greatness, after the flawed 2nd game. This sequel was highly anticipated by me and the somewhat flawed technical side of the last entry was fully fixed now. The console version got a notable downgrade from the gorgeous PC version, but the jump in graphical fidelity is still immense. The gameplay and character-building was further perfected here and the previously lame boss battles have been replaced by almost none at all, hm. The soundtrack and sound design remained on point too. The story though, an essential hallmark of the series, took a step down. I overall enjoined it, a side-story about a transhumanist cult was especially great, but I felt that I only scratched the surface for large parts of the narrative. The game is also a bit shorter than expected and story DLC is being sold during the month of release too, sigh. Not the smartest of moves to keep the fans going and the in-game purchases + the random multiplayer are about as pointless as they are harmless. I certainly saw worse in the last gen but i ultimately felt that I was "only" playing a standalone addon to Human Revolution, with a shiny new engine, in the end. 4 years of development are a bit much for this. Fans of the genre + stealth games and the series overall still need to get it but the next entry will need to put more meat on the plate, in terms of narrative and scope. 8,5/10
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residentgrigo26 November 2016
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Amari-Sali5 September 2016Trigger Warning(s): Everything you'd normally expect from an M rated game
Play Through Time: Approximately 48 Hours
Storyline
After around 2 years since the events of Human Evolution, Adam finds himself now working for Interpol as Serif Industries has fallen thanks to what is universally called "The Incident." The historic moment when all Augs became murderous and has since led to distrust of the augmented and high levels of prejudice across the world. But specifically in Prague, where the game primarily takes place, the distrust has reached new levels as a segregated ghetto of a city has been built for the augmented and a train station bombing happens. All of which is blamed on the pro-Aug rights group ARC. Thus leading to Adam to take part in a multitude of missions to investigate the bombing, an incident that happens in Dubai, which serves as the tutorial level, and an investigation into the accusations of ARC being responsible for multiple terrorist attacks.
Review Summary
-Rental-
Highlights
Let me begin by saying, being that I have never been necessarily good at shooters, even on what could be considered Normal difficulty, I struggled. But thankfully the game isn't a straight forward shooter. With the ability to hack, hide, cloak, and other means of avoiding combat, for those of us who don't have the patience to duck, cover, and shoot, or aren't the type who like to run in guns blazing, there are options. In fact, playing a non-lethal game is entirely possible. Granted, it is a bit difficult, but even the final, if not the only boss in the game, can be taken down without firing a bullet. A quite neat option considering video games have come to a point where there is an increased desire to give the player options. Though while most game simply provides dialog choices, which this game offers and to a certain degree makes important, it seems almost revolutionary to offer the ability to simply knock out everyone and press on with your objective.
But I would be remiss if I didn't note how enjoyable both the story and side quests were. Now, I don't believe, even with around 2 days of game play, I found and played every last side quest and found every last item. I did try, but for reasons below I eventually came to a point where I just wanted to finish this game. With that said, be it doing a murder investigation, in which every clue mattered, to convincing people to trust Adam, much less the main plot in which I was led around to investigate ARC and the plans of some of its members, I did ultimately enjoy myself. Though what I especially enjoyed was the hacking mini-game which I almost wish was a mobile game in of itself.
Low Points
I played this game on a Steam controller and, as usual, at this point, the game wasn't necessarily optimized for it. But besides that control issue, perhaps the main problem of this game is as vast as it sometimes seems, you feel so restricted. Though that is the problem of any game which tries to be open world. It has all these buildings, alleyways, and NPCs, but most of it is an illusion, something to be seen but not fully interacted with. But that is a general issue, my specific issue is how the game will have you travel all the way over here, take a train, and continue your journey, only to go back to where you original was. That was annoying as hell and without a quick travel feature, I often found myself more so interested in exploring the sewers or the few buildings I could walk into vs. continuing the story.
But, in general, I wouldn't say there are any real major issues with this game. It did stutter on me sometimes, the load times between locations seemed a bit longer than I would like, and sometimes subtitles didn't show up, but there aren't any major issues.
On The Fence
As many already know, and I mention, part of the game's, for a lack of a better term, atmosphere is about the rights of Augs and this has led to many bringing up the Black Lives Matter movement. To me, I would say the issues Augs are facing more correlates to the plight of Muslims across the world. But that little tidbit is an article I haven't the mind to write.
Overall, perhaps what has me feeling this is a rental is that outside of the option to play non-lethal, and the fun hacking mini-game, Deus Ex: Mankind Divided feels like any other open-ended action/adventure/shooter game. Yes, it tries to be political, but that aspect of the game isn't something strongly done. It is like Square-Enix wanted to use those hot topics for advertisement but not for serious exploration. Hence the rental label for while, I'm sure, DLC will extend many people's play times, this just doesn't have the replay value to really put down $60. -
This game is so bad that it is awesome. First of all the graphics. Very good. The story - pretty much what you would expect from a Deus ex title. But what really sets it apart from other games? The dumb AI. No, I am not kidding, the AI in this game is so dumb, it is awesome. That's what clinched the deal for me. I have been playing for 16 hours now in the city of Praha and haven't even gotten to the main missions yet. I have only just completed the mission to fix my augments and completing that mission gave me the necessary tools to explore almost the entire city. I have spent so much time exploring that I feel as though I have almost covered all of it. And I have done it armed with a pistol and a few grenades. You would be foolish to play this game straight. I have tried all sorts of silly things and the more I discover the better it gets. For example, I went to this arms dealer to sell some of my stuff. Then I explore his own apartment and find some more stuff that I can sell. I promptly go back and sell his own stuff to him. And he buys them back from me without batting an eyelid. Then I killed him because he made a snide remark. The nerve. Somewhere else, I entered a restricted area by mistake. Goons started attacking me and so I ran away to hide in a corner. Luckily there were some cops in the area so they came in, attacked and killed all the goons and called it a day. I then casually scrolled into the restricted area and found awesome loot. There is no limit to the silly stuff you can try out in this game. Taking out the AI is easy enough, you hide in a corner and they come to you in single file as you pick them off one by one. The best part is that the remarks they make as they advance; makes it look like they have it all figured out. And then I take them out. I love this silliness. This game is almost like a parody of the genre and though it tries to take itself seriously I would advise fellow gamers against taking it seriously. Deus ex mankind divided is a fun ride, probably the most fun I have had playing a game in decades. And my friends feel the same way. You should definitely check it out, you will not be disappointed.
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Marta7 June 2021Too many to list, but I'll give it a go. I've spent almost 500 hours playing "Deus Ex: Mankind Divided," and I've still not gotten to the end of its replay value. Every time I do a run-through, I discover new dialogue, different routes to take, new people to talk to, and fresh ways to kill or maim the citizens of Prague, Golem City, or London. It's the ultimate stealth game.
Why play the first "Deus Ex: Human Revolution" or the follow-up "Deus Ex: Mankind Divided," you might ask? The main reason is to get to know Adam Jensen, a video game character who feels like a real person. Over the two games, we are thoroughly integrated into his life and his feelings about the world he inhabits. One of the reasons is the actor who does Adam's voice, Elias Toufexis. No other video game persona has such a warm, human, and real personality, and it's thanks to Toufexis' mega-talented performance and voicework, that I think of Jensen as a real human being when I play the game. I can't stress enough how important this is to the enjoyment I get out of the game. Play it for the fun of stealthily crawling your way through the vents in the complex environment, climbing to the top of a four story building to break into an apartment, or hack security bots remotely so you can open secure vaults and loot the contents, all the while marveling at the buildings and level design as you walk by. But, you also live Jensen's life along with him and you'll be hooked as you try to decide which way his conversations with all the people he interacts with should go. No other games have affected me like HR and MD have. They have truly changed my life and brought great joy to me along the way.
In a game world like this, excellence in all areas is the most important aspect. Another reason to play the game is to marvel at the stellar writing and astonishing game design. This is truly an immersive sim, and both writing and design are top of the class. The story and all it's branches are mesmerizing, and a standout is the Palisade Bank heist that Jensen attempts. Your choice of dialogue and path truly matters as to what happens in the game.
Other characters in the game feel just as real, and their voicework is impressive. My very favorite character after Jensen, is Vaclav Koller, the resident Aug specialist that Jensen has to turn to, now that the LIMB clinics are abandoned. We're introduced to Koller practically the minute the regular gameplay begins, after the intro mission, the credits, and the bombing of the Prague train station, which sets up the storyline for the rest of the game. Koller is a real trip; maniacally devoted to augmentation, he gets jazzed by all the Aug options Jensen has now. Koller's trying to live his augmented life as well as he can in Prague, now that augmented people are being quarantined in Golem City and ostracized by everyone who is not augmented. Koller's extremely funny, but as Jensen probes into Koller's private life more, in an attempt to help him, we find that Jensen "scares the **** out of him," and the same goes for the all-powerful head of the local mob, Radich Nicoladze. Koller is also Radich's Aug specialist, but Koller has to keep this a deep, dark secret because the mob doesn't accept augmented people. Koller's predicament and how Jensen can help him is classic stuff; helping the little guy by dealing with the powerful people that are terrorizing him. Keeping the characters believable and giving them true anxieties and terrors, makes them relatable. I would play an entire game about Koller, he was so enjoyable.
Jim Miller, Jensen's boss at TF29, is voiced by Vernon Wells, who played the ultimate bad guy in "The Road Warrior," and Wells gives a nuanced performance that is equal parts commanding and brusque until near the end, where he admits his failure with regret-tinged voice and dialogue. Miller's emotional turnaround makes the player just as emotional. Chikane, the helo pilot for TF29, the agency where Jensen works now, whose scenes are less than 30 minutes of game time, yet in that time he leaps off the screen as a real individual, with problems in the world of the game, and injuries that have affected his vocation. Voiced by Chimwemwe Miller, his prickly presence in the game is riveting; you remember him long after you're done with the last playthrough.
The only failure in the game is the female protagonist that is undercover in Prague for the Juggernaut Collective, Alex Vega. She is there to serve as a liaison between Jensen and Janus, leader of the Collective, but she just doesn't match up with the other voice actors, and her relationship with Jensen is not believable. I would much rather have had Faridah Malik, from HR, in that role. She and Jensen had a real friendship that you could believe in, which the voice actor, Paula Jean Hixon, made possible.
In fact, no one from the first game shows up in "Mankind Divided" during normal game play, except David Sarif, founder of Sarif Industries and Jensen's former employer. Unfortunately, the developers used another voice actor for him, and it just isn't the same. The original voice actor, Steven Shellen, brought Sarif to life in all his "I'm the boss" glory, and he's missed here.
I was despairing that we would get no real interaction with anyone from the first game. The first DLC (called Jensen's Stories in the game menu) was "Desperate Measures," a straightforward caper to find out why a bombing is being covered up. I had absolutely loved every single conversation between Jensen and Francis Pritchard, Sarif's IT head in "Human Revolution"; their back and forth bickering was a major source of comedy in the game. Thankfully, the second DLC released for MD, "System Rift," is all about Pritchard and his quest for Jensen's help to break into the most highly secure server system in the world. Their conversations were the highlight of the DLC, which was phenomenal in its own right. The third and last DLC, "A Criminal Past," is another great piece of game design and writing, where Jensen must try to contact a co-worker who is deep undercover in a federal Aug prison.
"Human Revolution" has just as much right to the title of ultimate stealth game, but the two games are a bit different. HR seems set in amber now...it's a jewel that never changes. I've spent over 600 hours playing HR, and have pretty much found every secret path, and each time I play it it's like visiting an old friend. "Mankind Divided" has a different feel, like I'll find something new at any point in the game. It's the design that makes it feel this fresh. You may turn a corner you've been down many times, and still not recognize the terrain. It's this quality that makes MD so special.
"Mankind Divided" at top graphic settings and on a 4K monitor, looks amazing. You can see every wrinkle in the characters faces, and the expressions mimic real human expressions. Locations look as good as some real photos, and it's just an amazing visual experience.
Gameplay is quite a bit more advanced from "Human Revolution." Many of the repeated bodily movements that were rather annoying in HR have been removed from MD, where people seem to move as real people should. The chaos of Golem City is masterfully realized, and there are dozens of places to try to get to in each area, with large maps that just beg to be explored. The new augs are fun, with Jensen being able to turn off TVs, drones, turrets, and any other electronic device remotely. In short, "Mankind Divided" sparkles in every way.
Finally, I would say to everyone, just buy the game and play it. It's a wonderful, immersive experience that keeps on giving through every single replay. -
chiranjeev-arora5 September 2016*******WARNING*******
Why warning you must wondering, reasons 1. Lack of Sleep 2. I forgot my family 3. at times i forgot to breathe too
That's right ... BEST GAME EVER .. PERIOD!!
Jenson is back, and with more fire power.
Perfect story, great graphics, it was as good as a movie. Highly recommend.
The only down side i felt, the 1st mission was bit boring but later it was heaven.
Well i have more to write, sorry need to go back and play. Guys buy this game. -
mabrurbin18 March 2023This is a extremely extraordinary fantastic mindblowing game sir I love deus ex mankind divided in this chapter and also this first person scifi shooter game is awsome and but there is mistek in janus story shadow i think deus ex 5 should start with shadow story that will be not end it will be more and more missons and adam jensen and get old and more action and get a female first person player there will be end but story have a cinematic trailer it will so much attractive to a player everyone will love it so sir please remake your deus ex game project again it will succeed with elias toufxeis.
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This game is awesome, from the bad ass augmented weapons your character has installed in his body to the stealth, the weapon modding, the cool inventory system, and the incredibly large lore/perfect length main storyline. you can't stop until you find out what happens next. I loved the location, the theme, the soundtrack, the characters it's really enjoyable. Perhaps not perfect but definitely worth playing and experiencing it's story.
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cryerswood13 June 2022Took a while to get to this and gotta say I'm pleasantly suprised. The game has issues mostly being related to the convoluted and mediocre story, the weak gunplay and uslessness of credits, but outside of that this is a really solid stealth sandbox game.
There are so many routes and options to approach missions and a great sense of accomplishment and progression when you find a hidden vent or manage to slip away just in time.
The upgrades are all really fun and feel useful and honestly beat Cyberpunk 2077's augments in almost every aspect, all though levelling can feel a little slow at times.
Honestly prefer this too the mess Cyberpunk is, and if you're looking for a more polished and focused Cyberpunk experience you honestly can't go wrong with this even with it's flaws. -
PenetratorGod23 October 2023The main story of Mankind Divided begins in 2029, two years after the events of the previous game Human Revolution. After the catastrophe with the bio-chips that cause enhanced humans to attack everyone, societies have split into pro- and anti-enhanced humans. The former groups began to congregate in ghettos where crime increased and the police became accustomed to abusing their powers. In an atmosphere of widespread social unrest, terrorist organizations claiming to fight for equal rights for empowered people began to emerge.
In the game we again take on the role of Adam Jensen. The heavily augmented hero works for Interpol as part of the anti-terrorist group Task Force 29, and also collaborates with a group of hackers called the Juggernaut Collective. Jensen's ultimate goal is to solve the mystery of the sinister Illuminati. In subsequent missions, the two allies often have conflicting goals, forcing the player to play a game in which dangerous decisions will be made that will affect the fate of all humanity. Similar to previous games in the series, Mankind Divided gameplay is non-linear and offers a variety of approaches.
The developers allow players to play in two main core ways: One is focused on action and open combat, while the other is sneaking, infiltration and silent elimination of our enemies. Enemies are now much more dangerous thanks to improved AI and the ability to work in groups. Rarely do we see a situation where the Guardians are on their own. They act in pairs against Jensen, even when patrolling nooks and crannies. On top of that, the developers have made sure that our opponents are significantly more diverse, and so we'll face opponents who use power-ups and exoskeletons as well as mechs. Much attention has been paid to improving the fighting segments against powerful enemies. During battles can now take place in a variety of ways, including sneak surprise attacks, full frontal attacks or a combination of both.
Adam Jensen has also gained a number of completely new skills. The upgrades in Mankind Divided are about twice as many as in Human Revolution. The hero can now remotely hack turrets, robots and cameras, and can also almost instantly leap meters upwards over short distances. The knife on his forearm can be used for direct melee attacks or for throwing smaller projectiles. There's also a power-up that incapacitates our enemies with electricity. As we progress, we unlock access to new skills that can be used during combat, sneaking, or both. But using them drains our energy reserves. Although they partially regenerate themselves when Jensen doesn't use his enhancements, their full regeneration requires special bio-cells.
Depending on our choices, the game's story can take unexpected turns in the long run. For example: In the beginning we encounter some criminals and if we choose to kill them you can be subjected to their revenge later on. Not everything is limited to this, though. The events of Mankind Divided are also influenced by the conversations we have with other characters, which allows us to resolve some conflicts only through diplomacy. This part of your gameplay becomes more detailed when you get the implant CASIE, a perk that analyzes the psychological state of the NPC during a conversation.
Even though Mankind Divided has great improvements compared to Human Revolution, it was much less liked and criticized by players than Mankind Divided. While the gameplay is very enjoyable, it has to be admitted that the ending is extremely weak. The game offers an average of 25 hours of gameplay with all the side content and if you don't do the side interactions, it will be very short. Mankind Dived has the technical infrastructure to be a standalone game.
But it also has a rather abrupt and uninspiring finale, more like the first episode of a game as the main story. This was one of the biggest reasons why it received negative reviews. Because according to many people, Adam Jensen's story was already completed in the previous game. The second game just left more unanswered questions and ended without tying it up. Regardless, it was one of the best series I've ever played and I'm looking forward to Eidos Montreal wrapping up Adam Jensen's unfinished story with a satisfying finale in the years to come. -
yoshi-whitby18 June 2018I was really enjoying this game. Honestly I was. A sci-fi RPG set in a dark future, with cyborgs, adventure and guns. What's not to love right? I was having an 8/10 or higher level of fun while playing it. But then I hit about 20% og the way into the game, and realized I had been robbed. I got this game years after release, and was able to pick it up in a supermarket for the low price of £10, and I still feel totally, UTTERLY ripped off. I got to about 20% of the way into the game, to discover the credits rolling. "no" I thought to myself "there's... there's no way that's the end right? already? I mean... I only just started it? right?" I was utterly appealed at how short this game was. It's not a full release, its like an extended demo, its like A short spin-off game. I loved the world of Deus Ex, but if this is the length the games are, I'll not bother to play another again. It couldn't have been more that 8-10 hours of play, surely? For the amount of actual content, I would say this should be priced at like £4.99 brand new or something, as a short game to download on PSN. I feel stolen from that I paid so much for such a short game. I expected this to the be the end of the first act of five, not the end of the whole game. Outrageously short.