First Deus Ex 3 Details

JCDenton

I must say; I'm still not convinced; but, the concept art alone gives me hope that it's sufficiently different to Invisible War to make it a game I'll certainly be keeping an eye on.
(As if I wasn't going to anyway!)


http://www.shacknews.com/onearticle.x/55118

• It's a prequel set in 2027.
• "The art direction is a beautiful meld of the renaissance and cyberpunk (tying into the game's Leonardo Da Vinci motif)."
• "A 'powerful, layered' plot is promised for the third game."
• "You're cast as average joe Adam Jensen, who works as a private security officer at a technology lab specialising in biomechanical augmentations."
• "One day the path of his life is unexpectedly altered as a team of black ops commandos break into his company's HQ...a mass slaughter ensues and the conspiracy begins."
• "Stealth will now rely on a cover system rather than shadows, and damage will be dealt with by a very Call of Duty-style auto-heal."
• "Augmentations have been bumped up and sound fantastic. 20 have been promised for the final game, ranging from 'bungee jump' tentacles that shoot from your back and anchor to a wall when you jump off a building, and the ability to punch through walls to grab enemies in neighbouring rooms."
• "Eidos Montreal says it's more than aware of fan reaction to controversial second game, Invisible War, and promises mistakes, such as limiting ammo types to just one, won't be repeated."
• "You'll still garner experience points as you progress through the game. You'll then either choose to plug them into your self through your augmentations or your weaponry."

Screenshots:

http://www.gametrailers.com/player/usermovies/274646.html

kaimera

No to the cover system, no the health regen are my first thoughts.

Deus Ex was never a fps so these fps conventions aren't required.

I must get back playing the original again...wonder will my crappy work laptop support it!

Ri_Nollaig

kaimera wrote: »

No to the cover system, no the health regen are my first thoughts.

Deus Ex was never a fps so these fps conventions aren't required.

I must get back playing the original again...wonder will my crappy work laptop support it!

it would want to be really crap to not support it

im still looking forward to it, as deus ex1 is one of my favourite games of all time, even if deus ex 2 was sh.ite...

thelordofcheese

There never was a Deus Ex 2. It never happened.

JCDenton

Is the health regen system really all that bad?

Yes; I understand that it's become a convention in the FPS genre lately, but technically the original Deus Ex did indeed have a health regen system also; even if it wasn't automatic.

And for anyone who instantly rejects the bungee-jumping tentacle idea; don't forget that the original game had a protagonist who could secrete billions of nanites from his body and have them form into a flying robot drone!

All I'm saying is that it looks like a step back in the right direction again after Invisible War, even if it is a little too soon to judge the game based on promises and artwork.

Shiminay

I'm gonna play the wait and see card on this one...

Glad to see someone's doing something with this franchise though.

Creamy Goodness

yup going to be another deus ex ruined by being dumbed down for consoles.

Maximilian

I love the art style. Hope they don't screw the game up.

pixelburp

As people have mentioned, the art style is excellent & is something genuinely different in a world full of "Gears" clones. Mixing renaissance with nano-tech? Genius. This in itself suggests that the dev team have a good eye on what makes the Deus Ex world tick under the surface. There always has been something terribly "old world" about the setting; from the plague to the illuminati to the machinations of the various figures, DeMedeci style, the original game set itself in yesteryear, so to speak. Even something as trivial as the civilian clothing shows a real relish in merging the two periods. LOVE IT.

Like others though, I have concerns about the gameplay. Deus Ex 2 was, and still is, total muck. Were it not for the name, the game would have disappeared into obscurity years ago. It deserves it's notoriety, not so much for the qualities of the game in itself, but for the sheer balls-up of a great franchise by ditching core aspects of the original.

In terms of the two big controversies (the cover and health systems); well, I can forgive the latter - after all, we're talking about humans infused with nanobots, it stands to reason someone could regenerate from wounds thanks to them - the former I have a bigger problem with. Even the second game understood that twilight & shadow were a core part of the stealth. So skulking in the shadows should still be part of that mechanic. I don't mind so much the fact weapons will be standard FPS based as Deus Ex 1's one crap aspect was being barely able to hold a pistol, despite being a trained agent.

I suppose I can divide my reaction into two neat aspects:

• For the Art Style, I am genuinely intrigued and excited
• For the Gameplay, I am cautious with a large helping of "wait and see".

Soby

Sigh where are the good ole days gone with games like deus ex that have gaming time longer than a day...one of my favorite games of all time..They should nearly stick as close to that as possible and dont copy a thing off IW
still this is good to hear
"Eidos Montreal says it's more than aware of fan reaction to controversial second game, Invisible War, and promises mistakes, such as limiting ammo types to just one, won't be repeated."

thelordofcheese

Soby wrote: »

still this is good to hear
"Eidos Montreal says it's more than aware of fan reaction to controversial second game, Invisible War, and promises mistakes, such as limiting ammo types to just one, won't be repeated."

yes, this then frees them up to make a whole new set of equally awful mistakes.

Soby

thelordofcheese wrote: »

yes, this then frees them up to make a whole new set of equally awful mistakes.

Sadly true i suppose:(

pixelburp

Soby wrote: »

Sigh where are the good ole days gone with games like deus ex that have gaming time longer than a day...one of my favorite games of all time..They should nearly stick as close to that as possible and dont copy a thing off IW
still this is good to hear
"Eidos Montreal says it's more than aware of fan reaction to controversial second game, Invisible War, and promises mistakes, such as limiting ammo types to just one, won't be repeated."

The simple reason why games don't last as long as they used to is because they have become exponentially more expensive & complicated to create. When you consider the advancement of technologies & platforms that are required to create a game, it's can't be any surprise that the final product can have a dearth of longevity.

I mean Deus Ex was built off the original Unreal Tournament engine; compare that with the complexity of the latest build of that same engine. There's simply no way the same amount of content could be created for the same amount of money & time.

So don't expect Deus Ex 3 to be any more than 15 hours playthrough. Max. Games like Oblivion are the exceptions that prove the rule regrettably.

Shiminay

Yet we still pay the same for games in the shop...

pixelburp

Kharn wrote: »

Yet we still pay the same for games in the shop...

True, but it might explain why so many dev houses are collapsing, global economy notwithstanding. The cost to produce a game increases, while the cost of the final product stays the same (with the strong arguement that it should really drop).

Anyway, that's kinda off topic.

JCDenton

A certain amount of the artwork suggests to me that the dev team has drawn inspiration from original concepts for Gunther Hermann in DX1?

http://www.planetdeusex.com/images/image.asp?/dx1/files/art/dxart11.jpg

To me; this nicely leads us to the world of the first game, by showing the progression; but I just hope that they don't create a nightmare of anachronisms by making technology more advanced in Deus Ex 3, than it is in Deus Ex 1.

Also; the fact that this is now a prequel, constrains the "multiple endings" scenario to a certain degree.

Certainly, it's far too soon to speculate on story elements; but based on the fact that this is set 25 years before the original; what are the odds we'll see the genesis of Paul Denton in Deus Ex 3?

pixelburp

It's almost guaranteed Paul Denton will appear; as for the multiple endings, I think it's still possible. They'll likely be personal endings for your character (becomes good / evil / key person in the illuminati etc), rather than the world-changing ones we saw in 1 & 2.

JCDenton

Getting a little nerdy here; but looking at the image on this link:

http://forums.eidosgames.com/showthread.php?t=80708&page=3

"Stealth is also receiving a major revamp and will now utilise cover rather than shadow as its primary function, with a Metal Gear Solid-style cone of vision mechanic (available only though augmentation) used to ascertain an enemy's field of view.

Hacking is another area receiving a makeover, taking the form of an RTS-style mini game in which you vie with a mainframe for the control of nodes, while simultaneously..."

The stealth system doesn't sound too bad, but I'm struck by the thought that the developers might be thinking - "Hey, Bioshock was a succesful game; let's make a Deus Ex version of that!".

Is that a good thing, or a bad thing?

Ivan

Thats a bad thing.

As decent as Bioshock was, it wasnt a patch on System Shock 2 or Deus Ex.
Fundamentally, Deus Ex wasnt a game trying to be fun, it was a game trying to encapsulate you into its game world and thats why it worked. Deus Ex 2, which clearly never existed, would have suffered because it would try to A) Dumb it down for console gameplay and recreate aspects of the first game that werent what made it so enjoyable in the first place.

While there is a lot of room to make a bad Deus Ex 3, it cant be much worse than Deus Ex 2, would have been... were it ever made...

pixelburp

It looks like it'll mimic Bioshock's strong visual aesthetic; but if it's trying to copy the dumbed-down, console oriented gameplay, we're on to a loser here folks.

Maximilian

I would like to take this opportunity to say that yes, indeed Deus Ex 2 did exist and I played it.

NunianVonFuch

It's Deus Ex 3. Is anybody here who played the original honestly not excited its getting a sequel after all these years? Its going to be worth a play at least. Hopefully it comes out on console too or I get a new laptop as a gift. Either one works for me!

pixelburp

NunianVonFuch wrote: »

It's Deus Ex 3. Is anybody here who played the original honestly not excited its getting a sequel after all these years? Its going to be worth a play at least. Hopefully it comes out on console too or I get a new laptop as a gift. Either one works for me!

Dude.

Deus Ex 2. 'Nuff said.
Anyone who played the original has been burned horribly already. We are a cautious bunch at the news of a third game. The proof of the pudding will be in the nano-augmentated eating.

JCDenton

pixelburp wrote: »

Dude.

Deus Ex 2. 'Nuff said.
Anyone who played the original has been burned horribly already. We are a cautious bunch at the news of a third game. The proof of the pudding will be in the nano-augmentated eating.

Standing on the footpath of a tree-lined road in the middle of the summer, the sun creates shadows beneath the trees.
A woman walks down the footpath, and says hello as she passes; but; I was standing in the shadows? How is it possible that she’s seen me?

Because she has eyes and I’m clearly visible to any human with any semblance of a sense of sight!

As such; I try next time to stay hidden, by standing behind a tree.
The next passer-by strolls onwards. Clearly he hasn’t spotted my handsome visage at the other side; grinning in delight at my newfound ninja abilities.


This, is a real life application of a “cover-system” as opposed to a “shadow/stealth” system.


What am I trying to say?

“Rose-tinted glasses” are all well and good; but the original Deus Ex also had it’s flaws too. As do many excellent games.
Look at the any review for the original game, and poor AI will no doubt jump out at you first. (i.e. Shooting someone in the head, and then stepping 2 feet to the left and crouching in the shadows while they unsuccessfully searched for you).

Would the above stupidity be avoided by scrapping some of the “Golden Rules” of the Deus Ex Universe?
1. Thou shalt only conduct your secret agent activities at night
2. Following Rule 1, you will always have a shadow to stand in
3…..


I’m sure many will disagree; but I didn’t “hate” Invisible War.

Imagine that IW was “more of the same”, akin to an add-on pack.

Would we now be wishing the exact opposite for this prequel, and hoping for new innovations? (maybe even “universal ammo”?)

ressem

Agree with JP on that Deus Ex 2 wasn't completely dreadful.

I was ready to throw it in the small "never finished" pile, until I found that the melee stuff worked OK in and only in Realistic Difficulty, so the stealthly Thief type blackjacking would work.

But the Xbox memory restrictions meant that the levels had to be tiny. Was there anyone that got to Liberty Island in DX2 and didn't think that it was as though they had taken the original map, cut it to a quarter of the original and removed anything more complicated than a cube. The closest thing you had to cover in the terrain was a triangular hill.

That at least should be solved in the new game.

mewso

pfff it'll just be Fallout 3 with Cyborgs.

mewso

By the way this preview is all in the current PC Zone on the shelves now.

DancingOmelette

kaimera wrote: »

No to the cover system, no the health regen are my first thoughts.

The cover system is a much more realistic approach to stealth than shadows - as explained by JC. Health regeneration does suggest a more action-oriented game, but I expect it'll be perfectly possible to play it stealthily if you wish, as with the original - in which case I can't see how health regen would negatively affect your experience.

Deus Ex was never a fps so these fps conventions aren't required.

Considering it was a first person game with guns, in what way was it not an FPS? Sure, it was more than most FPSs are, but that doesn't mean it wasn't one.

I'm cautiously optimistic that this could be a good game, and I don't think people should get so worked up about revelations of game mechanics - the cover system and health regen are not what will make or break the game in the end, after all.

Jazzy

no to regen.
no to "cover system"
no to prequel

i god damn hate prequels
i actually liked deus ex 2. not nearly as good as #1 but i still enjoyed it

4Xcut

Although 2 was no where near as good as 1, I still felt it was a good game. It certainly had a better stoy than a lot of games released at the time. If youmanaged to get passed the combat issue, it was actually ok.

The 3rd one is a huge gamble for them as it will be this one that decides which one of the forst 2 will be remembered more. Kind of like a best 2 out of 3 in my opinion.

uberpixie

Jazzy wrote: »

no to regen.
no to "cover system"
no to prequel

i god damn hate prequels
i actually liked deus ex 2. not nearly as good as #1 but i still enjoyed it

No offence but: a cover system done properly is fine for stealth....

Unless you like the CIA levels in the first splinter cell where were unrealistic shadows everywhere, hell in a perfectly straight well lit hall there were shadows all over the place :rolleyes:.

A shadow and sound stealth system suited The Thief series as it takes place in a medieval world where there isn't much lighting.

In fancy futurisitc world with lights all over the place no so much...

Again the emphasis is a cover system done PROPERLY.

Hey I'm sure the devs can make the 3rd game stay true to the original: you can start out as some super secret ninja cyborg who even though highly trained and working for an elite organisation, is still pretty crap at shooting with any sort of gun (i.e. can't hit a cow in the arse with a banjo) and can barely beat someone in the back on the head with a baton or sneak for that matter.

Don't worry I am sure all puzzles can still be solved as in the first game by hacking a pc/gun turrets or getting the right key card. Or managing to break into the ultra secure top secret base through the curiously unguarded man sized air ventilation shafts...

And I'm sure all the weapons will still be crap like the first game as well.

Would that make all the fanbois happy?:D

Slutmonkey57b

Oooooh contravertial.

Partly right... but contravertial.

Have just broken out Deus Ex again.
It's wonderful. Just perfect.

I am going to go right ahead and assume that 3 is going to be totally ****, and that way I won't have to worry about it disappointing me. Of course, I've barely upgraded since HL2 so I won't be playing it even if I wanted to.

mewso

You know if a developer announced it was redoing the original in a current engine I'd be more excited. I would love to play it in a modern graphics engine. I wouldn't consider it sacrilege just a perfect homage. Classics like that should be updated every 5 years

Slash/ED

Deus Ex 2 was only guilty of not being as good as the first. As a stand alone game, if you never played the original and only ever played IW you'd probably think it was a good game. I actually enjoyed it, no Deus Ex, but still good.

Kiith

It had some major issues though, and the levels were ridiculously small. I guess i was guilty of comparing it to the first one. I blamed it more on consoles though. Was the first time i ever agreed with someone saying that the game had been "xboxed".

pixelburp

I agree about the remake; if ever a game cried out for a tarting up of the graphics (Which quickly became out of date) & tightening of the AI and other major bugs, it's Deus Ex 1. I know there is a mod crew out there that was trying to upgrade the game's engine (it's here, though as you can see, it's fairly dead atm), but a proper development house could bring something interesting.

pixelburp

For those of you interested in keeping tabs on this game, some details came out through the translation of a Czech preview. There's nothing earth shattering really, unless you consider the inclusion of a global conspiracy revelatory. In which case, you really weren't paying attention the first time around

-the world is ruled by megacorporations, more powerful than national governments. The conspiracy groups are setting these corporations against each other.

-the black ops slaughter the research division of the corporation Adam works at. The questions who and why is behind the attack are answered relatively soon into the game, however more serious questions arise with the answers.

-You will be regularly visiting Adam's apartment with many reminiscences of his past like photos and a diary

-The game takes place in five well-known metropoleis, mentioned were Shanghai, Detroit and Montreal

-Women play a large role in the game, some of them you've known for a long time, others will try to seduce or betray you, depending on your previous actions

-Bosses are included, their difficulty also depending on your previous actions

-The secret societies are just puppets for a shadowy figure who wants to take control over all of the market, society, and the human evolution.

-The events of the game will lead to the establishment of UNATCO

-The main villain is to be 'similiar' to Jensen

-a rescue mission across the globe later in the game

-squad based combat AI with a visually identifiable squad leader

Translation:
http://forums.eidosgames.com/showthread.php?t=85713

Czech Article (with screenshots):
http://hratelne.centrum.cz/preview/clanek.phtml?id=623266

Jazzy

squad based combat. lame

hooray for bosses tho

pixelburp

Jazzy wrote: »

squad based combat. lame

hooray for bosses tho

It seems by "Squad based combat AI", they mean literally just that; AI npcs that orientate via a leader, who when take out leaves the squad in dissaray (rather than meaning you command a squad):

http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/deus-ex-3-wants-bioshock-atmosphere

JCDenton

pixelburp wrote: »

-The events of the game will lead to the establishment of UNATCO

Meaning -

A finale resulting in the destruction of the Statue of Liberty

?

I must say; I'm still cautiously optimistic about this.

I'm not sure what that point about women is supposed to mean though? Is that a reflection on the developers, or an answer to a question asked by the Czech gaming magazine?

pixelburp

JCDenton wrote: »

Meaning -

A finale resulting in the destruction of the Statue of Liberty

?

I must say; I'm still cautiously optimistic about this.

I'm not sure what that point about women is supposed to mean though? Is that a reflection on the developers, or an answer to a question asked by the Czech gaming magazine?

One presumes it'll just be another avenue to explore when interacting with NPCs to further yourself in the game. Do you threaten, persuade or seduce?

I just hope it'll be as lengthy & meaty a game as Deus Ex 1. Man, that sucker just kep going!

Overheal

Slash/ED wrote: »

Deus Ex 2 was only guilty of not being as good as the first. As a stand alone game, if you never played the original and only ever played IW you'd probably think it was a good game. I actually enjoyed it, no Deus Ex, but still good.

that was the case of me, ive never played the original. but then ive never played a fallout game. and ive only sparingly played lemmings.

But I HAVE played Maubis and Dune 2, so leave me alone.

JCDenton

pixelburp wrote: »

One presumes it'll just be another avenue to explore when interacting with NPCs to further yourself in the game. Do you threaten, persuade or seduce?

This is true, and a commendable property for an "in-game conversation" to have; although, I'd be slightly concerned if I asked a group of developers to make a list of the 10 best things about their game, and one of them was: - "And now, you can talk to women too!!".

I don't think it's a particularly new, or innovative feature.

I did however like Eurogamer's article that you linked to.
It mentions using facial expressions to judge a character's mindset, as opposed to simply listening to what they say.

Oblivion has facial expressions (as have a few other games), but it'd be nice to hear someone feeding you some "information", and you deem it to be a lie based on their uneasy look while saying it.