Games happen to me in strange ways. Take “Deus ex”, for example. I had just about finished the reboot of “Thief” and totally digged the stealth aspects, so I started looking around for something that I could play once I was done – which, to date, I am not. Yet.  I came across two titles then: “Dishonored” and “Deus ex – Human Revolution”. Why I chose “Deus ex”? Well. The story of “Dishonored” did not appeal to me then, still doesn’t, though meanwhile I have actually played it. So I watched the trailer of “Deus ex – Human Revolution” and frankly did not get it at all. I also watched some reviews and they sounded really good, especially the way you could talk your way in or out of something. Anyone remember “Monkey Island” or “Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis”? Smooth talkers all. And then there was that aspect of being able to influence the ending of the game. To date I had only played one game that did that: “Jedi Knight II”, another LucasArts title. I managed to become emperor in the very first playthrough because I had been virtually seduced by the  powers of the Dark Side. So my decision was almost made, but there was one problem: I did not own a PS3.   Which I bought, along with the game, right after watching the first trailer for the upcoming “Deus ex – Mankind Divided”. So much for marketing. They always get you, those bastards!
No, really, why am I looking forward to DXMK? It is the conflict that defines Adam Jensen’s existence. He becomes augmented against his will, finds out that both his ex-lover and his boss have used him for their own ends, used him because of his exceptional genetic mutation that allows him to become a super-soldier without any of the known side-effects of augmentations. Which makes him an outcast in both worlds. Humans regard him as a dangerous freak, augmented people see in him the traitor, and, what is more, one who does not rely on expensive neuroprozyn drugs to keep him alive. I fully came to understand that conflict when I, that is Adam, had that talk with a certain private detective who kept on calling me “robot”. And despite his sorry state I really felt like shouting “I am no robot, I am human!” Beause that was how I felt, how Adam felt to me. How I played him.
“Deus ex – Mankind Divided” – that, at least to me, is the promise of that first trailer – will eplore exactly this conflict in detail. And I am very much looking forward to exploring his relationship with his non-augmengted team-mates. I wonder how he will fare in Golem City and what he is planning with the Juggernaut Collective. So many possibilities! That is what made that DXHR such a great game to play and I truly hope the news one will live up to it.