Deus Ex

The Good
There are some major changes in the PlayStation 2 port, the first thing you'll notice is the different GUI and inventory system. It's easy to use and works great with the PS2 controller, though the change that every weapon uses one weapon slot, divided into weapon types might be questionable, since that makes part of the game a whole lot easier than the PC version. Now you can have the sniper rifle, GEP, assault rifle and assault shotgun all at once, and all melee weapons are stacked into one slot, meaning you can pick up every single one of them. Of course there are a lot of positive things about this, it makes the inventory very easy to handle with the controller. There is also a great system of marking items for fast selection, which you can then scroll through using the up/down arrows on the digital pad. The character models has got an much needed improvement, which you might not see at first, but when you return to the PC version you quickly notice the difference. The motion captured animation of the characters is excellent, including quite detailed eyes, and thief style dead/unconscious bodies which collapse realistically when you throw them around (the bodies in the PC version where not animated at all and where stiff as boards). The AI has also got itself some improvement, enemies can see you when you expect them to see you most of the time, and allies help you out a bit more than in the PC version. We shouldn't forget the music either, every track in the game has been re-recorded and remixed, all lo-fi sampled strings have been replaced with real orchestra instruments. You often end up watching the main menu for minutes just to hear the fantastic new rendition of the Deus Ex theme, the introduction and ending scenes have been remade as great looking FMV's, almost comparable to the ones seen in Deus Ex: Invisible War. They have made the use of nanokeys automated, so you only have to click on a door to unlock it, if you have the key, instead of putting your weapon down to use the keyring, which I think is a good thing.

In many ways this is a fantastic port, but it also got some annoying flaws ...

The Bad
There are some things in the port that really annoys me, the thing that annoys me the most is the extreme slowdowns you encounter in several parts of the game, often when they are least wanted, such as when you get into a firefight with several bots and soldiers at once. Parts of a level when you are boarding a big freighter are almost unplayable, and the last level got increasingly slower the more objectives I completed. Sometimes the lag can make you miss enemies you are trying to shoot, though the auto-aiming feature usually makes sure you hit even if your crosshair jumps inches at a time in the worst slowdowns. On a few occasions I encountered an horrible bug that made the game exit and jump to the main menu when I tried to save, making all progress since the last save go lost. This only happened twice in all the times I saved, but I really recommend you to save often to make sure you don't loose to much if a save at a critical time fails. They have changed the augmentation system slightly, so that you can install augmentations any time you like when you've found an canister, while this is generally a good thing, some in-game help and the manual still claim that you have to use a medbot to install them. There are also some differences in the way the Data Vault and computer use works, the great feature from the PC version, where you could go to the Data Vault and read all previous communication with NPC's has been removed, making it hard at times to remember what you are supposed to do. There isn't as much information stored in your "Notes" either (and the feature to edit notes or add your own has been removed, though I can understand why, with the lack of a keyboard). When you find passwords or keycodes they are stored and automatically entered when you use the a computer or keypad which you have the codes for. While this saves you the inconvenience of having to memorize codes, or check your data vault for passwords every time you want to use a computer, this also takes away the possibility to guess a lot of codes and eventually finding out the right one by chance. Now you either have the code or have to hack or use multitools to bypass security computers or keypads. Due to the memory limitations of the PS2 all levels have been remade and split up into several parts with loading times (much longer than those you encountered in the PC version by the way) between them. While they have done a great job most of the time, often with results which are visually indistinguishable from their PC counterparts, or even better looking in a few occasions, they have removed many of the different ways to get past obstacles, usually only leaving a couple of the most obvious ones. The streets of New York has got the worst treatment in my opinion, but also parts of Hong Kong, where it feels like you are running through doom style claustrophobic corridors rather than real city streets. The lack of a multiplayer mode is also a bit sad, though it wasn't completely necessary. But since the multiplayer patch had been released for the PC version by the time this port was released, one would think they could have included it in this version as well.

To be perfectly honest though, I think most of the flaws are minor ones. Except for the slowdowns and the save game bug (which both are really annoying), you get used to the other differences and appreciate the fantastic story instead.

The Bottom Line
Deus Ex on PC was a fantastic FPS/RPG hybrid with an fascinating storyline, and the PlayStation 2 port has managed to keep almost all of the things that made the original game great, while improving the graphics and music a lot. It is far from flawless though, but it still a great PlayStation 2 game, well worth the time and money you invest in it. I will end with an advice: SAVE OFTEN!

The Good
What is there to like about this game? To be frank - everything. Each element of this game has been brought together with such verve and flair that the result is something that totally transcends the concept of what a game should be. Deus Ex is a truly unique thing - this is not merely a 'game', this is so incalculably great it's more of a one in a lifetime experience. No, really!

When people traditionally think of an FPS game with a strong plot, many would be inclined to name Half-Life. Yet when you analyse Half-Life's plot in some more detail, you realise that effectively it's identical to that of Doom - scientists accidentally open portal to another dimension, aliens appear and try to take over the world blah blah blah. Add in some friendly scientists and security guards along the way, and have them robotically tell the player what to do, where to go next, and suddenly everyone thinks it's the second coming. For example, the usual dialogue in Half-Life involves some bored security guy with lousy AI informing you that the next section of the game you encounter will involve riding a train. Or going down a lift. Or ducking under some pipes. Yawn. And people even nowadays mistake this for a plot! Enter Deus Ex...

The plot of Deus Ex is such that it's a bit like starring in your very own sci-fi thriller movie; A sort of combination of The Matrix, Blade Runner, X-Files, and 007. This is not simply 'fun' or a diversion, this is so totally immersive and the characterisation so well done that the player is drawn into the game world like never before. The level of interactivity with what you can see is unparalleled. Essentially, if you can see it, it can be interacted with.

Although the game is largely linear in structure, each objective can be completed in several different ways, giving the game massive replayability value. This is one of the few games that has captured my attention so completely that I had no choice but to complete it - but that wasn't enough. Thus far I have played it through a total of 7 times, each time discovering new places, or consequences for different actions. For example, in the first mission where terrorists are holed up in the Statue of Liberty, you can either hack the security terminal and go in the front, or find the UNATCO informant and get a key to the front door, or take the long route round the back way up the gigantic stack of crates. Another example is where you are protecting a certain injured NPC in a hotel room when your apartment is raided. Either you can escape out the window and save yourself, leaving the NPC to die. Or fight your way through about 20 heavily armed soldiers, save him, and meet up later in the game. Because of the 'emotional attachment' I had to this character, I had no choice but to take Option B... Each of your actions or responses has a definite effect on how NPCs react to you, making the game feel very real.

The really great thing about Deus Ex is how the plot builds itself up to epic proportions - as opposed to laming itself out only a third of the way through like Half Life. There are so many plot twists and turns, so many conspiracies and counter-conspiracies, and it is all developed so rapidly that it really grabs your attention and refuses to let go.

The soundtrack is probably the best for a game yet. It's really what holds the game together for me, adding depth and emotion to the levels. Produced by Straylight Productions (the same people who did the music for Unreal), it's kind of like the game equivalent of John Williams' Star Wars score. All the tunes are instantly memorable, and I enjoy them so much that despite having several hundred mp3s on my hard drive, I still listen to the Deus Ex tunes on a regular basis. The game is honestly worth getting for the music alone!

I love the graphics (based on the Unreal engine). Of course, the developers could have opted for say, the Quake 3 engine, but I unquestionably prefer the Unreal engine as the lighting is superb and atmospheric and everything looks very real and organic. Also, despite having only a Pentium II 400, I can run this game with practically all visual options on and it runs quite fast.

The Bad
There really wasn't anything that had an adverse effect on my enjoyment of this game. People seem to think that because there's a big ol' box for stuff you don't like, that you have to nitpick and point out the comparatively trivial niggles that this game has.

Often cited is the in-game speech - which often veers in quality of acting from top notch Hollywood production to school play and back again in the space of a few seconds. This totally doesn't matter though as the characterisation and dialogue is so good that you forget that the voice acting is something less great. There are literally hundreds of really great quotes from Deus Ex, the scripting is THAT good.

The game often criticised for having bad enemy AI. Yet in all the FPS games I have played, games that feature superb AI are in my opinion no better than those which don't - even in some cases having great AI is annoying. An example would be the marines in Half-Life which magically know exactly where you are despite you not making a sound. You're then on the receiving of a hail of grenades and you die. So you reload your game, but you die again. So you reload. But then you die. So you have to reload, until by sheer luck you manage the get pass the marines. Having really good AI as in Half-Life's case makes the game unbalanced and in my opinion, the AI in Deus Ex, while being far from perfect, does not adversely affect gameplay. The aim of an FPS should be to challenge the player, but not make it so hard that you spend more time hitting the load saved game key than actually playing. Deus Ex succeeds in getting the balance just right, even at higher skill levels.

The Bottom Line
I'm always wary of describing games as 'classic' or as a 'masterpiece'. Invariably once you've made your grand claim, you'll soon find another game that surpasses it, and that game you thought so highly of begins to look only average. So instead, so I don't contradict myself in future, I will say that thus far this is my favourite game ever, on any platform. It really is that good! So if it's not in your collection, and you are looking for a new title, buy this now!

The Good
Not being able to shoot as well when you're not as skilled in a weapon is a nice touch. The interactivity is the best i've seen since you can grab everything from houseplants to chairs. Then you can throw them on the ground to make a noise to attract the guards.

The Bad
The AI isn't very smart since you can pretty much hide in a ventilation duct and take out all your enemies without them being able to find you. I also hate it when you're in a conversation with an NPC and the enemies spot you. They won't shoot you while you're talking and will just stand there like idiots. Once you finish however, they'll kill you immediately. The game strives for realism but yet there are literally hundreds of crates filled with health kits and weapons lying around. The voice acting is only passable since the characters themselves don't sound very excited when talking. The way System Shock 2 worked was because the game made you lonely when traveling through the ship. But this game tried to make you think there's lots of government conspiracies which doesn't sound real and we never really feel like the governement's against us.

The Bottom Line
It's a combination of System Shock 2's RPG elements and Metal Gear Solid's sneaking around. Although there's too much shooting which completely ruins the stealth game because in a lot of the cases you can and sometimes wil be forced to shoot your way out of the situation.