Deus Ex: Human Revolution

''This page is about the videogame. For the comic book miniseries, see Deus Ex: Human Revolution (comics)''

Deus Ex: Human Revolution (previously Deus Ex 3) will be the third game in the Deus Ex series and a prequel to the original Deus Ex. It is being developed by Eidos Montreal in co-production with Square Enix, who are responsible for pre-rendered movie sequences and publishing. There is no multiplayer mode. The release dates are August 23 2011 for North America, 25 August 2011 for Australia and 26 August 2011 for Europe.

Plot
Human Revolution is set in 2027, just as human augmentation begins to enter mainstream life. Augmentations are not of the nanotech variety used in JC or Alex Denton's time; rather they are mechanical implants, and in some cases, full-blown limb replacements.

Players take the role of Adam Jensen, a security consultant employed by Sarif Industries to protect a research lab in Detroit. The game opens with an attack on the laboratory by augmented black ops soldiers, who use a security plan Jensen created himself. He is mortally wounded, and is saved by having extremely powerful military-grade augmentations installed. Jensen is unconcious until after the operation at which point, through interactions with other chracters, the player decides Jensen's reaction. As the plot progresses, Jensen uncovers a conspiracy to force human evolution down a very particular path, and is forced to augment himself further to survive and conquer it. The events in Human Revolution eventually lead to the strike on the Statue of Liberty and the formation of UNATCO.

Themes
Human Revolution deals with the ethics of transhumanism, and carries an overarching message of humanity's reach exceeding its grasp. "Mankind is using mechanical augmentations," director Jean-François Dugas said before the game's release, "but there is still much to be determined in terms of their effect on society and the ultimate direction it will lead us in." The Greek myth of Icarus and Daedalus appears in Adam Jensen's dreams as an allegory to this thought, and also - given that Daedalus was the name of an artificial intelligence in Deus Ex - an intellectual bridge to the original game.

The pace of technological development is reflected visually by a Renaissance theme. Characters who support the advances of human augmentation dress themselves and decorate their homes in reinterpreted late-mediaeval Italian style, and the game as a whole has a sepia-tinted colour palette reminiscent of historic manuscripts. In contrast, characters who oppose augmentation wear clothing that is more or less current-day.

Conspiracy theories and immensely powerful corporations also feature strongly, as in Deus Ex, though nothing is currently known about them.

Parts of the game will take place during the day, unlike in Deus Ex, but most locations will nevertheless be brooding and dark.

Characters
Adam Jensen - Security Consultant for Sarif Industries. The protagonist of Deus Ex: Human Revolution.

David Sarif - Owner of Sarif Industries.

Eliza Cassan - The celebrity-like newsreader for the Picus TV network.

Faridah Malik - Jensen's pilot. Private pilot of Sarif Industries.

Jaron Namir - Field Commander of the Tyrants that attacked Sarif Industries with Fedorova and Barrett.

Lawrence Barrett - Another prominent member of the Tyrants. Barrett functions as the Heavy Firepower for the Tyrants.

Megan Reed - Niece of David Sarif, and Adam's ex-girlfriend, presumably a scientist.

Tong Si Hung - Triads boss of the nightclub The Hive located in Heng Sha.

Yelena Federova - A mute member of the Tyrants. She specialises in stealth operations and assassinations.

Francis "Frank" Pritchard - Head of cyber-security in Sarif Industries.

Jake Dredger - Investigator, Homeland Security Augmentations and Counter-Terrorism Unit. Formerly Detroit P.D.

Zhao Yun Ru - CEO of Tai Yong Medical.

Ezekiel "Zeke" Sanders - Leader of the radical anti-augmentation know as Purity First.

Bob Page - Owner of Page Industries.

Corporations

 * Sarif Industries
 * Sarpatech
 * Picus TV
 * Tai Yong Medical
 * Belltower Associates
 * XNG Shipping
 * Versalife Group
 * Kaiga Incorporated
 * Steiner Bisley
 * L.I.M.B. International
 * Connaught
 * Xenon Home Entertainment
 * Jing Ye Co.
 * Mustang Arms Ad-Tech Ltd.
 * Stasiuk Arms Inc.
 * Solotec
 * Sea-Tech
 * Isolay
 * Soloto Entertainment & Technology
 * Omega Ranch
 * Sharp Edge PMC (Private Military Company)
 * Caidin Global

Factions/Groups

 * Humanity Front


 * Purity First
 * Tyrants
 * Singularity Faith of the Machine God (SFMG)
 * FEMA
 * UNATCO
 * Stolchinaya Bratva (criminal organization)
 * Juggernaut Collective
 * New Sons of Freedom
 * The Triads

World Locations

 * Detroit
 * Shanghai
 * Montreal
 * New York City (not confirmed, though it will likely be in game, as UNATCO is formed and the Statue of Liberty is bombed sometime during the game)
 * Philadelphia (identified in one piece of concept art)
 * Milwaukee

District

 * Heng Sha, a two-tiered island offshore from Shanghai

Augmentations
The augmentations in Human Revolution are mechanical, though many of them are also electronical in nature. There's 21 total available augmentations, but almost all of them can be upgraded further. The augmentations are either passive or active; the latter require energy to run(or activate), the former are always in effect and require no energy. When the player gains access to the augmentations some of them will be already unlocked, for example the Infolink.

Augmentations are divided into different categories:

Cranium Augmentations
 * Social Enhancer
 * Wayfinder Radar System
 * Infolink
 * Stealth Enhancer
 * Hacking: Capture
 * Hacking Analyze Add-on
 * Hacking: Fortify
 * Hacking Stealth Add-on

Torso Augmentations
 * Sentinel RX Health System
 * Sarif Series 8 Energy Converter
 * Implanted Rebreather
 * Typhoon Explosive System

Arm Augmentations
 * Cybernetic Arm Prosthesis
 * Aim Stabilizer

Eye Augmentations
 * Smart Vision
 * Eye-Know Retinal Prosthesis

Back Augmentations
 * Quicksilver Reflex Booster
 * Icarus Landing System

Skin Augmentations
 * Rhino Dermal Armour
 * Glass-Shield Cloaking System

Leg Augmentations
 * Cybernetic Leg Prosthesis

To unlock new augmentations, the player will need Praxis points. Praxis points can be very rarely found in the game world in the form of Praxis Kits; they can be bought from LIMB clinics, though the supply is limited; and finally, after amassing certain amount of experience points you will be rewarded with a Praxis point. Unlike the previous games, the augmentations are never mutually exclusive.

Combat
Aiming and weapon accuracy is no longer affected by player character statistics in Human Revolution, though recoil can be reduced by arm augmentations and a weapon's stats affect its damage output. Weapons use distinct ammo types, unlike the unified ammo of Invisible War, and are broadly similar to modern-day armaments. They can be upgraded as the game progresses, and some can be recombined: for instance, instead of LAM or EMP grenades simply sticking to walls, the player must first combine a normal grenade with a 'wall-mount' device. Damage is 'high': a few bullets are enough to kill either an NPC or the player.

Human Revolution uses the regenerating health model that is popular in contemporary games design. Eidos didn't want players to reach a situation where they were unable to progress due to low health, and would be forced to "scrounge for med packs", which they see as tension-and flow-breaking. They believe regenerating health will still encourage tactics and strategy without disrupting play for medkit back-tracking.

Enemy squads have identifiable leaders who organise the group's actions. If the leader is killed the squad will be less effective and less able to respond to changes in the player's tactics.

Adam has a series of 'takedown' moves which can be triggered at appropriate points. These are short third-person sequences that show him knocking out or killing the target with a contextual animation; examples range from stabbing guards with the arm blades to tapping someone on the shoulder and punching them out when they turn round.

Stealth and cover
A cover hugging system is in place in Human Revolution, though it can be ignored if the player desires. When the cover button is hit Adam will attach to the nearest sensible surface and the camera will switch to third-person.

Cover is more important than in the previous two games because it is the only way to avoid detection when sneaking. Low lighting levels can no longer reliably hide the player from NPCs. Noise can also bring unwanted attention.

There will be a cloaking augmentation in the game, and there is also an x-ray vision ability.

Technology (hacking)
Hacking in Human Revolution takes the form of a puzzle-action minigame with similarities to Uplink, and is done in real time. The player must traverse a network of various computer nodes in order to reach the final node which, when captured, will mean a successful hack. Capturing every node has a risk of being detected by the system; when detected, the player has limited amount of time before being tracked down and failing the hack. There is a limit on how many times you may try to hack every device, and after a failed hack the device is under lockdown and cannot be used for a short period of time. The player can reduce the chance of being detected and slow down the tracking process with various augmentations and software.

There are no multitools or lockpicks in the game. However there are few types of computer software which can be used during hacking, as well as auto-hack tools.

Social
Conversations can be 'lost' in Human Revolution, meaning that the NPC refuses to give you the information you want - even to talk with you again. They progress not by the player picking from a set of lines seen on-screen, but by picking from one of three emotional stances to take. If the player upgrades their social augmentations, they can deduce personality traits from NPC speech that helps to determine the best possible response, as well as exuding chemical pheromones to make an NPC more agreeable.

Development
It was announced on May 17, 2007, by IGN in an interview with Patrick Melchior, the director of Eidos France, on the French-Canadian television station, MusiquePlus. Neither Warren Spector nor Harvey Smith, the main creative directors behind the first two games, were attached to the project.

Further confirming the game's development, Eidos Montreal's general manager Stéphane D’Astous reported that they have received a "huge mandate" to focus on the creation of Deus Ex 3. In the same report, D’Astous expounded upon the development philosophy being implemented at the new studio. The philosophy focuses on smaller teams with multi-discipline employees. While embraced by the designers, this philosophy means that Deus Ex 3 is scheduled to develop for at least 18 months, if not 24 or more, which puts the earliest release date in the middle of 2009. The last bit of information D'Astous divulged was that Deus Ex 3 had just passed proof of concept, as of late November 2007.

A teaser trailer was released on November 26, 2007. The 200th issue of PC Zone Magazine revealed the conspiracy of Deus Ex 3 along with information and artwork/screenshots. Several design decisions were unveiled, such as regenerating health and a cover system, precipitating an initial backlash amongst many fans of Deus Ex.

Some concept art and early screenshots had been provided for PC Zone's first preview, but it was not until a Square Enix-produced CGI teaser trailer was shown at the 2010 Game Developers Conference that another glimpse of the game's visual style was shown. The teaser was expanded to a three-minute trailer at E3 2010 (still all pre-rendered) which coincided with a second preview in PC Gamer UK containing new screenshots and gameplay details, and announced that the game will not be coming out until "Early 2011". E3 2010 also saw a second major preview of the game, this time in PC Gamer UK, which provided engine-rendered screenshots and gameplay details.

In July, 13 2010 Del Rey Books announced a novel, based in the universe of Deus Ex, named Deus Ex: Icarus Effect. Its story introduces the reader into the Human Revolution storyline. It was written by James Swallow and was released on Febuary 22nd, 2011.

During the Tokyo Game Show 2010 a new trailer was released. The trailer was the same at the E3 but with new scene and revealing a new charactres, with japanese voice actors; at the same time Square Enix, Inc., has revealed today a new premium-quality action figure based on the central character from Deus Ex: Human Revolution, Adam Jensen. Deus Ex: Human Revolution Play Arts -Kai- will be the latest addition to the Play Arts -Kai- series, and will feature newly-augmented Adam Jensen and even more.

Frank Lapikas, game designer on DX:HR, confirmed 3 difficulty levels: Casual, Normal and 'Deus Ex'. The PC version of DX:HR will feature DirectX 11 support for improved visuals. It will have more advanced AI to compensate for the precision offered by the mouse, in addition to optimized controls, and a unique UI tailored to the platform. Deus Ex: Human Revolution is targeted for an Q1 2011 release with Amazon.com currently suggesting a March 8, 2011 date.

In 30, November Square Enix announced the Deus Ex: Human Revolution Augmented Edition bundles, available early next year for $69.99 ($59.99 PC), the game inside some rather attractive premium packaging, along with a 40-page art book, a motion graphic novel, a making-of DVD, and the game's soundtrack. More bonuses come to those that preorder the game at participating retailers. Putting money down at a retailer that isn't GameStop will score players the Tactical Enhancement Pack, which comes with a Huntsman Silverback Double-Barrel Shotgun, the Longsword Whisperhead Extreme Range Sniper Rifle, and extra credits to spend in game. GameStop preorders will secure the Explosive Mission Pack, packed with a Linebacker G-87 multiple shot grenade launcher, the M-28 Utility Remote-Detonated Explosive Device, an automatic unlocking device, and an entirely new mission to play through, featuring a cameo by a character from the original Deus Ex.

Trivia

 * The devolopers cut a whole opera house level, "Il Metamorphosi", in Detroit when they couldn't get the Pavarotti-Tron throat augmentation to work, but the advertisement of the opera can be see in the city. [This comment was actually a joke; there never was a opera house level or throat augmentation in the game.]


 * Every street and district in the game's city hubs has been given a name, and many of the names have added layers of meaning. For example, "Daigong" - the name of the worker's district in the game's Chinese city - could be interpreted as "subcontract work" in one pronunciation, and as "deliberately lazy worker" in another.

PC System Requirements
Minimum PC Specifications:

''Windows XP, Windows Vista or Windows 7 with DirectX 9.0c 2 GHz Dual-Core Processor 1 GB RAM (Windows XP) or 2 GB RAM (Windows Vista and Windows 7) NVIDIA GeForce 8000 series, ATI Radeon HD 2000 series, or better 8.5 GB Disk Space''

Recommended PC Specifications:

'Windows 7 with DirectX 9.0c AMD Phenom II X4, Intel Core 2 Quad, or better ''2 GB RAM AMD Radeon HD 5850 or better 8.5 GB Disk Space'''

PC Version
The PC version of the game will have specific features, simply to improve the aesthetics of the game.


 * Support for AMD Eyefinity, allowing players to use up to five monitors to play the game in "uber-widescreen".


 * Full 3D for compatible monitors.


 * Full DirectX 11 support.

Gallery
Deus Ex 3