Deus Ex: Human Revolution Preview

Ace Gamez appears to be the very first to publish its preview based on the recent showing of Deus Ex: Human Revolution that our own Buck also attended.

Spread across five cities including the aforementioned Detroit, Shanghai and Montreal (home of the branch of Eidos responsible for the game’s development), Deus Ex promises a variety of locations and a host of enemies that need stabbing in the face with your shiny new blade attachments. Or not, as the case may be. Once again, the newest instalment of the franchise avoids linearity like it’s wrapped in brown paper and ticking, allowing you to make your own way through the game based on hundreds of gameplay choices. Want to go stealthy? That’s fine using Jensen’s stealth camouflage, silent blades and x-ray vision, navigating mission areas with a minimum of fuss and bother is only hampered by our own gammy pad-work. Alternatively, you may feel like blasting your way through levels with an assault rifle on auto-fire or simply talking yourself out of every confrontation. Apparently, it’s possible to complete the game killing no enemies but bosses.

And given the reports on HR’s enemy AI, that might not be a bad idea. Incredibly smart and aggressive, enemies will flank you, cover one another and attempt to overwhelm you. Health is regenerative, meaning no insta-health packs to save your cybernetic ass, so you’ll need to employ clever tactics to stay alive. The cover mechanic is similar to that seen in the Rainbow Six Vegas series, with the game switching to a Third Person perspective during cover-based fire fights. Many of the enemies move in squads, too and slotting the leader first will make the rest of the fight that much easier for you as the survivors spend a few minutes milling about in confusion.