One detail many Cyberpunk 2077 fans tend to overlook is that it actually didn't invent anything within the genre. Franchises like System Shock, Syndicate, Perfect Dark, and of course, the entire Deus Ex. With a total of five games (six if we count the mobile version), the Deus Ex games are known for their great flexibility, and if you've ever thought about exploring that content, today you have a fabulous opportunity: the free game of the weekend is Deus Ex: Mankind Divided, the latest entry in the series, and one of its prequels.
The year 2000 gave us some games that were (and still are) truly fabulous. Diablo II, The Sims, Baldur's Gate II, Majora's Mask, Perfect Dark, sequels, new franchises... excellent titles on both PCs and consoles. However, one title that quickly stood out was Deus Ex. Its story places us in the shoes of JC Denton, an agent optimized with nanotechnology from the United Nations Anti-Terrorist Coalition who ends up embroiled in a conspiracy of global proportions. Over the years, the popularity of Deus Ex gave rise to hundreds of patches and mods from the community, and of course, its sequels.
Now, the interesting thing is that Deus Ex only has one sequel, Invisible War, which overall wasn't a bad game. Still, eight years had to pass for Deus Ex to receive a new title, in the form of a prequel, Human Revolution. Not a few believe that this Deus Ex surpasses even the original, and as expected, in 2016 Deus Ex: Mankind Divided appeared... the reason we are gathered here today. The latest installment of the Deus Ex universe is the free game of the weekend, courtesy of the Epic Games Store..
Deus Ex Mankind Divided: Illuminati Confirmed
Being a pre-sequel, I imagine Mankind Divided can confuse new players a bit, but the lack of information isn't so great as to compromise the development of its story: The game places us in the year 2029, two years after the events of Human Revolution. Just as its title suggests, tensions between humans and the 'augmented' reached their peak after the Aug Incident, which temporarily turned the augmented into murderous psychopaths. Our hero of the hour, Adam Jensen, managed to stop the incident, but more than 50 million people ended up dead around the globe.
Mankind Divided once again places Jensen under our control, but the nature of Deus Ex is immediately exposed. Already in the first mission we can choose a confrontational strategy applying lethal force, or a more subtle approach of neutralization. Add to that short or long range attacks, so there isn't necessarily a "right way" to play Deus Ex, however, the idea is to make ample use of available resources. Personally, I think stealth is more satisfying, mastering each level without causing incidents... but don't let that stop you.
With eight years on its shoulders, anyone could suggest that Deus Ex: Mankind Divided is an 'old' game, but it still holds up perfectly on a graphical level. To finish, its download exceeds 35 gigabytes, and the installation itself needs more than 50. I hope the Epic Games Store can add the rest of the franchise in the future, because it's definitely worth it.
