New Deus Ex designer criticises Invisible War

The lead designer of Deus Ex: Human Revolution has criticised the second game in the series, saying that its opening was unengaging, and that the setting was 'too futuristic.'

Speaking to PC Gamer, Jean-Francois Dugas, who previously worked on the Rainbow Six: Vegas games, explained that as part of his research for the new project he and his team went back and played the previous titles. Although he believes that Invisible War offered “good level of multi-path, multi-solution, and was actually fun to play”, he says "what didn't help was that at the start of the game you don't know who you are, what your background is, or what you're doing in the world. It takes hours before you can make sense of your identity. I think it was maybe too hard to absorb and immerse in that world because it took so many hours.”

The far-future setting of Invisible War was also a problem, Dugas says.

“It was more futuristic and less grounded in a reality that we can relate to. I'm not talking about universal ammo – that's a whole different debate – it's more about the broader appeal. In the first Deus Ex you have an identity already clear in your head. You're a super-soldier, you work for UNATCO, a branch of the UN. It's the near future, and you immediately see the Statue of Liberty with its head on the ground. There's something strong that you can relate to, that Invisible War lacked.”

"We don't have universal ammo," Dugas laughs.

There's much more on Deus Ex: Human Revolution coming online on PCGamer.com over the coming days.

Latest in Games
A screenshot from SaGa Frontier 2, showing one of the protagonists wandering through a quaint fantasy village
One of Square Enix' most underrated PlayStation-era JRPGs just shadow dropped on Steam
Grit and Valor mech strategy roguelike
Grit and Valor - 1949 review
Marvel Rivals tier list - Wolverine
Marvel Rivals director says a future patch will reduce the shooter's insatiable hunger for RAM: 'It's a very big problem'
Hogwarts Legacy potions professor holding a potion
An unannounced Hogwarts Legacy expansion and 'definitive edition' have reportedly been cancelled
Story of Seasons - A cahacter in a purple tuxedo stands outside in a town square talking to the player
Story of Seasons is doing another Harvest Moon remake and it might be the best the series has ever looked
Assassin's Creed Shadows change seasons - An upper-body shot of Yasuke looking cheerfully up into the distance.
Assassin's Creed Shadows puts up the 'second highest day-one sales revenue in Assassin's Creed franchise history'
Latest in News
A screenshot from SaGa Frontier 2, showing one of the protagonists wandering through a quaint fantasy village
One of Square Enix' most underrated PlayStation-era JRPGs just shadow dropped on Steam
The titular character from Princess Mononoke is depicted riding the wolf goddess Moro and carrying a spear.
Studio Ghibli AI image trend floods social media, cheered on by OpenAI and denounced by critics as an insult to Hayao Miyazaki
Marvel Rivals tier list - Wolverine
Marvel Rivals director says a future patch will reduce the shooter's insatiable hunger for RAM: 'It's a very big problem'
Hogwarts Legacy potions professor holding a potion
An unannounced Hogwarts Legacy expansion and 'definitive edition' have reportedly been cancelled
Story of Seasons - A cahacter in a purple tuxedo stands outside in a town square talking to the player
Story of Seasons is doing another Harvest Moon remake and it might be the best the series has ever looked
Assassin's Creed Shadows change seasons - An upper-body shot of Yasuke looking cheerfully up into the distance.
Assassin's Creed Shadows puts up the 'second highest day-one sales revenue in Assassin's Creed franchise history'