Those ceilings. I don’t think I’ve seen any work of visual fiction – game, movie, or otherwise – in the past decade whose art direction felt as genuinely futuristic as Human Revolution did. From amplifying current trends (extrapolating Zaha Hadid into wild, web-covered high-rises) to speculating the black-swans of fashion (a sudden rise of neo-Italian Renaissance couture), mixing in streaks of classic cyberpunk (Hengsha’s city-over-a-city), the game’s aesthetic is immersive in a way not even matched by even its (in some ways superior) predecessor.
The internet joke about the original Deus Ex is that every time it’s mentioned, someone reinstalls it, but I think this just convinced me it’s time to replay Human Revolution.
What I love about the entire game is the use of color. The much maligned gold/black color theme was explained by one of the developers as a theme for when you're around augmented humans.
It looks like in the sequel they're using that even more to indicate the golden age renaissance of augmentation is fading away.
This game is one of the rare ones that still makes you think. Far too many games, especially in this genre have gone to giving the player exact waypoints of what to do and where to go; totally removing any independent thought from the game and it's story. This genre is overcrowded by the "run here, skip cut scene, now run over here" games.
There were several places during my initial run-through where I found myself having to grab a pen and paper in order to keep track of things like small AI conversations in passing which lead to new side objectives.
I just finished the game I'd started 2+ years ago, getting Pacifist, Foxiest of the Hounds, and Legend at the same time. Brutally unforgiving, but it really felt like an accomplishment once I was done.
If your first play through involved killing people, try completing the game non lethally (except for the boss fights) for an achievement.
Also: Ceilings of Deus Ex http://imgur.com/a/FDAbV
Also: Michael McCann's soundtrack: https://open.spotify.com/album/4LuVQCHTgUZjuWgUQ7lQbl