Deus Ex: Invisible War; Recommendation?

[MultiVaC]

So here's my situation: My Deus Ex disc has been missing for a while so I'm planning on buying it through Steam to play it again and have the overall convenience of being able to download and install it anytime the mood strikes me. But I noticed that I can get a pretty good deal on DX: IW if I buy the two games together. Now I know that IW was a huge letdown to Deus Ex fans and is really dumbed down with universal ammo, no skills, no locational damage, etc. but is it worth the $10 that it costs if I buy it along with the original? I've read a lot about the game and I've heard it has some redeeming values, if you can get past all of the stupid decisions they made with it. I'm pretty interested in the story, and having a few tiny scraps of Deus Ex's greatness is more than a lot of games can offer. So for $10 and some low expectations, is it worth it?

 

[Lucid]

If it's only $10 and you buy the original with it, you're not losing much.

It's a fun game, although it does shit on the Deus Ex story line a bit.

 

[Deleted member 56031]

Considering you know the low expectations and it's cheaper to get it with DX 1 (well that's what I did) then yeah go for it.

 

[kupocake]

Deus Ex 2 may be a very flawed game, but it's certainly a point of interest on several levels. At least when it plunges into the unenjoyable, you get an extreme view of how not to design a video game.

 

[MultiVaC]

Well, then at the very least it will heighten my appreciation of the original

 

[Asuka]

Yes, it's worth it

They are both GREAT games, just the 1st is that much greater.

 

[Krynn72]

Absolutely worth it.

 

[Fliko]

Hell yeah, it's worth 40$ atleast in my case.
Maybe not as great as Deus Ex, but still pretty damn good.

 

[taviow]

It's worth it.
The game is a letdown compared to the original game. In fact it's not a bad game. The original is just better.
Appreciate the story.

 

[MultiVaC]

Thanks for the input, guys. With the 100% yes vote I decided to buy it. It's just about done downloading.

 

[kineaesth]

Thanks for the input, guys. With the 100% yes vote I decided to buy it. It's just about done downloading.

OH MY GOD FILTHY PIRATE!

-Edit - Never mind. Do it.

 

[Beerdude26]

Lol I voted no because I'm replaying it and I am not enjoying it

I did enjoy it the first time around, though.

 

[Cormeh]

Nah. The original will keep you going for longer. I'm still at it actually. The NSA love me, because I'm ****ing useless.

 

[Kadayi]

Deus Ex 2 may be a very flawed game, but it's certainly a point of interest on several levels. At least when it plunges into the unenjoyable, you get an extreme view of how not to design a video game.

Agreed. If nothing else it's worth purchasing just so that you can contrast and compare it to the original, as well as identify where things went wrong. There was certainly a degree of ambition running through the game, and in a lot of respects it just narrowly missed the target. It could of been a great game, but it ended up a mediocre one. If you've an interest in game design it's well worth investigation in order to understand it's lessons.

 

[Absinthe]

The game is fine enough, but I wouldn't call it great. Sequel or not, spaces were cramped, the engine was dire, the atmosphere was barren, and it's never particularly satisfying to work with any group you align yourself with. It just kinda goes downhill from there when you compare it to the original.

Still, you can have fun. And it's the only other DX experience you're going to get for some time.

My opinion might be colored by recently playing through the first game again (this time with Shifter) and still finding it to be absolutely brilliant. I'm still coming across things I never noticed or options I never explored or even knew existed. Minor spoiler:

Spoiler

I didn't know you could kill Anna Navarre when she's about to assassinate Lebedev, as I always assumed you'd have to do it either in the train station or UNATCO HQ. Things still play out more or less the same, but Alex and Manderley's reactions are very different. It's great.

I tried going through IW again not too long ago and it was... difficult. Uninstalled.

 

[Deleted member 56031]

Absinthe you didn't know that? I did that first time

I am evil muhahaha!!

 

[Absinthe]

I wanted to kill her. But my crosshairs forbade me.

"Still green? WTF? God damn it, never mind."

 

[Deleted member 56031]

That's why I used a GEP gun

I just wanted to see if I could and lo and behold it worked and so I stuck with it.

 

[Krynn72]

I wanted to kill her. But my crosshairs forbade me.

"Still green? WTF? God damn it, never mind."

Spoiler

I got my ass kicked the first time i tried killing her there, and when I finally did get her, she exploded and killed lebedev anyways. So on every playthrough since then I trap the place with mines and she blows up before she even enters the room.

 

[Deleted member 56031]

Did no one else think of the GEP gun??

 

[Kadayi]

The game is fine enough, but I wouldn't call it great. Sequel or not, spaces were cramped, the engine was dire, the atmosphere was barren, and it's never particularly satisfying to work with any group you align yourself with. It just kinda goes downhill from there when you compare it to the original.

That's what makes it so interesting imo. The story isn't that bad in terms of narrative, but the engine choice, coupled with the inclusion of dynamic shadowing and physics that serve no actual gameplay function so badly impacted upon CPU/GPU performance that everything else had to be radically compromised and curtailed in order for the game to run effectively, to the overall detriment of the storyline and any sense of immersion. It's a tour de force in how poor production choices can negatively impact a games design.

 

[redruM]

...so is Deus-Ex any good at all? I've been planning to give it a go for a while now.

 

[Deleted member 56031]

It's amazing!!!! GET IT NOW!!!!

 

[Absinthe]

The first Deus Ex is the worst game ever, as this thread can surely tell you.

 

[taviow]

...so is Deus-Ex any good at all? I've been planning to give it a go for a while now.

WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR?

You should have it years ago.
It's fantastic.

 

[Nabobalis]

WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR?

You should have it years ago.
It's fantastic.

So is it worth playing even now?

Both of them?

Any mods or anything for them?

 

[taviow]

Mods are not necessary imo.
It's mandatory that you get the original game. IW is for the story imo.
The gameplay is great, the story is amazing. Everything has been done right in DX.

 

[Nabobalis]

Mods are not necessary imo.
It's mandatory that you get the original game. IW is for the story imo.
The gameplay is great, the story is amazing. Everything has been done right in DX.

Ok will do. Might get the steam pack.

 

[Absinthe]

A vanilla playthrough is good, but I don't see anything wrong with starting with the Shifter mod. It think it refines the game in a few big ways, particularly the annoying lasersight/scope attachments, being able to throw your melee weapons, changing grenades with the "Change Ammo" command... It also adds a few biomod changes and unique weapons with improved stats (I <3 Paul's Blackjack baton), taking a page from Invisible War.
It also awards extra skill points depending on how you take out enemies or other actions you perform (some are kinda silly like flushing dirty toilets), as well as a few restored story bits. I think my favorite part is being able knock enemies unconscious by hurling objects at them with the Muscle aug.

At the very least, it warrants a second play through the game. But if you're anything like me, you won't necessarily need that incentive.

 

[ríomhaire]

Spoiler

I got my ass kicked the first time i tried killing her there, and when I finally did get her, she exploded and killed lebedev anyways. So on every playthrough since then I trap the place with mines and she blows up before she even enters the room.

Spoiler

I considered killing her before she starts being hostitle to defeat the purpose of killing her in the first place (ie, to be more moral). It's hard to kill her without her killing Lebedev though. I discovered that if I threw a LAM in a certain way it would hurt her, but not him and it would cause her to run into the bathroom, where I threw in a second LAM to finish her off without killing Lebedev.