After overdosing on console RPGs, I’ve decided to give Deus Ex a try. Much like System Shock 2, it’s a first-person RPG that’s reminiscent of a first-person shooter with a character-development system bolted on. The game puts you in the role of J.C. Denton, who along with his brother Paul (see the subtle symbolism there?) is a nanotech-augmented agent working for UNATCO, a UN anti-terrorism unit. Yes, this game came out back in 2000, when organizations like the UN and FEMA were considered powerful and threatening. Don’t get me started.

The game has a variety of combat and non-combat skills you can invest your skill points in. Much like the upgrade modules in SS2, you receive skill points for accomplishing certain objectives, and you receive a finite number of them over the course of the game. This keeps you from grinding to maximize all your skills, and forces you to put some thought into customizing your character. The downside to this, as in most such games, is that the game doesn’t tell you how many skill points you can expect to acquire, so unless you consult a FAQ, you can’t necessarily count on getting enough points to have all the skills you really want.

That’s not too much of a problem, though, because the only skill I’ve noticed to be particularly important is the Computers skill. I bought it up to the Advanced level (level 3 out of a possible 4) so as to have the ability to hack computers, ATMs, and turrets. It seems to be the only skill that gives you abilities you wouldn’t otherwise have. Weapon skills increase your accuracy and damage, but aren’t neccesary for wielding a weapon. Most non-combat skills, such as Lockpicking and Electronics, will reduce the number of lockpicks or multitools you need to use to open doors or hack security panels, but if you’re careful, you can save your resources for when it’s most important.

The opening missions of the game focus on the conflict between UNATCO and an American seccessionist terrorist group known as the NSF. While much of the gameplay is centered around gunplay and stealth, the game gives you plenty of options and routes for completing each mission, and I’ll try and look at some of the alternative options available in each mission.