Deus Ex: Human Revolution best stealth game in years

A great stealth game is a rare thing. Unlike the typical shooter, they require an assiduous hand and sharp mind to appreciate their refined, layered subtly. Deus Ex: Human Revolution combines the best of the stealth genre — the espionage-driven flavour of Metal Gear Solid; the shadow-endowed, decision-based gameplay of Splinter Cell; the defanged morality of Hitman. While individually these pieces aren’t as refined as their predecessors, they blend beautifully in Deus Ex. Sprinkled with a few unique ingredients and conversation choices a la Mass Effect, a refreshing, exciting, personalized experience is born. Put simply, despite weak graphics at times, Deus Ex is by far the best stealth game in years.

In its premise, setting and storyline, Deus Ex takes the time to ease you into the layers of the world around you. Much like the best sci-fi movies, you're introduced to a world that teems and pulses with its own life. You play Eric Jensen, ex-SWAT, now lead security for the mega-corporation Sarif Industries, a leader in the cutthroat market of human enhancements. You're nearly killed during an attack by corporate rivals and are reborn with the latest biological augmentations. Using your newly endowed gifts, you investigate and unravel who is behind the attack, bringing to light the battle between technological enhancements and the loss to our humanity.

The graphics are a splinter in the side of the game’s greatness becoming fully realized. While the cut scenes are exquisitely crafted and worth the wait, the in-game graphics range from impressive in lighting to sub-par in character models. Facial realism, lip-syncing and subtleties of movement are nowhere near Mass Effect standards, rendering most characters stony and lifeless. Overall, though, the inadequacies found in Deus Ex’s graphics are palatable when balanced with everything else the game has going for it. The world of 2027 that surrounds you thrives in its own verisimilitude, even if it is populated with marionette-style, mannequin-like characters.

Once the visual inadequacies are put aside, Deus Ex quickly morphs into an excellent game with loads of flexibility woven into its design. Is it the best stealth game? No. The best morality-based RPG? No. The best shooter? Definitely not. But it has a sinuous blending of all three that make it a thrill. You don't have as many moves as Sam Fischer of Splinter Cell and your weapon load-out isn’t quite the one-man-army of Metal Gear Solid’s Solid Snake, but the formula, fear and finesse inherent to a good stealth game are ever-present.

The plot and side quests feel organic and fluid, all layered with challenges galore for those wishing to find them. Every area has multiple ways of completing your task, thus catering to individual styles of play. Go in guns a-blazing if you wish or be a silent killer. Embrace the tech side of things by hacking alarms, cameras and turrets, subjugate all using shadows and crawlspaces to be virtually invisible, or become truly invisible by developing your engineered abilities. Deus Ex seamlessly caters to the style of strategy you choose.

On top of the customizable ability enhancements, the game is also unique by bringing morality-based conversations to the stealth genre. Akin to the type of conversation wheels in Mass Effect, these conversation options add a much-needed connection to your character, and continue to layer the personalization of your experience.

Deus Ex’s crowning achievement is the tailored tone with which it was developed. It may be faulted by some for simply drawing on elements from previous franchises — part Solid Snake, part Sam Fischer, part Commander Sheppard — but borrowings blend in their own way without feeling tacked on. And adding a customizable ability system and morality-based choices for the player, Deus Ex: Human Revolution creates its own rhythm, allowing it to stand out from the golden trio in whose footsteps it walks.