Game of the Week [09/18/03]: Deus Ex: Invisible War

Ion Storm?s latest subversive masterpiece-in-waiting comes out?well, a while from now. So what?

Yeah, yeah, the game's not out this week, and it won't be out for a few months yet. Don't get all worked up about it.

Deus Ex: Invisible War is only the sequel to the most successful shooter/RPG hybrid ever, and a little recent hands-on time with the Xbox version showed that Invisible War will be a chip off the old block. The gaming genius contained within the walls of Ion Storm's Austin offices is in the final stages of putting together one of the most ambitious and impressive gaming projects to come out this year.


No, it?s not Half-Life 2. But that doesn?t mean you shouldn?t be paying attention.
What's so impressive? First off, it's a sequel, sure, but there's no "2" at the end of the title. Ion Storm knows Deus Ex very well, and they're dedicated to improving and expanding on the original game in every way. Every decision, from the early removal of the "skills" to choice to make the world even more open and to give you more factions to choose from, was made in the interest of making the game better. In an industry in which publishers are beating their intellectual properties to death (not naming any names), it's refreshing to see a developer, even a developer of a sequel, making tough decisions that put the risk/reward situation back into game design.

So, Deus Ex: Invisible War is Game of the Week as much for what it represents as for what it is. It's developers making a sandbox for gamers to play in, a game studio dedicating itself to hard work and tough choices, and a publisher willing to take a risk on a gameplay philosophy that's still, even years after the first Deus Ex, in its conceptual infancy.

It's also just a cool game, too, judging from a little play-time with an early version. So there you go.

Click here to read all about Deus Ex: The Invisible War
Here lies an interview with Ion Storm Studio Director Warren Spector about DX2.
Here?s a link to an interview with the Lead Game Tester, Dane Caruthers
Unsung hero Harvey Smith talks about taking the lead on a carving a block of marble.
Want a review of the original PS2 version, Deus Ex: The Conspiracy? Well, here ya go!

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