Hitting two years after the PC original, Deus Ex Hit the PS2 in >

Fans of the PC version will instantly notice many differences in the PS2 version when compared to the original. The game has been "consoled up" in an attempt to make it more playable to console gamers. Gone is the ability to to take individual limb damage which has been replaced by the standard life bar now. Many of the levels have also been redesigned, or rearranged due to ram constrictions, and there are longer and more frequent load times as well. You also now have the ability to upgrade your augmentations at anytime during the gameplay instead of having to find a medical bot, and the inventory has been expanded and redesigned.

On a good note, I preferred the PS2 version's expanded inventory. Your inventory screen can be brought up anytime during the gameplay, and unlike the PC version requires less management. Now it could be argued that the PC version's inventory system required a more tactical approach, and really made you think more about what items you do and don't need which is true, but in the PS2 version, you only have to pick certain items once, and once they fill that slot, you won't have to deal with them again. In the PC version, I was constantly having to stop and drop a ton of items that I picked up in searching the dead or unconscious bodies of my enemies (why does everyone and their brother have to carry a damn knife on them in the PC version) which made item management a more frequent occurrence.

The PS2 version also has better character models than the PC version does, and it adds fully CGI beginning and ending sequences. However, considering that this game runs on the original Unreal Engine from 1998, the game's graphics still aren't that impressive when compared to other PS2 games of it's time. In fact, the graphics are the weakest part of the game, but those who partake in Deus Ex will soon find out that the game's appeal isn't in it's visuals, but it's enthralling gameplay.

What makes the PS2 port a still remarkable game despite it's differences from the PC original, is that it still retains the gameplay elements that made that version so fun to play. Retained is the first person shooter/RPG hybrid gameplay, the deep and conspiracy filled storyline, and, of course, the free-form you choose how you want to play the game gameplay.

For those not familiar with Deus Ex, you play as JC Denton a government agent who's drawn into a world of conspiracies, and secret societies. The story has a ton of twists, and covers a lot of topics that will interest many a conspiracy prone gamer, or just any gamer who likes a deep story in their games.

The gameplay is free form. That means that you have the choice in the game. Though there is a linear narrative throughout the game, and you will always end up at the same place in the end, it's how you go about getting there that matters. Each level is riddled with multiple branching paths, and hidden areas. The game leaves it up to you to choose how you want to play. If you wanna go in there like Rambo with guns blazing, and killing anything and everyone in sight, then you're allowed to do so. However, if you wanna take the minimum force approach, and don't want to take a life, or are just into exploring, then find another route, and in Deus Ex there is always another route, or two. The real beauty of it is that this gives the game endless replay value, because you'll never play through the game the same way twice. You are also rewarded with skill points for exploring every area. Those skill points can then be used to level up various abilities like lock picking, hacking, and ever your weapon skills which is where the RPG elements come into play.

Bottom Line: Though the PC version is the better version, the PS2 version still retains most of what made the PC original so great, and that makes it one of the best PS2 games you can put your money down on

While this version can't compare to the PC version, it is a very good port that holds its own with other PS2 titles. THe story is still intact and great, the acting is fine (even if lower in quality for some odd reason) and teh controls converted well. THe only low are the graphics and lack of direction. While after playing this game like 3 times through you know what to do, the first time around may be around 40 hours

sure it looks like hell but at least rent it. once you get into it you'll see how deep an FPS can be. many ways to play it and 3 different endings. control is just like every other fps around. sound is ok. deus ex was originally made for PC quite a few years before it was ported to PS2 with a new interface so that'll explain the dated look and sound.

The thing that I really like about this game is the story. I was very impresed with the quality of the voice acting as well as the script. The writers did an excellent job of making the strory and its setting beleivable and adding so much heart and passion to the characters. I also liked the tremedous freedom given to the player over how to approach each situation and achieve ceratain goals. The graphics were pretty lame, but I don't think that you can really fault the game too much for that considering that its a port of a relatively old pc game. I thought the action was crappy as well. The A.I. is some of the worst I've ever seen in a FPS. The dumdasses just run straight at you shooting blindly and then cower and run away as soon as you start shooting at them. I especially thought that there was too much of an rpg element in the game. I appreciate the novel and original idea of incorporating mods and augs and allowing the player so much freedom over the development of the character, but there are simply too many things to keep track of. It takes quite a while to even begin to get used to the cumbersome in-game menus and they never really become natural- something that becomes especially frustrating during fire fights. The weapons effects are very stale as well. Not to mention the repeditive background music that can get annoying after a while. All in all, DE is the kind of game that most people are either going to hate or love. I'm actually in the middle. An average game with some very cool ideas and an excellent story.

Dues Ex is one of the best FPS ive played in a long time. When i first started the game (on my computer acually, i later bought it for my PS2) it seemed extremly outdated and just not like a good game. But i did consider the fact that it was game of the year by many websites and magazines and it came to fact that this is one of the best FPS ever made. Alright, out with the bad. The grapics. While a lot is in detail it still dosent look very good. But luckily even a person like me (which is not very often) got used to the grapics. The gameplay and shooting part of the game is also suprisingly not the best part either. When you start to shoot someone you can easily geed confused and start not knowing what your shooting at. When your in a battle with three or more people its almost suicied (Which i guess is realistic but thats not the point). Luckily though you will probably place your shots in more steathy ways, or just sneak past the guys. The freedom to choose how to take on your missions is awesome. You may just unlock a door (wasting a lockopick) and then find a ventilation shaft right by you that you could have sneaked in. Also the aditions of agumentions is amazing. It makes it feel more like a RPG with skills and augs that you can upgrade and add. The overall best thing about this game is storyline. At one point your trusting one person than not knowing who to trust. I wont give anything away but just trust me on this one, ok? The sound is ok, standard music for differnt secences like battles and the voice overs are also a plus. But the sounds for things like braking bottles is not that good. Overall i would highly recomend Dues Ex. A wonderful fun game that everyone should at least try.