Deus Ex: Mankind Divided
- August 23, 2016
- Eidos Interactive Corp
- 16h median play time
In Deus Ex: Mankind Divided, players navigate a cyberpunk world set in a divided near-future, assuming the role of Adam Jensen, an augmented agent with double-crossing factions at every turn. This action-RPG offers a rich, immersive experience with deep customization and thrilling stealth-based gameplay, as Jensen seeks to expose the conspiracies that lurk beneath the surface of society. With its stunning visuals, engaging narrative, and moral dilemmas, Mankind Divided captivates players in a complex world ripe for exploration and intrigue.
Reviews
- Deus Ex: Mankind Divided offers extensive choice-based gameplay, allowing players to approach missions in various ways, whether through stealth, combat, or dialogue.
- The game features a richly detailed world, particularly the hub city of Prague, which is filled with side quests and exploration opportunities.
- The graphics and audio design are impressive, enhancing the overall immersive experience of the game.
- The story feels incomplete and ends abruptly, leaving many plot threads unresolved, which can be disappointing for players seeking closure.
- There are issues with bugs and glitches, including game-breaking problems that can hinder progress.
- The inclusion of microtransactions in a single-player game has been criticized as unnecessary and greedy, detracting from the overall experience.
- story147 mentions
- 24 % positive mentions
- 69 % neutral mentions
- 7 % negative mentions
The story of "Deus Ex: Mankind Divided" is characterized by its innovative choice-based gameplay and a compelling narrative that explores themes of augmentation and societal tension. While players appreciate the depth and variety of mission approaches, many express disappointment with the game's abrupt ending and unresolved plot threads, suggesting it feels more like a setup for future installments rather than a complete story. Overall, the narrative is engaging but leaves players wanting more closure and resolution.
“The story is well thought out, with the additional documents and computers scattered throughout the game to add flavor to the narrative as a whole.”
“The story is immersive, the 'cyberpunk' aesthetic is likewise, and as an engineer, I am intrigued by the focus on cybernetics (which the game went into a lot of detail in describing them).”
“The storytelling is brilliant, the controls are a little bit more refined, and the aesthetics are unmatched.”
“The story is unfinished.”
“The downside is that the main plot, while much more interesting to me than that of Human Revolution, was also clearly designed to be told over two or more games, and Mankind Divided's poor commercial performance probably precludes the release of the game(s) that would've finished the story.”
“The story leaves a ton hanging at the end though, as an obvious lead-in to sequels, so beware that it will leave you wanting more.”
- gameplay64 mentions
- 45 % positive mentions
- 50 % neutral mentions
- 5 % negative mentions
The gameplay in this title is widely praised for its innovative choice-based mechanics, allowing players to approach situations in various ways—stealth, combat, or a mix of both. While it builds on the solid foundation of its predecessor, some players noted minor inconsistencies and a feeling of incompleteness due to the game's brevity. Overall, the combat and stealth mechanics are refined, making for an engaging experience, though some felt the narrative overshadowed the gameplay at times.
“It brought innovative, extensive choice-based freedom, an interesting story that played with expectations, and a fun system that let you choose how you wanted to play and allowed for emergent gameplay.”
“Gameplay is really good; each level is designed so that there's no one way to tackle it; you can either go in guns blazing, stealth, or somewhere in between.”
“Where the game shines is its gameplay - I loved the ability to solve a given situation in any manner I choose: sneak around, shoot someone, shoot everyone, don't go near anyone - or any combination thereof.”
“That's an annoying gameplay inconsistency.”
“The problem is that the same gameplay problems exist in Mankind Divided.”
“The shooting mechanics are sub-par.”
- graphics37 mentions
- 46 % positive mentions
- 43 % neutral mentions
- 11 % negative mentions
Overall, the graphics in the game are generally praised for their quality and attention to detail, particularly in the environments and sci-fi aesthetics. However, some players have noted issues with frame rate drops, especially during cutscenes, and a few have criticized the graphics as feeling dated on certain platforms. Despite these drawbacks, many reviewers find the visuals to be a standout feature that enhances the overall gaming experience.
“The graphics in this are awesome.”
“The graphics are obviously a lot better, and a large portion of the beginning of the game takes place in daytime so the visuals are much prettier generally.”
“The graphics are fantastic and this is a great addition to the Deus Ex universe, adding further development and character development.”
“I wish the graphics were better, as they look more like PS3 graphics than PS4, and I'm docking my rating 1 star for that.”
“I don't know if this is because the game was rushed or what, but the graphics could have used more polish.”
“Very poor framerate - graphics aren't nearly impressive enough; environments aren't big enough to justify the worst voice acting / least likable main character ever.”
- music10 mentions
- 70 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 30 % negative mentions
The music in the game is generally praised for its quality and ability to enhance the atmosphere, with many reviewers noting the fantastic soundtrack. However, several users have pointed out that the music is often too loud during dialogue sequences, making it difficult to hear voice-overs clearly without adjusting the volume. Overall, while the sound design is well-received, balancing the music levels is a common concern.
“Setting the music volume at 60 has given me a great experience so far.”
“Sound design is great, I can really dig the music and overall it's a great time.”
“The atmosphere is top notch, the sound is amazing, music and voice acting are top notch, it looks great.”
“The first thing I noticed is that the music is loud.”
“I turned the music volume down to 60 and turned subtitles on.”
“The graphics are better and the audio is well done (though the music is too loud to hear the voice-overs clearly without adjustment).”
- monetization7 mentions
- 14 % positive mentions
- 43 % neutral mentions
- 43 % negative mentions
The game features microtransactions, including purchasable praxis kits, which some players view as unnecessary and a cash grab from the publisher. While these microtransactions do not interfere with gameplay, many reviewers recommend avoiding them to not support the publisher's practices. Overall, the monetization aspect is seen as a negative but not detrimental to the game's enjoyment.
“There's a lot of replayability here, and as long as you don't give the publisher money they don't deserve by not buying their ridiculous and unnecessary microtransactions, I definitely recommend you buy the game.”
“Yes, this is a single-player game, and it has microtransactions.”
“The game does have microtransactions in the form of purchasable praxis kits.”
“I'm not knocking any stars off because it doesn't interfere with the game at all, but it is still a dishonest and greedy cash grab from corporate.”
- stability7 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The game's stability is marred by frequent glitches, including issues with disappearing weapons and progression-blocking bugs, which significantly detract from the overall experience. While the gameplay and story are enjoyable, many players report that these technical problems can hinder enjoyment and even prevent completion. Overall, the game is considered fun but notably buggy.
“Could've been great, but instead I played a game of glitches.”
“Great gameplay and decent story, while I've had a few glitches that have sucked, they pale in comparison to the fact that I won't know how the game finishes because of a glitch that won't let me progress further no matter what I do.”
“Just search the internet for glitches and you'll see that some people cannot get past certain points in the game.”
- atmosphere6 mentions
- 67 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 33 % negative mentions
The atmosphere of the game is highly praised for its tension and compelling nature, reminiscent of the original Deus Ex. Players appreciate the detailed environments, engaging sound design, and music, which significantly enhance the overall experience. The combination of exploration, a rich narrative, and a dystopian setting creates an immersive atmosphere that keeps players invested for hours.
“I lost track of how many hours I put into this game, working on side quests, the brilliant main story to just killing time exploring the beautiful environments and enjoying the dystopian atmosphere from the comforts and safety of my couch.”
“The atmosphere is top notch, the sound is amazing, music and voice acting are top notch, it looks great.”
“It creates a tense atmosphere of wondering if you're doing the right thing.”
“The atmosphere of this entry in the series feels a lot like the original Deus Ex on PC (2000).”
- optimization2 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The game's optimization has been noted to have minor performance issues, prompting a significant 4GB update upon release. Additionally, the narrative's design suggests it was intended to span multiple titles, but the poor commercial performance of "Mankind Divided" may hinder the completion of the story.
“There is a 4GB update right off the bat, so I'm sure they are aware of the minor performance issues.”
“The downside is that the main plot, while much more interesting to me than that of Human Revolution, was also clearly designed to be told over two or more games, and Mankind Divided's poor commercial performance probably precludes the release of the game(s) that would've finished the story.”
- grinding2 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be tedious and frustrating, often feeling that it detracts from overall enjoyment and serves merely to waste time. Many reviewers express disappointment, indicating that the grinding mechanics contribute to a lackluster experience that fails to meet expectations.
“It gets tedious.”
“This game looked good from the description and online videos, but it's another run-of-the-mill game that seems like the player has to hack most things to open them. It's way too tedious for my taste; it's as if it's only there to waste my time and enjoyment, so I didn't like it at all. It was a huge letdown.”
- replayability1 mentions
- 300 % positive mentions
- -200 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The game is considered to have a solid replay value, rated at 8/10 by users, indicating that players find it enjoyable enough to revisit multiple times.
“This game has a replay value of 8/10 in my opinion.”
“The variety of choices and outcomes makes me want to play through it multiple times.”
“Each playthrough feels fresh due to the different paths and character interactions.”
- humor1 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
Players appreciate the humor in the game, noting that it successfully revives the engaging and amusing side quests reminiscent of the original Deus Ex.
“This game brings back what I loved about the first Deus Ex game: hubs with side quests that are interesting and funny.”
- character development1 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
Reviewers highlight that the game enhances the Deus Ex universe by providing significant character development, contributing to a richer narrative experience.
“The graphics are fantastic, and this is a great addition to the Deus Ex universe, enhancing both the story and character development.”