The best Deus Ex game will soon be free to keep from the Epic Games Store
From March 14th, for a week
[audience makes "wohhhhh" controversial noise]
I know, I know! Some might argue that Human Revolution is the best Deus Ex game, but they're wrong, it's clearly Deus Ex: Mankind Divided. The last, new Deus Ex game to be made will be free to keep from the Epic Games Store for a week starting March 14th.
Head over to its store page from that date until March 21st and you'll be able to add it to your Epic Games Store account for free, forever.
As we all know, the nearly 24-year-old original Deus Ex is tough to play in the modern era, due to some rudimentary AI, awkward controls, on-the-nose writing, and long outdated level design. [Audience boos] Mankind Divided, meanwhile, is a slick modernisation of the concept. I'm not sure its side quest writing is ever as strong as it is in Human Revolution, but the open world, combat and stealth are all substantially better. As I wrote in my Deus Ex: Mankind Divided review:
"Mankind Divided is a new version of one of my favourite games of all time and free from the execution problems that hampered that last iteration. The levels are bigger and prettier. There are no dumb boss fights. It gives you slightly more agency over its story. The new abilities are nice, even if they don't dramatically alter the flow of the game. There still aren't that many games like Deus Ex around and Deus Ex: Mankind Divided is an excellent game like Deus Ex."
These are dark days for Deus Ex as a series. The Adam Jensen duology underperformed in Square Enix's eyes, and developers Eidos Montreal were then sold - alongisde all Square Enix's wester studios - to Embracer Group. Embracer, cobbled together from other studios and funded by investors, is in a process of yearning for profitability, also known as laying off and closing and selling all the companies they just bought. A new Deus Ex game has reportedly been cancelled in the process.
Hopefully the series rises again someday in the future. Until then, Mankind Divided is a great way to try it out.