System Shock 2: ain't gonna work on Shodan's farm no more

Archiving saves, and moving on to level 4.

Stepping out into level 4, there's another Xerxes column, and I go stand next to it to listen. It makes for great ambient background noise. It kind of reminds me of some of the background sounds in Fallout. I wonder how a Shodan kiosk would sound.

Off to Bulkhead 41, to meet with Dr. Polito once more. Now that our working relationship is established, its time to explore these two new levels.

Oops, drained my batteries while listening to Xerxes. Weapons check... I can't use the EMP rifle until skill level 6!? Cyber modules are few and far between; I'll be happy to just get to use the Assault Rifle, so I'll focus on that. Time to drop off the EMP rifle at my weapons cache on the deck below, and visit the nearby charging station.

Bulkhead 42. I find the last and best melee weapon, the crystal shard, nice! Need research skill of 4. Crap. When I've maxed the right skills, it'll probably be a better weapon than the light saber. Making my energy weapon skill even more redundant. But first I need a few more cyber modules before I can afford all the research points I need.

Oh wow, my very first cyborg assassin; looks kind of like something you see in Deus Ex 3, with the visible muscles. What's with all the infinite exploding barrels? It's like Donkey Kong in here. Anyway, got my modules, got my research up to 4. Need to go find some chemical Y for the research.

Great. Now I need Exotic Weapons skill of 1 to use it. Darn, need a few more modules to buy exotic.

Creepy music on this level. I often wish this game had a flashlight.

I'm not totally abandoning energy weapons, they're good for clearing out garbage enemies like worms and zombies, so I don't have to waste kinetic ammo. Though I now have a decent amount of ammo, I'm still hoarding it in case things get worse.

Another vending machine I can hack; it yields medical kits.

Ah, the mess hall. Maybe now I can get my sodium.

Finally, a chemical storeroom with sodium! Oh, that's all I get for my trouble? Its just a psi booster. Not playing that class.

These sure are sensitive doors - they even open for worms.

Wow - I find a pistol with a perfect maintenance level of 10. It must be a pretty tough specimen to survive the entropy field on this ship that destroys most guns if you put a few magazines through them.

Another cyborg assassin down, more modules doled out to me; time to buy Exotic (and get all my equipment recharged). Strange, it takes 2 whacks to take out a shotgun zombie, but only 1 whack to take out a midwife.

I need to drop off some of my equipment at my cache. I really don't need 3 laser pistols.

Backtracking... there's another cyborg assassin, and now its a blue one (as opposed to red). That sucks - expensive to kill, and I got no loot.

Crap, it looks like the cyborgs are random mobiles now - here's another one mixed in with some zombies. At least it only takes a few whacks of the crystal shard. I wanted to know what key press brings out the shard (it's the minus key), and the old bug of not being to select an item has returned. I guess just even looking at that menu brings it out, even if I don't change anything. I wonder if I can do a mod manager fix while the game is still running. No. Well, crap, my quicksave didn't survive.

Since I didn't do a real save, I now have to do my inventory cache all over again. And then it hits me. I'm still doing this same floor inventory pattern in Deus Ex 3. Ten plus years of gaming into the future, and I'm still going to be sorting my inventory on the floor. Can't I get a lousy cabinet or closet to store my stuff? Why does Warren Spector make us into junkyard collectors? I guess on future playthroughs I won't be doing this.

Time to backtrack through the barracks, see if I missed any good loot. Ahh, more mobile enemy upgrades - the monkeys now shoot orange fireballs. It feels kind of cheap that the game knows I'm at a higher level, so it upgrades my enemies too. Add in midwives and cyborgs is a nice way to challenge my increased level. Upgrading the garbage mobs doesn't feel right.

Wow the music has really taken a turn to the creepy; its quite good. I walked up to a random console, and it was making the most awful squealing static I ran from it, thinking it might explode. Great job making the place feel frightening.

Found the first simulator - whatever that is supposed to mean. I was thinking something like a holodeck. Anyway, its kind of nice that Shodan has come clean about who she is, and is whispering instructions in my ear. Its like having a psycho killer girlfriend; sure, she fancies you now, but you know she's going to turn on you eventually.

I have enough modules now to go from Standard weapons skill 4 to 5, but I think I'll hold the modules for now, in case something comes up. I can't use the assault rifle until my skill is 6, so no need to rush right now.

Last time I was in the elevator, I had my growing grenade collection line up against the wall, and now they're bunched up in the middle. I don't think this game likes me storing items in moving rooms, like elevators and bulkheads. I'll just keep everything on level 3.

OK, this really annoys me to no end. Some of the implants and tools I dropped off on level 3 have followed me to level 4. They're just sitting there on the floor. Not cool. I'm going to re-load, and carry at least the ice pick with me; from what I've read, its too useful to lose.

Even weirder, on this next reload, my items did not follow me upstairs.

Later, I find an Expertech module, nice.

I haven't said too much about map design, because its good for its time, but mediocre for today. There are pointless catwalks and open space everywhere, that make you feel you're not in a real place. But compared to other games of its time, its OK.

Starting to see a lot more combat now. And its that really annoying kind, where enemies spawn at random before you and behind you, leeching you of valuable resources. I'll take that Standard weapons upgrade now; its a hefty 50 points to the next level after that but I'm half way there. I'll focus on that, for now, then upgrade more of my tech skills.

The enemies are coming thick and fast now, and they include these damn spiders that take a whole mag of standard rounds to take down. Anti-personel rounds seem to do better, and I was able to hack a vending machine that makes those. I have over 1000 nanites; I need to spend it on something.

The voice messages, and the story, continue to improve.

Ops override - no key card. I'll probably be coming back here some time.

Done with this level, but I'll have to fight my way out of here. Random enemies keep spawning out of thin air.

OK, time to dump some excess inventory, get a chem for research, get some healing, charging, etc.

I have enough modules to buy Standard weapons 6, I'll take it. I'm now maxed on that. Now that I'm all maxed out on Standard and can use the assault rifle, its time to seriously examine these weapon upgrades that I've been saving.

Reading online tips, it seems the way to go is to spend cyber modules to get Modify level 1, then use your French-Epstein devices to upgrade devices to level 2. I'll go along with that. Well, if i had sprung for modify sooner, I could have easily upgrade the shotgun and pistol long ago. Now that I'm at this point in the game, I'll drop two upgrade modules on the assault rifle, one on the shotgun to max that out. I guess I don't need my regular pistol anymore; I'll drop that.

Should I spend my last upgrade on the laser pistol, or save it for whenever I get heavy weapons so I can use the grenade launcher? It looks like upgrades on the grenade launcher don't do all that much, I'll just use it on the laser pistol.

Deus Ex 3 - getting to the top of the high score list

I take it back.

Those stupid achievement icons drew me in. They're so meaningless... and yet I missed the Scholar achievement and it bothers me. So why not start over, on hardest mode this time, just to see what its like. And while I'm at it, why not try lethal play, see what that's like.

I'm somewhat hooked again. Its kind of fun to just run amok, not stopping to read the literature or listen in on people's conversations. I've heard it all before, so I'm speeding towards the exit. And if a guard makes the unfortunate choice of standing next to an explosive barrel on my way there, that's just too bad. This time I'm not going to spend 15 minutes figuring out how to knock him out safely without setting off the alarm.

Its fun to play with all the upgrade modules for all those lethal weapons I never used. The Deus Ex authors spent years coming up with this stuff, I might as well enjoy playing with all the cool accessories.

I look forward to facing those end level bosses now with something more than a dart gun and a taser.

Deus Ex 3 - finished

It was a beautiful game, if a little empty-headed.

It's basically Deus Ex with better graphics, except the concepts and game mechanics are a decade older, and not so fresh anymore. Getting back the original spirit of Deus Ex is laudable, because Deus Ex 2 really blew it, but without doing anything new what is this really but a remake?

I'm not complaining too loudly here - there's so much garbage out there, that a remake of a good game is still a nice thing. And its hard not to hold the Deus Ex series to a higher standard. Think of the difference between Half-Life and Half-Life 2; same game but they really moved things forward.

Another thing that is not so good - when I finished the original Deus Ex, I couldn't wait to start over and do things differently, even more so than that feeling you get when you finish a good book and go back to page one. On finishing Deus Ex 3 I felt like I had finished some chore, and if anything I'd rather go back and play the original Deus Ex again.

Deus Ex 3: boss battle room [spoilers]

You can always tell when you are in a end-level boss-battle room. It's big and open, with lots of places for you to dodge and hide behind, and its quiet - a little too quiet. There is some trigger you need to activate (usually walking past a certain point), then there will be a cut scene, some frantic action, then you get your end of level reward, and you are carted off to the next level.

I just got to the second major boss, and its even worse than the first.

Spoilers? Spoilers.

The first boss battle requires you to kill. I'm OK with that actually. As much as I like to play non-lethal, and which is what this type of game seems to be really geared for, its not that realistic that you can get away without sometimes being cornered and having to force your way out.

But the second boss battle (more of a confrontation, really, but same purpose) crosses the line into truly shitty story-telling. You've got augments, implants, weapons, skills, experience, talent, and a burning need to find out what happened to your ex-girlfriend, but you let the end-level boss caress your face and push a dunce hat onto you and make you sit in the corner. I love the franchise, and so far I still like the game, but this little plot-point is a turd floating in the punch bowl. It's sheer laziness. I know you have to move the plot cart along the plot rails, and I'm OK with that, I want to get to the next level as much as anyone. But you can't just make me lie down on the tracks while you roll the cart over me.

Some other game mechanics bother me, though not as much as the aforementioned. Why does every other office drone's desk have ammo for my weapons? More laziness, more stupidity. I know you need to funnel in-game tools to the player so they can play, but put a minute of effort into this, and at least place the tools in a logical place, like a security office, or something. You're the game maker, this is your job to think of these things. It's not my job to justify why office workers are all keeping a small amount of various ammo types in their desks.

Deus Ex 3 : the music

I instantly liked the main menu music. It feels exactly right, it honors the past Deux Ex, while still being new.

In-game music is not so well balanced. There's a little too much call-back to Deus Ex music, so much so that it stinks of desperation. Even more jarring is the background music on the various radio programs you come across - they use a lot of Deus Ex music, slightly modified, but very recognizable. This produces multiple levels of cognitive dissonance. This is supposed to be a prequel, a generation at least before the original Deus Ex game. I doubt they're trying to say something meaningful here, they just thought hey let's throw in a little fan service. I appreciate the effort, but in a game context it really ruins whatever immersion you may have going.

Anyway, the background music in your apartment is beautiful and haunting. Between that and the ambience (especially when you first walk in), it feels very Bladerunner. This sounds like it should come across as really fake or cliche, but I think they actually got it right, and this is no small accomplishment. I hope there's a good quality soundtrack available sometime, I would love to just loop this in the background for days.

Deus Ex 3 - where do i put my stuff

RPGs are mostly about acquiring and collecting loot, getting a safe base to stash it in, sorting it, selling some of it to get different loot, and going out into the world and using it to get even more loot.

Fallout 3 gave you a nice big house early in the game, with many lockers to sort your stuff - this is a huge motivator for the OCD component that makes RPGs so much fun. Deus Ex has no containers you can put anything in. You can loot people you incapacitate and there are drawers and cabinets, but in all cases its a one way trip from their inventory to yours.

As a result, I'm sorting my loot on the floor of my apartment. Guns and ammo on the landing stacked by ammo type, grenades in the bedroom, food and meds in the kitchen, weapon upgrades in the living room, and cardboard boxes (useless) in the front hall. And though there is a well-thought out method to grab boxes and carefully move them around (for getting to secret places), you can't pick up any equipment and move it around simply. To manage your equipment you have to pick it up, walk to the destination, go into your inventory menu, and then drop it. And sometimes stuff rolls for a while.

For an RPG to handle loot and equipment so crudely really pours sand into the oil. Why even give you an apartment, especially one with a secret compartment, and not let you live in it?

An RPG is not just character development, its also loot development.

Deus Ex 3 : game physics

The 30 second plus disk load time knocked me out of the immersive state everytime. Fortunately this has been patched down to about 10-15 seconds, which is annoying but acceptable.

I'm warming up to the game's engine. Gaming physics engines are like buying socks that fit a wide range of foot sizes; some will fit you better than others. My most favorite ever is the Half-Life engine, and its a joy to move amongst other games with the same engine, such as Team Fortress and Portal, because it feels like there's no learning curve. When you can slip into a new game like its an old pair of broken-in shoes, any game you play that doesn't fit as well is going to hurt by comparison.

Recently in Fallout 3 I often felt mismatched, like my character was almost too short and the world was too big; which could be somewhat fixed in third-person view. Sadly, the original Deus Ex always felt like characters were floating a few inches above the ground, and not quite in the environment. The current Deus Ex feels better, but there are still some size and spacing issues.

I'm already wishing I could see Deus Ex original ported to the Deus Ex 3 engine. I wonder what its going to be like to play the original again, considering this is a prequel and looks so much better then the future in Deus Ex original (like the Star Wars prequels).

I wonder if there will be a mod scene.

Deus Ex 3

I picked it up yesterday at Best Buy. I'm going to try and stop accumulating boxed software, but I had a gift card to burn. When installed, it still integrated nicely with Steam, so that's nice.

I'm barely an hour of game time in, and its impressive. My system seems up to it, except for disk reads, but I can't do anything about that until I can get a SSD.

I'm still a little overwhelmed by all the newness, but as that fades, I expect to be totally absorbed by this one.

Fallout 3 GOTYE completed

I'm done with Fallout 3 GOTYE, or rather, it is done with me.

Sadly things ended with a whimper instead of a bang. The last DLC I played - Point Lookout - was some of the worst writing I've ever seen in an RPG. If I ever play through this way again, I should just remove that whole module.

Deus Ex 3 is not far now, and I've got a gift card to burn on it. No need to start anything heavy just now.