🚀 go-pugleaf

gbayl...@yahoo.com (gbayles) wrote in message news:<82ebdb39.02082...@posting.google.com>...

> > If so, it sure is a long warmup. I've passed Hong Kong and am right
> > now in a superfreighter in NY. That's the seventh 'scene', perhaps 20
> > hours into the game, roughly half-way according to a game site I
> > visited, and the story hasn't picked up pace any.
> 
> You should be well into the story now.

Yes, I rather suspect I am. Such as it is.

> Is Sarah Renton still in NY?

I have no idea. I met her, but was I supposed to notice her?

> Did you meet her boyfriend? How's Paul doing?

Last I saw Paul was when he popped up in Paris and gave me the
killcode to Herman the German. Which rather spoiled the eventual
showdown with HtG.

> There are a lot of
> things affected by your choices. You won't see all the story branches
> one time through.

I have a really hard time believing that the other story branches are
so different that it's worth my while to play through several times...

> > Deus Ex is trailing Half Life in the story & atmosphere department by
> > about a mile, jockeying for position with relative light-weights such
> > as Unreal. I don't think I will complete it, I am already losing
> > interest.
> 
> I loved Half-Life but Deus Ex has more story depth by an order of
> magnitude or two.

Well, I disagree. It has more story, but you see every twist coming a
mile off.

> > I've seen, what, three apparent choices in this game so far, e.g.
> > whether I should kill Lebedev myself or let Wotshername the evil UN
> > hitgirl kill him; or whether to go out the window from my bro's hotel
> > room or escort the rushing idiot through the waiting *hordes* of cops
> > and bots.
> 
> There are a lot more choices than you seem to be aware of. Did you
> rescue Smuggler's friend?

You mean Smuggler himself, don't you?
No, I didn't. Couldn't be bothered. It's not like he ever did me any
favors, or ever was of any actual use. I'd still much rather fight for
the bad guys in UNATCO and MJ12, but I don't have that choice -
although it's obvious I will eventually get the opportunity.

> How many people in Half-Life do you get to
> have a conversation with - let me think ZERO!

?Huh?
You did talk with people in Half Life, though Deus Ex does have a lot
more conversations like this:
1) I'll buy the grenade for 1500
2) I'll buy the shotgun ammo for 2000
3) Can you tell me the secret code to the security system of the
secret organization Majestic 12?

> Now how many people can
> you talk to in Deus Ex? There's a whole lot of story depth revealed in
> those conversations but you have to do bit of work to get it.

Puh-leeze.
  
> > left through the window - and I just didn't care enough to replay the
> > section again) and neither seems to have changed the story
> > significantly.
> 
> The major storyline is relatively fixed. As it is in virtually all
> such single player games. But there are a lot a little sub-plots that
> have interesting effects throughout the game.

Yeah. Like asking Paul to stay behind led to me getting the killcode
for Herman the German. Not exactly earth-shattering stuff.
 
> > Or is 'depth' just deciding on whether to specialize in sniping or
> > jumping?
> 
> Here Deus Ex is two orders of magnitude better than Half-Life. There
> are lots of feasible styles of play and usually several solutions to
> every game problem.

You mean 'sneak' or 'toss grenade'?

> [snip]
> > Huh? I assume you mean that it's really Illuminati/MJ12 doing it, but
> > its the UN who's doing the actual spreading of the virus. In black
> > choppers. There's been no further plot twist since I switched sides.
> 
> Just what makes you think that? MJ12 has their own stealth choppers -
> you should know that from Hong Kong.

Yes, but they're working through UNATCO.

> [snip]
> > IMO as a veteran of thousands of deathmatches, there is only one way
> > of playing Deus Ex: sneaky.
> > 
> > There always exist a heavily guarded highway, but you *can't* go in
> > guns blazing - your weapons are too weak. Quake-style playing simply
> > isn't an option when every guard requires two point blank shotgun
> > blasts to the head to go down ('realistic' my ass!). Sneaking is not
> > only possible, but necessary and easy, even though it is not my
> > natural style of play.
> 
> Sneaking is my preferred style - but it is quite possible to go in
> terminator style with the right augmentations and equipment. Try
> again.

For ten seconds, in one fight. The right "augmentations and equipment"
are all time limited (e.g. armor) and uses up your energy like there's
no tomorrow (e.g. energy weapon protection). Sneak & snipe on the
other hand is cheap & easy.
 
> > Sneaking would be a lot quicker with a decent silenced weapon with a
> > lot of ammo, but only two of the 'normal' weapons, the sniper rifle
> > and the pistol, produce one shot kills (on bog-standard guards), and
> > the sniper rifle is perpetually low on ammo. And the enemies instantly
> > know where you are even when doing silenced distance kills.
> 
> There is a problem with all enemies withing a certain distance knowing
> your exact location as soon as you shoot one.

And that distance is the same regardless of whether you use a silenced
weapon or not.

> But you are quite wrong
> about the one-shot kills. With skill upgrades and augmentations a lot
> of weapons can be used to make a one shot kill - especially if you
> have surprise.

A more accurate way of stating that is "only if you have the element
of surprise". Then even the crossbow can take someone out - 2 times of
3.

> Sword, Dragon Tooth. As to ammo - there is mucho plenty around if you
> look.

Dragon tooth can take ANY enemy out in one swoop, whether they're
surprised or not.
 
> > Now, with the dragon tooth one can rush the enemy, but many of them
> > explode upon death, so killing with a melee weapon is often not a good
> > idea.
> 
> Only the MIBs/WIBs, Anna, and Gunther explode.

And bots.

> > ... ridiculously overpowered, e.g. the dragon tooth and riot prod,
> 
> Don't think so. In what way is the Dragon Tooth overpowered? Above you
> said using it isn't such a good idea?

The Dragon tooth is capable of killing any enemy other than large bots
in one blow - making it as powerful as a rocket launcher. It's not a
good idea to use it on enemies that explode, though, as you're close
to them.

> > Furthermore the sound effects, especially the weapons sound effects,
> > are deeply unsatisfying. The shotgun sounds like closing a book. And
> > all weapons except the pistol, the shotgun, and the (weak)
> > submachinegun suffer from shortage of ammo.
> 
> There is plenty of ammo for all the weapons. Methinks you are wasting
> a bit or not diligent enough searching the nooks and crannies.

I search EVERYTHING EVERYWHERE. I don't move on until every air duct
is checked, every door open, every guard dead or incapacitated, every
security panel hacked.
   
> > But, as I said, I doubt I'll ever finish it: right now it's only
> > bloody mindedness that keeps me going, 'cause the superfreighter is
> > BORING to clear out. 
> 
> But I loved the navy yard and freighter. There are so many, many ways
> to play it. Try it without killing any innocents - those soldiers,
> sailors, and chinese police believe they are protecting a load of
> vaccine from terrorists. Is it ethical to murder them? Don't recall
> any ethical choices in Half-Life.

I didn't kill any innocents even the first time through - which is why
I ran low on tranquilizing darts. Ethical choice? Perhaps, but
completely consequence-free ones. I could have slaughtered every one
and it would not have made a whit of difference - that I didn't was
mostly an attempt to keep myself interested by imposing limits.
 
> > ... The story doesn't grip me, and the action doesn't give me my daily 
> > fix of adrenaline. I'll take Half Life or Medal of Honor: Allied Assault 
> > over Deus Ex any day.
> 
> No problem. Different sort of game for different people, different
> moods. I set aside Deus Ex halfway through first time to run through
> Half-Life again. The darkness and gloom got to me.

Yes it IS dark. Literally. I use the 'flashlight' augmentation all the
time, as the entire game takes place at night, in poorly lit
conditions.