Jenesis on 12/8/2003 at 15:32
Like *Zaccheus*, I, too, have just started Deus Ex - those of you who read the TTLG UK meet thread will have noted that I felt I couldn't really not by DX and Thief II while I was there. I don't want to post in *Zaccheus*'s thread lest I come across some spoilers. But I absolutely love the feel and intruige of this game. Not had so much fun with a game plot in a long, long while.
The more I play this game, the more I pick up a Delta Green vibe (DG is an extension to the Call of Cthulhu pen and paper RPG, but can really be called an RPG in its own right, too). In mission 2 I come across an MJ12 base, MJ12 being an oft-appearing organisation in DG campaigns. I realise they're rumoured to 'really' exist as well, but DG is where I first encountered them.
Conspiracy seems to be rife - one of the MJ12 computers contained an e-mail from 'WS', who I was pretty sure was also e-mailing Manderley. Sure enough, when I get back to base, there's an e-mail from WS in Manderley's inbox. I didn't check the full e-mail headers, but they may match up. 'Walton Simons' is also around, presumably the WS in question. 'Throne/6G' clearance also appears in both organisations, both in relation to the MJ12 chlorine dumping experiment, and Reyes' e-mail/reply about what I later found out to be the 'killswitch'.
To cap it all, at the end of mission 3, WS sends an e-mail to Manderley stating that 'Agent Sherman' is being sent over to ensure that MJ12 operations aren't affected. Manderley's in on it too!
The after-mission e-mail snooping is almost as much fun as the missions themselves...
I'm now on mission 4, out to save Paul, and I see that Smuggler has an e-mail from someone claiming that in the early 20th century, America had 'already sold out to the Greys', the Greys being another DG favourite, semi-allies, semi-enemies of MJ12.
I'm sure you all know all this, I just thought I'd share my newbie's joy at making the discoveries for myself.
I'm going for a 'minimum force' approach - I've managed not to kill anybody yet. I've blown up security bots, and Dobermans shot with tranq darts seem to become carcasses, but other than that, no casualties. Except possibly for the guy I knocked out who ended up face-down in the water. I couldn't seem to pull him out, but the game didn't seem to want to label him as anything as unconscious, so no harm done, I suppose...
Augs so far: Microfibral muscle (Lev1), Aqualung (Lev1), Speed Enhancement (Lev3), Ballistic Protection (Lev1)
I'm wriggling in anticipation of playing tonight. Let's see if I can save Paul, or if all is lost. Just DON'T tell me, okay?
Fred Chook on 12/8/2003 at 16:11
Zap hostile dogs once with the riot prod, they'll run away and not bother you.
tomi1kenobi on 12/8/2003 at 17:32
Yeah, that's why I do, too. Or shoot them with stealth pistol only to wing them, if possible. Trangs are too valuable to spend on dogs.
Rogue Keeper on 13/8/2003 at 06:49
Quote:
Originally posted by tomi1kenobi Trangs are too valuable to spend on dogs. There are just too few dogs for one to worry about it.;)
tomi1kenobi on 13/8/2003 at 09:44
Not if you're bent on non-lethal approach. In Paris catacombs you can get tons of them but there aren't that much you can pick up later, since most of the enemies aren't carrying crossbows. For example, going into the NSF HQ for the first time is heavy for your trangs and you can run uncomfortably low with your supplies.
Z on 13/8/2003 at 12:14
Glad to see you're enjoying the DX story - the detail of the background plot and it's integration with the game world is (in my opinion) the best to be found in any videogame.
And about the point you made about Delta Green - it's not inspired by that. It's inspired by Real World conspiracies. As I understand it, part of the design philosophy was that even though it is set in a futuristic cyberpunk setting, the world must be *real* They didn't want another fictional, abstract fantasy/sci-fi world (Not that there's anything wrong with those, they just wanted a change) They wanted something in which every element of the gameworld was based upon real, existing concepts, whether respected and cutting-edge scientific research or paranoid conspiracies. To quote Warren Spector - "If it's in the game, somebody, somewhere, believes it." That, to me, is one of the major attractions of this game. But also note that the concepts in the game are not simply identical rehashes of existing concepts. The writers often put a different spin on things to make them more interesting, but they are still recognisable.
There is also a kind of in-joke/superstition among Deus Ex fans that the game has actually predicited a large number of future events, such as scientific advances, conflicts between particular countries, and other key events. It's kind of eerie sometimes.
Glad you're enjoying it.
Z
Rogue Keeper on 13/8/2003 at 12:36
Quote:
Originally posted by tomi1kenobi Not if you're bent on non-lethal approach. ... going into the NSF HQ for the first time is heavy for your trangs and you can run uncomfortably low with your supplies. And you call that "non-lethal" approach? ;)
If one relies heavily on tranq darts, it's sure he can eventually run out of them.
chris the cynic on 13/8/2003 at 12:51
A word on clearances
The clearances are based on the 9 order angel model, those seen in the game are
Angel/0A
Archangel/1B
Principal/2C
Domination/5F
Throne/6G
Seraphic/8X
God (God clearance doesn't appear to have a number/letter combination, in fact the existence seems to be hidden as the UNATCO handbook only says there are 9 levels.)
The full list would be:
Angel/0A
Archangel/1B
Principal/2C
Power/3D
Virtue/4E
Domination/5F
Throne/6G
Cherub/7H
Seraphic/8X
God
I add Grigori/-1α for the hell of it.
If you can't tell that's an alpha.
Grigori are (were) the tenth order, they fell out of the liking of god when they taught people the art of magic and had sexual relationships with human women.
Their half-breed kids are called Nephilim which would lead to a new clearance as well if I could think of a letter that sounds like it comes before alpha.
Rogue Keeper on 13/8/2003 at 13:36
Lucifer/3D ?
tomi1kenobi on 13/8/2003 at 16:32
Quote:
Originally posted by BR796164 And you call that "non-lethal" approach? ;)
If one relies heavily on tranq darts, it's sure he can eventually run out of them. Obviously. No one gets killed. Hence; non-lethal.
I've never ran out of trangs, but simply felt uneasy about how many I still have. They are my priority distance ammo.
Haven't ever calculated how much I use which weapon on baddies but roughly:
Baton 35%, trangs 25%, prod 10%- then the rest, combined with gas etc.
And please don't patronise me with your comments ('If one relies...'). I'm perfectly capable thinking myself, thank you:idea: :rolleyes:
