Back in 2000, Ion Storm's Deus Ex revolutionized gaming by blending various types of genres (RPG, adventure, etc.) and environments, drawing heavily on cyberpunk and dystopian imagery in crafting its world. A PC-only release initially, the game later got Playstation 2 and Xbox releases. This Thursday, however, Square Enix is releasing Deus Ex: The Fall to mobile devices, which is fantastic.The original game became a classic by exploring subjects such as conspiracy, nanotechnology, hacking, body modification, and, naturally, the Illuminati. FEMA (the Federal Emergency Management Agency), a favorite target of conspiracy theorists, also factored into the original game, sans the internment camps. It appears the mobile game, which is the fourth installment in the series, will play similarly to 2011's Deus Ex: Human Revolution.According to the website, the new game is set in 2027 amidst "a golden era for science, technology and human augmentation, but also a time of great social divide and global conspiracy." In this world, "powerful corporations have seized control from governments and command the drug supply needed by augmented humans to survive." Neither of those conceits are very far from current reality.Gameplayers assume the persona of Ben Saxon, "a former British SAS Mercenary who underwent physical augmentation, is desperate for the truth behind the drug conspiracy." Saxon has been betrayed by The Tyrants, his private military employers, and is in search of neuroposine (Nu-poz), a drug used by augmented individuals. Nu-poz is in short supply and a global conspiracy may be behind it all. It calls to mind the great BBC Channel 4 series Utopia, which also dealt with global conspiracy, hacking, disease and drugs, though in the present instead of the future. (Utopia is not available in the US, so one must get creative in finding it.)Now, while there might be some skepticism over the quality of a Deus Ex mobile game, consider that it was developed by the Human Revolution team at Eidos-Montréal and N-Fusion, not farmed out to a mobile developer. Also, IGN's Justin Davis, who reviewed the demo gameplay back in June, calls it "totally legit" and "a complete Deus Ex experience."Judging solely by the game trailer, it should convey a highly evocative and atmospheric dystopia, which is precisely what science fiction and cyberpunk fans want, regardless of whether or not they big-time or casual gamers. And for $6.99, that's quite a lot of bang for the buck. And being able to play this on a subway, in a car, on a plane, or during any other idle time, is certainly a big upside to the game.The quality reminds me a bit of Moog's Animoog synth app for iPads and iPhones. Quite a lot of crap apps exist, but when I heard Moog was developing Animoog for mobile devices, I figured they wouldn't degrade the brand with a half-assed app. And I was proven correct: Animoog is an incredibly powerful and beautiful-sounding synthesizer, one you can't pass up at the price point ($9.99 for the iPhone). The same seems to hold true for the latest entry into the Deus Ex world.
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