When Games Matter: Deus Ex and Its Dirty Trick

Last updated on: September 20, 2011 at 1:22 pm by Drew Dixon

When Games Matter: Deus Ex and Its Dirty Trick 2011-09-20T13:22:26-06:00 Drew Dixon

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

When Games Matter is a weekly exploration by Drew Dixon of meaningful moments in games. Operating under the assumption that games do in fact matter, Drew seeks to highlight those moments that have much to say about who we are and the world we live in.

Because I write about games, people often make the mistake of assuming that I am skilled at them. When I play skill based games like Tetris, Super Meat Boy, Trials, or even Bejeweled, I generally play until it becomes clear to me that progress would require more time than I can realistically commit. The type of games that I am more drawn to, however, are not mere skill games. And I submit that the more heavily a game relies on story, the more careful that game should be in raising the bar when it comes to skill. In fact, narrative-heavy games do gamers a disservice when they require an inordinate amount of skill from them.

Games that highlight narrative certainly can and should require skillful play, but if these games want the average player to experience the story that they worked hard to create, such skillful play is best taught to the player gradually over time. Additionally if the game gives the player multiple skill paths to take, those skill paths should be honored throughout lest the game deceive the player. That is exactly what Deus Ex did to me.

Deus Ex: Human Revolution gives the player options–you can play stealthily or boldly, you can kill enemies or subdue them non-lethally. The player improves upon his ability to carry out these various options as he progresses by spending skill points on abilities that help him improve in these realms.

I chose to play the game stealthily and non-lethally, in part because I enjoy a challenge. Playing stealthily requires patience and creativity both of which appeal to me because of their tendency to be absent in action games. When I first started playing DX:HR, I would constantly save the game so that if I made a mistake and was seen by enemies as I snuck around levels, I could would have a fail safe to go back to. After playing for a while, I realized that I was taking some of the fun out of the game by doing so. Part of the fun of games is learning from the challenge they present and I was not learning from DX:HR because I was constantly protecting myself from failure.

Thus after playing Deus Ex for several hours, I determined not to rely so heavily on fail safe points and to approach each level carefully, thoughtfully, and patiently. Before too long I was traversing a massive office complex sprawling with guards, cameras, and robots without being seen by any of them. I even managed to hack the office’s computer system and shut down cameras and reprogram the robots to attack the guards. In short, I had learned to play DX:HR skillfully and was thoroughly enjoying it. Though I am not a skilled gamer–DX:HR succeeded in making me feel like a pro.

My delight in skillfully playing DX:HR was shattered when I encountered the game’s second boss battle. Given the game’s narrative, it makes sense for some enemies to be more difficult to deal with and I don’t mind the game occasionally forcing me to take lethal measures. What I don’t appreciate, however, is when a game essentially punishes you for taking a route that it encouraged. The second boss battle required skills that I had not developed and play mechanics that I had not, up to that point, utilized. It was so frustrating that I very nearly gave up on the game altogether. I put the game down for a few days after which I picked it back up and defeated the boss. Guess how I did it? Creating fail safes … a lot of them.

Asides

Games

When Games Matter

Previous Post

September 20, 2011

Watching Politics From the Pew: Is Bi-Partisanship More or Less Christian?

Next Post

September 21, 2011 Making Sense of "Culture Making", Part 9: Power & Community

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Asides Elsewhere Featured Film Games General Culture Headline Literature Music Of the Moment Podcast Politics RetroPost Sports Technology Television Uncategorized Viral

Select a Month February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 May 2012 April 2012 March 2012 February 2012 January 2012 December 2011 November 2011 October 2011 September 2011 August 2011 July 2011 June 2011 May 2011 April 2011 March 2011 February 2011 January 2011 December 2010 November 2010 October 2010 September 2010 August 2010 July 2010 June 2010 May 2010 April 2010 March 2010 February 2010 January 2010 December 2009 November 2009 October 2009 September 2009 August 2009 July 2009 June 2009 May 2009 April 2009 March 2009 February 2009 January 2009 December 2008 November 2008 October 2008 September 2008 August 2008 July 2008 June 2008 May 2008 April 2008 March 2008 February 2008 January 2008 December 2007 November 2007

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz