Deus Ex creator Warren Spector is one of the people giving a virtual talk at the Game Developers Conference this week. According to Kotaku, the creator confirmed he wouldn’t make the game today because too many people believe the conspiracy theories that were a vital part of the game’s story.
Deus Ex was originally released in 2000 but took place in an alternate 2052 where many of the real world conspiracy theories have come true. The plot included references to vaccinations, black helicopters, FEMA, and ECHELON amongst others, some of which have connotations to real-life events. Spector said, “Interestingly, I’m not sure I’d make Deus Ex today. The conspiracy theories we wrote about are now part of the real world. I don’t want to support that.”
Earlier, Spector had commented on how he was “constantly amazed at how accurate our view of the world ended up being. Frankly it freaks me out a bit.” Some of the conspiracy theories that didn’t end up in the game were those surrounding Denver Airport because they were considered “too silly to include in the game.” These include theories about secret tunnels, connections to aliens and Nazi secret societies, and hidden messages within the airport’s artwork. Spector is now incredulous that they’re “something people actually believe.”
The original Deus Ex games were created by developer Ion Storm. Spector left the developer in 2004 and it closed a year later. He’s now at OtherSide Entertainment where they’re creating System Shock 3 and Underworld Ascendant. While he’d “actually love to make a new Deus Ex game,” the IP remained with Square Enix; this is why Spector had nothing to do with the more recent titles Deus Ex: Human Revolution and Deus Ex: Mankind Divided that were created at Eidos Montreal. Instead, all he’s now interested in making are spiritual successors to the franchise.
Due to the lackluster reception of Mankind Divided, the Deus Ex franchise is taking a break. While Eidos Montreal’s studio head David Anfossi confirmed the franchise “wasn’t dead” back in 2018, he also said we wouldn’t be seeing a new installment any time soon. Three years later, we’ve not seen anything more. Spector’s spiritual successors may be the closest we get for a while.
[Source: GDC via Kotaku]
