Deus Ex Go Preview

Deus Ex Go Preview

Square Enix Montreal is a hit-maker of the mobile space with every game the company has produced, each a mobile-focussed remake of a Square Enix property, outperforming expectations and going on to find a solid audience. With the third instalment of their excellent Go genre of games, Deus Ex Go, due to launch in 'Summer', we got hands on with the forthcoming mobile title.

First things first - it's a Go game. If you've played the previous two entries in the series, Hitman Go or Lara Croft Go, it looks very similar - you move from node to node of a level in a turn-based nature, trying to reach the exit. It's in a distinctly Deus Ex flavour here though, and you'll notice immediately that everything looks a bit more cyberpunk. In the version I played, these missions are clearly playing out in a virtual reality setting although the story has Deus Ex: Human Revolution protagonist Adam Jensen doing normal Jensen stuff like punching and sneaking.


The first level introduces me to a new threat, guards that will run to you as soon as they see you, charging across the map with armour enabled. They can't be hurt while activated, but will run to your position before returning back to guard mode during which you can hit them upside the head. Taking enemies down from behind is standard Go fare, but the animations here are classic Deus Ex, as tiny Jenson takes enemies down with aplomb and also his arm blades.

In all honesty, the whole thing looks great. The game has been designed with mobile in mind, but playing here on a tablet, I can see so many extra details. It's one of the best looking tablet games I've ever seen, and I think this fidelity will carry over to smart phones, too.


Deus Ex Go's big focus is on manipulation, augmentations and hacking. These ideas are new to the Go series and take inspiration directly from the world of Deus Ex. You'll frequently be using your enemy to solve puzzles for you, using them to open new paths, help you get past obstacles or, in some cases, block gunfire from automated turrets using their armoured torsos.

The augmentations are what Deus Ex is best known for, and the first you'll see is the cloak, which makes you invisible for a single move. You can use this to skip past obstacles or, if you're enterprising, you can use it to take out guards from the front while invisible.


Finally, the hacking means you can control certain electrical items, but as it's a puzzle game you can only control one at a time. The hacking takes place on a different plane laid over the top of the physical map. Later, augments will allow you to remote hack this from anywhere in the map.

Deus Ex Go looks like another winner from Square Enix Montreal, and more of the same for fans of the series, although with Deus Ex: Mankind Divided just around the corner, the series could find itself with a lot more fans when it launches, driven by a desire for a mobile Deus Ex fix.