Deus Ex
Hacker ApprovedImmersive sim in Games & consoles
People recommend Deus Ex for its freedom and influential design; the most common caveat is that it is not as good as memory suggests.
People recommend Deus Ex for its freedom and influential design; the most common caveat is that it is not as good as memory suggests.
39 people gave an opinion
- recommend it
- 38
- criticize it
- 1
- approval share
- 97%
Recommended in 10 of 13 months
- November 2025: not recommended
- December 2025: recommended
- January 2026: recommended
- February 2026: recommended
- March 2026: recommended
- April 2026: not recommended
- May 2026: recommended
- June 2026: recommended
- July 2026: recommended
- August 2026: recommended
- September 2026: recommended
- October 2026: recommended
- November 2026: not recommended (month in progress)
Why it carries the badge
- 38 people recommend itNeeds 10 or more, met.
- 38 recommenders for every criticNeeds 2 to 1 or better, met.
- Recommended in 10 of 13 monthsNeeds 4 or more, met.
The same three rules apply to every product, and the badge can’t be bought. How the badge works
What people say about it
The reasons people give, with the number of comments that give each one. Open a reason to read what they said.
Why people recommend it
Each mark is one comment
Loyal fans who replay it
“the OG Deus EX is by far the better game and one of the best games of all time”
Comment from 22 Aug 2026 in “The Prague of Deus Ex: Mankind Divided” “Each time someone mention Deus Ex, someone reinstall it.”
Comment from 18 Aug 2026 in “Deus Ex creator Warren Spector is retiring from game development” “By far one of my favorite franchises”
Comment from 21 Aug 2026 in “The Prague of Deus Ex: Mankind Divided” - Comment from 18 Aug 2026 in “Deus Ex creator Warren Spector is retiring from game development”
- Comment from 25 Jun 2026 in “John Carmack on the mistakes around Quake that ruined id software”
- Comment from 19 Aug 2026 in “Deus Ex creator Warren Spector is retiring from game development”
Pioneered the immersive sim genre
“Spector being the progenitor of 2 entire very rich single player genres with Thief and DeusEx”
Comment from 18 Aug 2026 in “Deus Ex creator Warren Spector is retiring from game development” “Deus Ex is Ultima X, it picked up and relit the torch that Ultima IX dropped in a puddle.”
Comment from 18 Aug 2026 in “Deus Ex creator Warren Spector is retiring from game development” “The Immersive Sim genre that he effectively pioneered is so underrated.”
Comment from 18 Aug 2026 in “Deus Ex creator Warren Spector is retiring from game development” - Comment from 18 Aug 2026 in “Deus Ex creator Warren Spector is retiring from game development”
- Comment from 21 Feb 2026 in “EDuke32 – Duke Nukem 3D (Open-Source)”
Open, freeform player choice
“the first Deus Ex (same engine) it's almost an open world game with slight gaps”
Comment from 14 Jan 2026 in “Max Payne – two decades later – Graphics Critique” “so much player freedom that the devs actually accounted for”
Comment from 18 Aug 2026 in “Deus Ex creator Warren Spector is retiring from game development” “anything in between - and have different outcomes/endings”
Comment from 27 May 2026 in “Ask HN: What game have you replayed more times than any other?” - Comment from 14 Jan 2026 in “Max Payne – two decades later – Graphics Critique”
Still holds up today
“stock mesh/texture Deus Ex has staying-power partly because everything is visually cohesive”
Comment from 25 Sep 2026 in “2DWillNeverDie” “The really old games mostly work fine (e.g. system shock 2, original Deus Ex)”
Comment from 14 Dec 2025 in “RemoveWindowsAI” “I did replay Deus Ex a few years ago and it still holds up”
Comment from 25 Sep 2026 in “2DWillNeverDie”
What people warn about
Each mark is one comment
Not as good as remembered
“Original Syndicate or Deus Ex - while playable - is not what I remember it to be”
Comment from 14 Nov 2025 in “Steam Machine” “the Deus Ex in my head was always far better than the one in reality”
Comment from 18 Aug 2026 in “Deus Ex creator Warren Spector is retiring from game development”
What people said
40 of the 46 comments that mention it, newest first. Each links to the original comment.
“quake 3, unreal tournament 99 and Deus ex alone justified the voodoo card purchase”
“stock mesh/texture Deus Ex has staying-power partly because everything is visually cohesive”
“Deus Ex with GMDX plays great even with just a 1280x780 resolution.”
“I did replay Deus Ex a few years ago and it still holds up”
“Max Payne and Deus Ex played great”
“the OG Deus EX is by far the better game and one of the best games of all time”
“I think some of that feeling was just being a kid and seeing something that kind of amazing for the first time.”
“By far one of my favorite franchises”
“I loved the original Deus ex”
“Each time someone mention Deus Ex, someone reinstall it.”
“an absolutely fantastic game (most notably the first part)”
“Somehow it was more immersive and engaging than any recent AAA game.”
“Later generations might not understand just how groundbreaking it was.”
“Deus Ex is Ultima X, it picked up and relit the torch that Ultima IX dropped in a puddle.”
“loved Deus Ex and Warren Spector”
“The Immersive Sim genre that he effectively pioneered is so underrated.”
“so much player freedom that the devs actually accounted for”
“Deus Ex seems relatively linear in comparison, but at the time it felt completely different to any FPS I had played before.”
“Spector being the progenitor of 2 entire very rich single player genres with Thief and DeusEx”
“I wonder what made it so magic.”
“they never quite captured the magic of Deus Ex 1”
“My best gaming experience ever.”
“A masterpiece that relies on my imagination just hits different.”
“absolutely hilarious mechanics”
“the Deus Ex in my head was always far better than the one in reality”
“overall feel and venues for character/equipment development fit my gaming style perfectly”
“The original Deus Ex also had some great tracker music.”
“the games are more interesting imo”
“I really loved the first one”
“Deus Ex is of course much better”
“anything in between - and have different outcomes/endings”
“an urban explorer in a way that Deus Ex would later capture”
“This is the Helios ending from Deus Ex”
“I still love the difficulty level menu from the original Deus Ex”
“I really like SS2 (and Thief 1 & 2, and Deus Ex for that matter)”
“it almost was an open world game”
“the first Deus Ex (same engine) it's almost an open world game with slight gaps”
“it had tons of secrets and it ran on a potato”
“The really old games mostly work fine (e.g. system shock 2, original Deus Ex)”
“Original Syndicate or Deus Ex - while playable - is not what I remember it to be”
Counts come from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026. How we count. Report a mistake.