This is a better way to recap games because it gives players control over what information they get.
Since the summaries in Human Revolution are written and are broken up into pages, it’s very easy to browse through the information. When trying to sum up a game, the developers have no idea how long the player has been away, whether it’s been hours or months, so they can’t know how much information should be reiterated to the player: Should they cover everything and include an ever-lengthening video at the beginning of every play session, or should they only cover recent events, which doesn’t help at all if you’ve forgotten the beginning of the game? The inherent flaw in any video recap is that players can’t interact with it they just passively watch and have no control over what is shown.
#Deus ex human revolution tv
People may be more familiar with video recaps thanks to sterilized TV shows, but video is time consuming and must be watched straight through. It also helps that the recaps are written. This allows Human Revolution to avoid the awkward moments that Alan Wake fell prey to, in which the game summarizes events that you just watched. Loading screens during the game just show tips and artwork, so you’re never faced with this “Previously On” screen while you’re actually playing. This is the only time that events are recapped. The information is split into several pages depending on how far you are into the story, and each page has a paragraph of material. The recaps appear in the first loading screen, after you select “Continue” from the main menu. The surprise isn’t so much the existence of a recap, but rather how effective yet unobtrusive it manages to be. But as the game loaded, I was presented with a pleasant surprise: written recap that I hadn’t really noticed before.
Considering how much the central narrative revolves around mystery, conspiracy, and corporate intrigue, I resigned myself to suffering through a couple clueless hours before the plot sunk in again. I hadn’t played Deus Ex: Human Revolution for weeks.