About

Deus Ex is a cyberpunk-themed action role-playing video game franchise set in the 21st century about secret societies fighting for power and control over the world, with a focus on body augmentation and the in-world controversies surrounding it. The first game in the series was released in June 2000, spawning several sequels over the next two decades. The series has gained a large online following, resulting in a number of memes and a thriving fan art and modding community.

History

Deus Ex & Deus Ex: Invisible War

The original game, Deus Ex, (cover shown below, left) was developed by Ion Storm and released on June 17th, 2000, for PC. Over the years, it has received universal acclaim, often regarded as one of the best video games of all time. A sequel named Deus Ex: Invisible War (cover shown below, right) was released on December 3rd, 2003, for the original Xbox console and PC. Although the sequel received positive reception, it was criticized for being oversimplified and technically broken.

Deus Ex: Human Revolution & Deus Ex: The Fall

On August 23rd, 2011, Deus Ex: Human Revolution, developed by Eidos Montreal, was released for PC and consoles, receiving overwhelming praise as a return to the series' roots (cover shown below, left). A mobile game named Deus Ex: The Fall, was released in July 2013 for iOS and Android devices, which closely follows a storyline related to Human Revolution (app icon shown below, right).

The release of Human Revolution also saw the release of a tie-in comic book and novel. There have since been a number of novels, novellas and comics based on the series.^[11]

Deus Ex: Mankind Divided

On April 8th, 2015, after a three-day promotional event on Twitch^[9], a trailer for the sequel to Human Revolution, titled Mankind Divided, was released on YouTube.^[10]

On August 23rd, 2016, the game released on PC and consoles. Mankind Divided received largely positive reviews, although is often considered inferior to Human Revolution.

Online Presence

The Deus Ex series is widely known and acclaimed online, with a massive fan presence, including a Wikia^[4] page and a subreddit^[5] with over 39,000 members. On Deviant Art,^[15] a search for "Deus Ex" shows over 15,000 results.

Modding Community

The Deus Ex series has a strong modding community, found largely on ModDB^[6], particularly surrounding the first game. These include graphical mods and texture packs to mods completely changing the game. One of the most popular mods, released on March 14th, 2009, by ModDB user Trestkon, titled "The Nameless Mod," is a whole-game conversion including two new 15-hour-long storylines to play through (trailer shown below). The mod has been downloaded over 58,000 times in 12 years.

Memes

Deus Ex is consistently the subject of memes by its fanbase, with fans usually applying references and imagery related to the series to new meme formats as they pop up. One of the main hubs for these memes is /r/deusex.^[13] The top post on the site as of May 12th, 2021, was posted on September 9th, 2016, by u/smartbrowsering, reading, "My office email today feels like DeusEx" followed by an email reading like an email from the game, garnering over 2,400 upvotes in five years (shown below).

On May 4th, 2021, Twitter^[14] user @Nzzez_ posted a Think, Mark meme referencing the series, garnering over 2,100 likes and 420 retweets in a week (shown below).

Related Memes

"A Bomb!"

"A Bomb!" is a well-known catchphrase from the original Deus Ex game spoken after JC Denton kills a suspicious mechanic who implanted a bomb into Jock's helicopter. On September 11th, 2007, YouTuber^[3] OetkerMD uploaded a clip of the scene, garnering over 560,000 views in 14 years (shown below).

Jock: "Oh my God! JC! A bomb!"
JC Denton: "A bomb!"

The quote spawned a number of comedic video edits over the years based on the scene (examples shown below, left and right).

The Malkavian Mod and Dues Ex Recut

On June 7th, 2007, YouTuber MadGangster released a video featuring a Deus Ex mod called the "Malkavian Mod"^[7], which alters the original Deus Ex's UNATCO level, creating an insane and nonsensical experience (shown below). The video gained over 301,000 views in 14 years.

On April 2nd, 2009, YouTube^[8] channel Machinima uploaded an animation by Egger3rd^[12] titled "Deus Ex Recut," a comedic edit of the original game's introduction and first level (shown below, left, reuploaded by the creator in 2018.) The original video gained over 560,000 views before being removed. On October 24th, 2018, Egger3rd uploaded a remastered version of the video, garnering over 127,000 views in three years (shown below, right).

"What a Shame"

"What a Shame" is a phrase said by JC Denton after Gilbert Renton, father of Sandra Renton, gets killed in front of her, whether it is Denton's fault or not. On January 4th, 2010, YouTuber^[2] TheGameTree uploaded a clip of Denton saying the line in reaction to a character's death, garnering over 1.1 million views in 11 years (shown below).

The phrase has since become one of the most well-known among Deus Ex fans, inspiring numerous video edits, memes, and pieces of fan art since (examples shown below, left and right).

Sandra Renton: "Oh my God! Daddy…"
JC Denton: "What a shame…"
Sandra Renton: "He can't really be… There must be something we can do."
JC Denton: "He was a good man… What a rotten way to die."

"My Vision is Augmented"

"My Vision is Augmented" is a quote from the original Deus Ex game originating from a conversation between JC Denton and fellow agent Anna Navarre at the UNATCO headquarters after the game's first mission. On June 13th, 2011, YouTuber^[1] IlliterateChild posted the scene, garnering over 109,000 views in 10 years (shown below).

The phrase is often used as a snowclone in online discussions about Deus Ex, structured, "My X is augmented." The phrase has resulted in numerous video edits (example shown below, left) still seeing use 10 years later. For example, on February 11th, 2021, YouTuber fabioproductions posted a They Don't Know video edit using the phrase, garnering over 48,000 views in three months (shown below, right).

Anna Navarre: "My new partner, JC Denton. Don't tell me you're going to wear those sunglasses during a night operation."
JC Denton: "My vision is augmented."

"I Never Asked For This"

"I Never Asked For This" is a quote uttered by Adam Jensen, the protagonist of the third game in the series, Human Revolution. On July 20th, 2011, YouTuber purpleleantx uploaded a video of Jensen saying the line, garnering over 700,000 views in 10 years (shown below).

The clip has since seen considerable use as a reaction and inspired a number of video edits and memes over the course of the following years (examples shown below, left and right).

Search Interest

External References