[Deus Ex: Human Revolution] Augmented Humanity

We are in a series looking at the games in the Deus Ex universe. If you never played them or are a little rusty on the plot details, head on over to Wikipedia. If you haven’t played and still want to, beware of spoilers.

In this series we’re addressing the question presented in all of these games- How do we fix human imperfection? In this post we’ll talk about the role of technology in our lives as presented in Deus Ex: Human Revolution.

Technology is a big subject these days since it is playing such a huge role in our culture. Information is constantly expanding and high tech gadgets become more and more engrained in our everyday lives. But we’re still far from the kind of advanced, reality-augmenting, sci-fi things seen in Deus Ex….

…oh wait….

…so maybe it’s not so far off after all.

In Adam Jensen’s near-future adventures in Human Revolution, technology has become both pervasive and highly controversial. They have reached the point where technology is being literally connected to human brain and body tissue. This makes for some great gameplay dynamics for sure, but what would that realistically mean for our society? The game attempts to address these questions as the fictional world is on the edge of a new stage of human development that is closely tied to the power of technology.

The fictional world of Deus Ex brings up all sorts of existential questions. What does it mean for humanity to augment the physical body with artificial materials? What are our bodies? Are we bodies, or souls in bodies, or minds, or some mix? If we change the make up of our bodies, how will that change our identity? Will it redefine what it means to be human? Can we augment ourselves so much that we’re not even human anymore?

But nobody is questioning how awesome it would be to have robot arms.

The underlying assumption in all of these questions is that technology has the potential to improve us in some way. In fact, some of the game’s major characters belief that augmentation is a necessary part of our progression as a species and it would be foolish to ignore the possibilities. But still we’re faced with the fact that we are somehow less without this technology and therefore we need it.

The problem is that if we’re less than adequate without technology, are we really capable of making technology less flawed than ourselves? Can something imperfect make something that is perfect. Can we fix ourselves? Technology presents one possible answer to the problem of fixing human imperfection. But technology fails, it becomes obsolete. Even if we could make a perfect machine that would fix our imperfection, it would become superior and take control of humanity. This is why there are so many machine apocalypse stories. Machines that we make would probably rule over us better than we rule over ourselves.

The global struggles depicted in Human Revolution indicate that we need to figure out what to do with technology. I’d like to say that we still have control over it, but there are already cases of people becoming addicted to virtual worlds and getting injured because of texting while walking.

This does not meant that technology is inherently evil. Technology falls in the same general category as sex, money, food, etc.- it is a neutral entity that can be used for good or ill. Even today people are quick to label something neutral, such as the internet, as evil simply because it has been used for something evil such as music piracy or pornography. But let’s not throw the robot baby out with the digital bathwater. Wisdom calls for moderation and careful consideration with every step down the silicon road. Technology can either be used to better our society, or it can be allowed to run rampant even to the point of altering our identity as a people. Only time will tell what kind of augmentations humanity will choose to implement.

In the meantime, humanity is still flawed. Regardless of how our bodies and minds will be altered, we are still incomplete spiritually. Jesus has made available tools and adjustments by which we can be augmented to become who he intended us to be. Allowing God to transform our identity may not give us robotic limbs or augmented-reality vision, but it will empower us beyond our fallen humanity.

Human Revolution continues the tradition of a multiple-choice ending. We’ll break these down in the next post.

[Deus Ex: Invisible War] Choose a Faction

We are in a series looking at the games in the Deus Ex universe. If you never played them or are a little rusty on the plot details, head on over to Wikipedia. If you haven’t played and still want to, beware of spoilers.

In this series we’re addressing the question presented in all of these games- How do we fix human imperfection? This post will examine the different factions you can work with in the sequel, Deus Ex: Invisible War.

Games that end with multiple possible endings provide a problem for developers when they set out to make a sequel. The makers of Deus Ex: Invisible War solved this problem by essentially using a bit of all three and delaying the results of JC Denton’s choice. JC Denton does indeed merge with Helios and still exists, but the original facility is destroyed and his control is diminished. Centralized control of society is destroyed, as Tracer Tong desired, and the world is indeed set back technologically, but instead of creating a simpler world, it is instead plunged into turmoil. The Illuminati do not exert full control, but they still exist and have plans to make the world better.

As a result of the events of Deus Ex, the world has undergone some radical changes. One major change is that the biomodification of the human body has become much more prevalent and is not just in use by government agents. These changes have not exactly made the human condition noticeably better. The terrorist groups from the first game have survived the global collapse of society which becomes known as….The Collapse. These groups are distinguished by how they treat the human use of technology. The terrorist factions become organized groups that resemble corporations, each out to control the world in the way they feel appropriate. Let’s take a look at each and how they represent humanity’s attempts to deal with its own imperfection:

JC/Helios: While not formal corporation, this human/computer hybrid from the first game seeks to improve the human condition by making physical augmentations available to all people, thus creating equality. This outcome is idealistic because it would mean that humanity continues to control its own future, but with the help of technology. We all picture this as our future if given the benefit of the technology. But this also points to a deeper truth in us about what we want for our society. Helios is somewhat of a benevolent dictator that wants to both rule absolutely and help completely. The goal would be for all people to be under this one entity without any more human conflict. Many religions seek this goal and Christianity is one of them.

In the Helios ending, the Statue of Liberty is used to save the day, just like in Ghostbusters 2!

The Templars: This group follows the same thinking as Tracer Tong where humanity needs to be simplified away from technology in order to have peace. Consequently, this is also a religious group that has become a random assortment of various world beliefs whose sole mission seems to be fighting technology. The sad truth about this group is that they seem to be more defined by what they are against rather than what they are for. They believe in a higher power, or perhaps just human power, as long as it’s not tainted by anything artificial. They are correct in their belief that humanity needs to be purified, however they fail to realize the problems with humanity attempting to purify itself without any outside help.

The Illuminati: The mysterious society from the first game lives on and still hopes to justly but secretly guide the course of humanity toward a better future. We may most likely identify with this group since they seem to operate based on democracy and capitalism. However, their version of democracy is a hidden group of corporate heads that are not publicly elected. Essentially their stance is that humans can effectively lead the course of human history, just as long as it’s the most worthy group of humans. Their view of the masses is condescending by implication.

The Omar: These highly augmented people are so infused with technology that they resemble cyborgs. They have even replaced a part of their brains with technology so that they share a single consciousness. They operate at the opposite extreme as the Templar. They have so embraced technology that they seem to almost be resentful of their humanity. The way their collective consciousness works almost resembles the Geth from the Mass Effect universe. A possible fourth ending to the game implies that if none of the other three factions win out, then the Omar will rise from the ashes of humanity having destroyed itself to become somewhat of a hybrid that has transcended humanity.

Questions:

Which one would you choose?

Which faction do you think most represents where you see our society going in the future?

We’ll continue looking at the world in Invisible War next time.