AulisVaara
Fresh userFor me it's really rare that i do a non-lethal run, the game must make a pretty good case for it, in the recent memory i really enjoyed dishonored, deus ex human revolution and phantom pain. These are the kind of games that almost feels wrong to kill people. My attempt to finish the game without making any unnecessary kills or exploiting any serious bugs. Non-Lethal Gameplay (DX) Deus Ex provides the player with the option of using non-lethal methods to take down enemies. Except for one character whom the player must kill during the course of the game, the choice between lethal and non-lethal approaches is.
Back in the days of Deus Ex, the first one from 2000, going for a pacifist run was hard. Not killing anyone was very difficult and took a lot of creativity and careful progressing, avoiding boss battles, and going in for melee takedowns to avoid using lethal ranged weapons. Yes, there was the non-lethal crossbow, but you didn't have a shitload of ammo for it.
Much later came Deus Ex: Human Revolution and they wanted to honor the original and thus built in the possibility for a pacifist run. The only problem was that not only was this approach easier than going the lethal way, it was also cheaper AND gave you more experience. It was just the optimal way to play through the game, no need to engage with any of the shooting mechanics. I was so disappointed by this, that I never even touched on the next game (Mankind Divided) because in the footage they made it clear that going non-lethal was going to be even easier than before, giving you perfectly effective long ranged options on top of the already optimal system there was.
And now Cyberpunk has done the same thing.
It's so easy to go non-lethal that you have to deliberately go the murderous route. There are so many non-lethal options, from hacking, to melee weapons, to cybermods that make all your guns non-lethal. And even when you decide not to use all those options, important characters still don't die. You need to deliberately execute Cyberpsychos, for instance. The game protects you from going off the moral path at every turn and that just doesn't make for an impactful system. If you want to ask players to go the moral route, then that path should be harder than the immoral path but reward you with a better ending.
So how do I suggest the non-lethal system should work?
Well first of all, non-lethal options should never incorporate room clearing options. So the Contagion Quickhack should be a lethal one to start with.
Non-lethal guns should not just be assured by a cyberware mod either. I would actually overhaul the ammo system. Instead of having pistol, rifle, shotgun, and sniper ammo, I'd change the ammo types to the gun types, so power, smart, and tech ammo. Along with those three, I'd also add non-lethal variants for power and tech weapons: rubber and EMP bullets. Rubber bullets would be more effective against people with less cyberware and EMP bullets would be more effective against people with more cyberware. To make any gun non-lethal, you'd have to add a mod to the game and it will use the appropriate non-lethal ammo. Or in the case of smart guns, they'd simply target limbs instead. The kicker of course is that overkill and headshots would still kill the individual, even with non-lethal. Again, the moral path shouldn't be the easy path.
Non-lethal takedowns, non-lethal hacks, and non-lethal grenades should still be a thing and would be the more dependable way not to make any mistakes.
On top of reducing your options a little and changing how bullets work, the game really shouldn't hold your hand. No more having to execute important enemies, but rather having to put in the work to keep them alive if that's what you want. Make you work for that morally superior ending. Those cyberpsychos aren't going to automatically stay alive, so you'd better come up with a good plan, choom.
Finally, enemies who are not dead should be able to be revived, though how and by who should depend on the game's difficulty.
- On EASY : Unconscious enemies stay that way permanently, just like it works now.
- On MEDIUM : Unconscious enemies (with cyberware) can be revived by netrunners, if they have one in their team.
- On HARD : Unconscious enemies can be revived by netrunners, or just by any teammate that comes across their body.
- On VERY HARD : Unconscious enemy can be revived as above, but will also wake up by themselves in a couple of minutes (2? 3? 5? Will need to be tested).
For that last one, there will obviously be an exception for the cyberpsychos and any bosses. Defeated is defeated, you're not going to have to fight them again. Maybe if the devs can manage, there can be an animation to restrain them added to the game, but maybe that's too much effort for just the hardest difficulty.
So what would you get for finishing the game on the hardest difficulty completely non-lethal? Well, definitely an achievement (I'd call it Hardcore Pacifist) and the best ending in the game. Even if it's just a small improvement on the other endings.
In the Deus Ex franchise, player decisions have always been built into the core experience so that you can come and go as you see fit. While this applies to just about every system in the game, one key focus is on lethal vs. non-lethal actions when you're progressing through missions. Much like Deus Ex: Human Revolution, both styles are equally viable with a few caveats in Deus Ex: Mankind Divided, but — regardless of the approach you're personally interested in — keeping a non-lethal arsenal for most of the game is the way to go.
Progressing through Mankind Divided as a non-lethal player is typically a strategy reserved for those who prefer a stealthier, more complete approach to a bad situation. By working through missions without killing, you'll make the most out of each mission, because a non-lethal approach forces you to look for alternatives and hidden areas which contain plenty of valuable information pertaining to the mission at hand in addition to the main story.
It also means you'll be spending plenty of time with some of Adam Jensen's more unique augmentations too — like the TESLA, Social Enhancer, and Smart Vision — in order to put enemies on the ground while they're still breathing and make sure that key suspects throughout Mankind Divided's story stay alive to play their part. Such individuals provide an absolutely massive amount of information regarding the state of the world, and by eliminating them you'd be stripping yourself of that experience.
By avoiding confrontation and sticking to the shadows, you'll discover that you are almost always more in-control of the situations you'll be facing throughout Mankind Divided as well. Due to the intensity of the human vs. augmented conflict that the game focuses on, many missions you'll be playing through will actually tell you to try and retain a low profile in order to keep tensions from elevating any higher. So while it might be fun to shoot your way through a bank in order to obtain a document for a friend, it might not be a bad idea to sneak through and only take out a few bad guys in order to maintain both your cover, and your friend's.
Deus Ex Human Revolution Director's Cut Lethal Or Nonlethal
Mankind Divided certainly does take note of violent action too, especially when it comes to the main story missions throughout the game. NPCs and key players will almost always comment on your strategy when approaching missions, with many of them favoring the non-lethal approach in order to keep things under the radar. Obviously, this does depend on the context of the mission — meaning that if you're attacked by terrorists? It's probably safe to shoot back instead of sneaking around trying to knock all of them out (which, by all means, you're welcome to do).
While playing a non-lethal Jensen, you'll rely heavily on the Stun Gun and Tranquilizer Rifle combined with a few melee knockouts. Like the regular handgun, the Stun Gun is an excellent weapon for close quarters engagements that will instantly knock out an enemy. The Tranquilizer Rifle on the other hand requires a bit more finesse due to a delayed knock out effect — unless you get a headshot. Remember, you'll also have to hide the bodies of your enemies to avoid any direct confrontation. Their friends will otherwise discover them, wake them back up, and immediately come to hunt you down.
All that said, there are many encounters in Mankind Divided where non-lethal action is going to be extremely difficult to pull off without the right augmentations. As such, you'll want to make sure to invest in a few specific augmentations right off the bat:
Smart Vision: This augmentation is key to situational awareness, allowing you to spot and mark targets with the LiDAR Mark-Tracker augmentation through walls.
Glass-Shield Cloaking: This personal shield allows you to walk straight through lasers and enemy lines without being noticed, of which you'll find many.
Deus Ex Mankind Divided Pacifist
Hacking: In Mankind Divided there are three separate hacking skills: capture, fortify and stealth. You'll want to upgrade these as soon as possible to get into places you shouldn't be.
Remote Hacking: Like hacking, but from a distance. You can disable cameras, security devices, and more remotely — allowing for safe passage without being seen.
A non-lethal approach doesn't just feel right; there's an experience bonus for completing missions flawlessly. Compared to lethal actions, non-lethal ones tend to net you a slightly higher experience gain per action (like knocking out an enemy, or avoiding them entirely). Thanks to this additional experience, you'll gain access to better augmentations faster, allowing you to boost your capabilities earlier.
Deus Ex Boss Fight
It may not seem like the most rewarding experience immediately, but the non-lethal approach to Mankind Divided is certainly more rewarding in the long run. Not only does it help ramp up your augmentations earlier in the game due to a slight experience boost, but it helps to explore each level to its fullest while playing through your missions. The game's at its best when you're taking the time to slow down, evaluate the situation, and then execute the perfect plan, but, hey, that doesn't mean you can't go wild on occasion if you want to test out a few new weapons during Jensen's downtime.
