Here's a quick and dirty take on the Deus Ex: Human Revolutions endings, heavy spoilers for the game. I'll have a more in-depth write up on the game in a bit.
Almost without exception, what Eliza said would happen upon the release
of whichever information was different to what I would have expected.
Now, you might put this down to bad writing, or you can consider that
the game is being rather more tricksy than that – Eliza is, after all,
an extremely advanced artificial intelligence created by the Illuminati
to spin information how they wish.
Darrow’s ending is the most extreme example for me. Unveiling the truth
would definitely halt development in augmentation and reveal the
existence of the Illuminati, but to lead to a complete Luddite
revolution? That seems like a remarkable stretch, plus the Illuminati
will absolutely have the upper hand in the ensuing new world order. To
me, it feels like Eliza could be trying to warn you off this path.
Next up, the “destroy the base and let humanity sort itself out” ending.
Hmm. So; we have the Illuminati still existing in secrecy, in
possession of the ability to disable augments in those who oppose them,
and massive anti-augmentation sentiment because they just went on an
unexplained murderous rampage. That’s just ridiculous. It also ignores
the fact that Malik, Pritchard and the scientists are still out there
and able to spill the beans, so... (Plus blowing
up a base full of people after my pacifist run just doesn’t jive.)
Taggert’s ending is less Eliza and more the man himself. I gotta say, he
sweet-talked me into his way of thinking, because honestly regulation
of augments is not at all a bad thing. Ideally they’d be limited to
those who need them; amputees, the blind and so on, rather than this
perverse bling culture and weaponisation. If Taggert wasn’t associated
with the Illuminati his ending would seem far and away the most
reasonable, in my opinion.
Sarif’s ideal is the most pure; it just happens to be one I disagree
with. I don’t view augmentation as a means of bettering myself – I like
hitting the gym, practicing things ‘til I get them right, improving
organically like that. His actually strikes the most significant blow
against Illuminati if you consider their ties to Purity First, but it
does so in a way that leaves a bad taste in my mouth. Alas, if only I
was more transhumanist.
