What ending did you choose first?

[Tomix]

I'm still torn between whether I should've chosen the self-destruct or Illuminati ending.

[☠Afro Punk🐴🎮]

all...

[Tusken GA]

I picked the self-destruct ending, and kept picking it every time I replayed the game.

DX:HR is the only game to make me WANT to kill off the main character. Not because he was an ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥, but because it was the right thing to do.

[Splinter]

I chose self-destruct. The other choices were choices others wanted to make for him, but this choice was authentically his. After going down the long rabbit hole of corruption and corporate backstabbing, I don't think he'd trust any of the major players enough to do things their way. Neither would he trust himself to decide the fate of humanity. That's why I chose self-destruct. It seemed the most fitting end for Jensen.

[L'Bryan∞]

Self-Destruct, 'cuz i has his own chioce. I save the game at that point so i can listen the speech again and again, as the Keane song.
I really enjoy the game.
The guy rocks.

[tarin87]

I picked the illuminati ending first and self destruct in the second playthrough.

[LeFrench]

Jeez, you all made terrible choices :)

There is nothing noble or self-determining by picking the self-destruct option...plus it's a bit gay, the whole have faith that humanity will do whats best. Humanity as a whole seldom does whats best? Especially when they have NO knowledge of anything, which is what the self destruct is. Destroy all knowledge of what happened so no one can learn from it? It's undoing all the lessons learned from this struggle that Jenson just went thru.

(maybe you all are hung up on the whole 'the hero must sacrifice himself inorder for the "right" or the "good" to prevail' trope, and are mistaking it to exist here. But I don't think this is such a case. Hitting the reset button and hoping that magically humanity will not repeat itself is naieve. Only knowledge can improve humanities chances)

I went with Hugh Darrows "choice" as i believe that the more information humanity has the more equipped it'll be to make the right choices. Jensen implies the people will fear the research, sure, but people only fear what they don't know, so i believe ultimately, people, armed with the knowlege of what happened will be vigilient against the abuses of those in power. And lets face, it, the real dangers were "those in power" not the technology itself. The people NEED to know!

But David sarif's option is also a potentially valid choice. You knock out a extremist movement (which is always a good thing), and tho it is a bit ominous the whole technology progresses unfettered (as i think a bit of fettering is wise), it is also inevitable that humanity will integrate technology more into their lives, so lets stop being little cry babies about it :)

Plus if you pick either of those two, you get to LIVE and HOOK UP with FLY-GIRL (that is if you saved her). I mean, c'mon, those two want to get it on it soooo bad how can you deny them :)

PS. the illuminati ending is the second worst ending as it once again robs the people of self-determination, as you can only self-determine with knowledge. The illuminati is all about cover-ups and control, which is antithesis to self-determination. Only if the illuminati were capable of being perfectly benevolent might this be a valid option, but they are a committee of wealthy egotistical people who have long ago lost touch with reality of everyday life.

[illgib]

I choose the self destruct ending not for the "sacrifice to bring the good upn everything" but because as Jensen said "Who am i to choose for everyone?" Not a sacrifice but an attempt to avoid that other people like Darrow or Taggart took the rule with people's fear of augs. The Darrow ending looks the second "right" choice, but you're a bit too optimistic because you don't consider the purists, they will took a big visibility against augs and research, leading to a possible new medieval era of science, you just see it hangin around in cities listening to convestations, the biggest idea it's that augs are somehow bad or accessible only to an elite segment of populations, leaving the others behind.
Looks "gay" to you, but after all what's left for him coming back from Panchea? What's the big deal with Taggart and his friends with strengthen powers? People maybe will never know what's happened there, but they will decide for themself if it's waht they want whitout no one telling them "it's a good" or "It's a bad thing". Free will.
At the end considering how Deus Ex and Invisible War were, every ending it's potentially "useless" but let's be a bit "romantic" (the old artistic term not the valentine's day one) and face the biggest responsibilty the self destruct choice imply.

[LeFrench]

illgib eredeti hozzászólása:

I choose the self destruct ending not for the "sacrifice to bring the good upn everything" but because as Jensen said "Who am i to choose for everyone?" Not a sacrifice but an attempt to avoid that other people like Darrow or Taggart took the rule with people's fear of augs. The Darrow ending looks the second "right" choice, but you're a bit too optimistic because you don't consider the purists, they will took a big visibility against augs and research, leading to a possible new medieval era of science, you just see it hangin around in cities listening to convestations, the biggest idea it's that augs are somehow bad or accessible only to an elite segment of populations, leaving the others behind.
Looks "gay" to you, but after all what's left for him coming back from Panchea? What's the big deal with Taggart and his friends with strengthen powers? People maybe will never know what's happened there, but they will decide for themself if it's waht they want whitout no one telling them "it's a good" or "It's a bad thing". Free will.
At the end considering how Deus Ex and Invisible War were, every ending it's potentially "useless" but let's be a bit "romantic" (the old artistic term not the valentine's day one) and face the biggest responsibilty the self destruct choice imply.

I'd answer your two questions as follows:

"Who am I to choose?"
Considering you just went thru a remarkable journey (possibly even saving many lives depending on how you played), struggled against the powers that be, and came to understand this particular powerplay, I'd think that qualifies and gives you the right to make a gut call (and not the suicide option). What about the many survivors on this base (some of which comes to mind are the nurse at the medic station. probably had a bunch of kids waiting at home for her)? Boom! screw them, because "you/we/them don't have the right to decide"!? Well you seem to have decided that it's your right to kill them all along with yourself? so why not go one step further and say its your right to let them live and let everyone deal with the fallout of knowing what's been happening. Thats what freewill is: "here have all this information - make up your own mind"

"People maybe will never know what's happened there, but they will decide for themself"
I have a problem with this statement, as how does a person decide for themselves when they don't know anything? Seems to me, a couple other buggers will simply fill the boots of everyone you killed, and history will repeat....precisely because you denied the people knowledge.

I will admit the ending montage does try to paint Darrow's ending in a worse light than i'm willing to concede, BUT before seeing that montage one can claim that the best option IS to let everyone know what happened, and let them and their freewill decide the next step, for good or bad. Humanity cannot make progress unless we face our actions. Thats why history is important.

[Rigatoni da Marinara]

Hardest and most meaningful choice I've ever seen in a video game. (I haven't played any other DE)

Darrow's choice was painted as something that might send us back into a dark age forever, but I doubted that would happen. People would eventually return to human augmentation. Revealing the truth gives humanity the autonomy to learn and perhaps avoid getting augmentations that can control minds. The Jensen who picks the destroy/suicide option seems to think that this is the way to let humanity choose for itself, but knowledge of the truth is what really lets people choose. Even if Darrow's option does make humanity create some kind of social structure and philosophy that prevents the use of technology, is that necessarily so bad? Does natural human life with all of its flaws have value?

Although the suicide option conceals the truth, people would probably assume that the brain augmentations were to blame and perhaps make them illegal. But they wouldn't know that the chips were intentionally made to control/stop people, so if they don't make them illegal, the illuminati could still use them. Even if they were made illegal, the illuminati could still use other methods to control people because nobody would be wary of them.

With Taggart's ending, humanity could fix it's tragic flaws without going too far too fast to see the dangers. Though they might not be wary of the right thing, the brain augmentations, if they blame the neuropozine. The illumaniti would still have their method of control.

Sarif's ending could be chosen because you believe that human existence, impermanent and full of suffering, has little value. Or that there could be something of greater value that we could create, like an intergalactic civilization that is free of every kind of suffering that we are doomed to endure as humans, or quasi-immortal post-singularity intelligences. What is an amoeba to a fly? What is a fly to a dog? What is a dog to a person? What is a human to a a god? Lower forms of existence that are relatively worthless. So what if the illuminati or other corporations-turned into gods, enslave people like sheep? But we, as people, are the authors of value. If we can't relate to something like the god life intelligences we create, how can we invent value for it?

They don't give you a choice of right/wrong answer, but instead raise questions.
I stand by, avoiding answering questions like these, saying "I don't know. What the could I possibly do about it if I did?"

[illgib]

But if i may add, the Illuminati were only a fake organization (Taggart said himself) to raise money whitout questions. At the begin Darrow, Taggart and Tay Jong were all togheter raising money to develope the tecnology behind Arion, Sarif despite his power were only a small character in the whole thing. At the end he was one of the few "innocents", he were genuinely following his dream of augs for eveyone whitout wrong or bad applications. He stopped researches over Jensen's life when they discovered his family background and the secret powers behind, he weren't one of the "illuminati" at all.

[Yorith]

The Illuminati in Deus Ex are no fake organization at all you must have understood that totally wrong TYM and Humanity Front were just pawns in their plans for Domination that is the whole point of Darrows ending that shows the world the whole truth that expired his father Martin Darrow was the Founder of Picus TV and that (as you have seen) is under the control of the Illuminati he just had a change of heart do not forget he was one of the masterminds behind everything that happened and if he wouldn't interfered their plans would have been successful.
David Sarif is the only one not connected with them but they atleast tried to pressure him once (you can read a email from Athene's pc in your last visit to Detroit the name "L. DeBeers" would make that clear if you should play the first game) but his solution to the whole thing would bring more lies into it. (blaming the pawns only because he feared the rulers ?).
The Darrow ending must even be the "best" ending and it isn't even included in the "timeline" (most likely with the whole truth Deus Ex would not be possible ?) the self destruct could also be more canon since it brings a new information era for Humanity beyond their influence (this part is canon) maybe because the truth/lies never came out ? (we are a curious race after all if we don't get fed on lies or halftruth's...)

My choice would be the one from Darrow's even if his actions were dispicable I think the truth must succeed at all cost or change will never come to Humanity as a whole.

Don't read beyond 2027 on these links if you haven't played all games there are HUGE spoilers http://deusex.wikia.com/wiki/Illuminati
and be more cautious here http://deusex.wikia.com/wiki/Timeline.
Maybe we will see more of Darrow in the next games this looks interesting "Hugh Darrow mysteriously disappears from Panchea, his body was never recovered in the aftermath of the Panchaea incident." since it isn't bound to a choice Adam makes.
But "they" haven't stopped with the research with Jensen's DNA in 2018 they were successful...

Do not stop with Human Revolution play Deus Ex asap one of the best games that have ever been created !

[illgib]

Hem, i alredy played all the series years ago :) I got some of the Page references and easter eggs (even if are years that i don't play Deus Ex)
But Taggart said himself that the Illuminati were only a fake cover to raise money, When Adam ask him who had to be blame for the crisis.
http://youtu.be/zn_7qTo1Z74
Anyway i think it's great that there are multiple ending so different, so everyone can do what fel right by his own morality instead of a unique pre baked ending who probably had made everyone unhappy.

[Yorith]

That is not true I don't read anything like that from what he says he merely stated what the Illumintati would be for the rich financiers from the outside and that the masses wouldn't believe a 19th century conspiracy theory (but this is true) even if he would say that it doesn't make it true he is just a pawn the history of "them" are clear they are behind everything that has gone wrong all the organizations Darrow Industries, TYM, Humanity Front, Picus TV, Belltower and the Tyrants belong to them and these are only the big ones from Human Revolution of course they would invest in their own companies...
Darrow just recently came to his senses and that only from selfish jealousy so he still counts and where do you think all the Human research subjects came from ?
What I am saying is the Illuminaty are real in Deus Ex not a "fake cover" they are the rulers and certainly not benevolent since you played the previous games you should know that look at the Notable members list all are in there except David Sarif who didn't wanted to be a part of them.

They are thankfully losing control in the following years and let me quote the wiki once again:
"But all was not well for the Illuminati, however. Between 2027 and 2052, their control began to erode. Plague, disasters, and the dissolution of the middle class weakened the Illuminati's grip on society. Most devastating of all was the rise of the global information net, which allowed people to communicate and exchange knowledge without Illuminati interference. The most determined Illuminati efforts—like the Echelon project designed to monitor all net traffic—met with limited success at best."
more reason why I think that the self destruct might be more canon still I would choose knowledge above all else but that is just me ;)
That is the great thing about fictional History you have all the facts not like in the real world where everything are lies and half-truths.

Yes of course that is the great thing about Deus Ex everyone can make their own decisions for "good" or for "bad" and wouldn't like it either if there was only one ending.

[Cuchi]

Sarif