Many gamers have expressed resentment over the design changes made in 2003’s much-maligned Deus Ex Invisible War, the follow-up to the original cyberpunk hit. In a candid post on Eidos’ tumblr page, game designer Frank Lapikas reflected on the development of Invisible War, calling it a “cautionary tale.”

“And the truth about Invisible War is that I personally did not get as much enjoyment out of it as I did the original Deus Ex,” said Lapikas.

“Looking at Invisible War was a cautionary tale. The game showed us how some apparently simple design decisions such as universal ammo could alter the essence of what Deus Ex is.”

He added, “When you look at IW, all the staples are there: the future, augs, weapons, a conspiracy, dialogs, stealth, side quests, etc. Yet it doesn’t feel quiteright.”

For the upcoming Human Revolution due out this August, Lapikas said the team used criticized aspects of IW as a example of what not to do, when compared to the original Deus Ex. He further states that to the best of his memory, nothing was directly lifted from IW in HR.

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