The main story of Mankind Divided begins in 2029, two years after the events of the previous game Human Revolution. After the catastrophe with the bio-chips that cause enhanced humans to attack everyone, societies have split into pro- and anti-enhanced humans. The former groups began to congregate in ghettos where crime increased and the police became accustomed to abusing their powers. In an atmosphere of widespread social unrest, terrorist organizations claiming to fight for equal rights for empowered people began to emerge.
In the game we again take on the role of Adam Jensen. The heavily augmented hero works for Interpol as part of the anti-terrorist group Task Force 29, and also collaborates with a group of hackers called the Juggernaut Collective. Jensen's ultimate goal is to solve the mystery of the sinister Illuminati. In subsequent missions, the two allies often have conflicting goals, forcing the player to play a game in which dangerous decisions will be made that will affect the fate of all humanity. Similar to previous games in the series, Mankind Divided gameplay is non-linear and offers a variety of approaches.
The developers allow players to play in two main core ways: One is focused on action and open combat, while the other is sneaking, infiltration and silent elimination of our enemies. Enemies are now much more dangerous thanks to improved AI and the ability to work in groups. Rarely do we see a situation where the Guardians are on their own. They act in pairs against Jensen, even when patrolling nooks and crannies. On top of that, the developers have made sure that our opponents are significantly more diverse, and so we'll face opponents who use power-ups and exoskeletons as well as mechs. Much attention has been paid to improving the fighting segments against powerful enemies. During battles can now take place in a variety of ways, including sneak surprise attacks, full frontal attacks or a combination of both.
Adam Jensen has also gained a number of completely new skills. The upgrades in Mankind Divided are about twice as many as in Human Revolution. The hero can now remotely hack turrets, robots and cameras, and can also almost instantly leap meters upwards over short distances. The knife on his forearm can be used for direct melee attacks or for throwing smaller projectiles. There's also a power-up that incapacitates our enemies with electricity. As we progress, we unlock access to new skills that can be used during combat, sneaking, or both. But using them drains our energy reserves. Although they partially regenerate themselves when Jensen doesn't use his enhancements, their full regeneration requires special bio-cells.
Depending on our choices, the game's story can take unexpected turns in the long run. For example: In the beginning we encounter some criminals and if we choose to kill them you can be subjected to their revenge later on. Not everything is limited to this, though. The events of Mankind Divided are also influenced by the conversations we have with other characters, which allows us to resolve some conflicts only through diplomacy. This part of your gameplay becomes more detailed when you get the implant CASIE, a perk that analyzes the psychological state of the NPC during a conversation.
Even though Mankind Divided has great improvements compared to Human Revolution, it was much less liked and criticized by players than Mankind Divided. While the gameplay is very enjoyable, it has to be admitted that the ending is extremely weak. The game offers an average of 25 hours of gameplay with all the side content and if you don't do the side interactions, it will be very short. Mankind Dived has the technical infrastructure to be a standalone game.
But it also has a rather abrupt and uninspiring finale, more like the first episode of a game as the main story. This was one of the biggest reasons why it received negative reviews. Because according to many people, Adam Jensen's story was already completed in the previous game. The second game just left more unanswered questions and ended without tying it up. Regardless, it was one of the best series I've ever played and I'm looking forward to Eidos Montreal wrapping up Adam Jensen's unfinished story with a satisfying finale in the years to come.
