Deus Ex is simply so rattling nice. I do know we are saying that so much round right here, however you possibly can by no means say it sufficient, so I am saying it once more: Deus Ex is nice. One of many biggest ever. And probably the most distinctive parts of that greatness is its soundtrack, which like the sport itself is nice. It is so core to the expertise, the truth is, that when Eidos Montreal dropped the 2010 teaser telling the world that Deus Ex was again, it included the unforgettable opening bars of the Deus Ex theme tune.
You may hear it kick in on the 40 second mark—and consider me, when that shit hit, it was like a bomb going off. I nonetheless get all a-tingly once I hear it.
(Here is the total theme tune, when you’re not conversant in it. Soak it in.)
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When Deus Ex: Human Revolution dropped, although, Deus Ex composer Alexander Brandon was not the person behind the music. The job was dealt with as an alternative by Michael McCann. In an interview with PC Gamer’s Wes Fenlon, Brandon defined that Eidos Montreal, which had taken over the sequence, wished to place its personal stamp on it, and whereas he was given a shot at contributing a tune to the soundtrack, it simply did not work out.
“The message from the start was very clear that the Montreal crew was going to personal Deus Ex. The franchise was theirs,” Brandon stated. “They consulted with individuals like Chris Norden, the unique programmer, and Warren [Spector] and a bunch of different individuals. They’d conversations. But it surely was like, that is going to be an Eidos Montreal produced and created mission and sequence now.”
Brandon stated Human Revolution audio director Steve Szczepkowski gave him a chance to do a remake of the unique Deus Ex title theme, with the thought of enjoying it over the top credit to tie Human Revolution, which is a prequel, to the unique recreation. So he did compose a observe and ship it in—however Szczepkowski determined that what Brandon got here up with wasn’t “the appropriate match,” a choice Brandon says that he agrees with in hindsight.
“If I have been Steve and I had extra time, I may need gone, ‘Okay, let’s all get on a name.’ As a result of there’s audio administrators I’ve labored with that sit down they usually go, ‘Okay, here is the deal, here is the imaginative and prescient for this, right here is how we deal with instrumentation, here is some element work with out telling you methods to do your job,’ proper? We did not actually have that [time]. He simply stated, ‘Take this ball, run with it.’ And generally that is fantastic. It simply did not work in that case.”
Brandon truly sounds extra disenchanted by Deus Ex: The Fall, the cellular spinoff that launched in 2013 and stumbled onto PC the next 12 months—probably as a result of he did not even get a shot at that one. Deus Ex: The Fall artistic director Jeffrey Birns initially invited Brandon to attain the entire thing, however Eidos Montreal “stepped in and stated, nope, it is gonna be Mike McCann,” Brandon stated.
“And I used to be identical to, I am unhappy. I do not like this. I might have even, you already know, styled the music to mix with Mike McCann. And at that time I might have accomplished a superb job, however that is simply the best way the cookie crumbled.”
I really feel dangerous for Brandon, as a result of the Deus Ex soundtrack is so rattling nice, however I can not be overly crucial of the choice as a result of Michael McCann’s work on Human Revolution is, nicely, additionally nice: Concurrently totally different and distinct from the unique, however nonetheless very Deus Ex. Here is the Human Revolution theme for functions of comparability, and it is nice, though my private favorite has all the time been the grinding beat of Hung Hua Brothel:
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For the file, Brandon does not appear to carry any onerous emotions about it, and he stated Szczepkowski was “throwing [him] a bone” with the Human Revolution provide anyway. “I’ve bought a variety of respect for Steve, he is very nice, actually respectful,” Brandon stated. “He did say, ‘Simply so you already know, you have had your highlight, and that is Mike’s flip.’ And I am like, dude, he is accomplished tv! I am a poor recreation composer! And sure, I labored on massive titles—in 2000. We’re years later now!”
It is comprehensible Brandon would need all of the work he can get. He is added quite a few credit within the years since Deus Ex, together with on some very massive video games. However he stated in the identical interview that he is submitted 50 resumes since being laid off from Stormgate maker Frost Big in 2025, and gotten one interview. It is brutal on the market.
