Deus Ex provokes controversy over use of apartheid

Deus Ex is a series that has never been afraid to take on the social ramifications of a culture advancing further technologically than its ethics can expand. Deus Ex: Mankind Divided will be an entry to the franchise that doesn’t alter path on this concept and it poses an absolutely relevant question to what we are beginning to see in our everyday lives as technology not only advances, but dominates our reality.

That willingness to challenge the social conscience brought the company under fire a few days ago due to the wording of a particular Tweet from their official account. Reading “Mechanical Apartheid is enforced. Watch the first Deus Ex: Mankind Divided in-game trailer!” the inclusion of a heavily loaded term such as apartheid was enough to raise more than a few brows, provoking Edios Montreal’s Jonathan Jacque-Belletete to respond in an interview with Polygon:

"It’s a form of art, the people outside don’t think it’s art, it’s just stupid games. We’re fighting against those people. And then when we’re dealing with serious subjects suddenly we’re treated as little kids that are just doing video games again. This whole thing is completely ridiculous." He went on to further justify the terminology as apropos by stating "Humans will be bad to each other forever, as far as I’m considered. Segregating people that one caste, things are wrong or dangerous or inferior is a thing that will always sadly happen. Obviously we’re not condoning it, it’s an analogy for how sucky humanity is and showing it how it can happen in the future that deals with the technology we’re dealing with."

The controversy surrounding such a term cuts to the heart of the argument gaming is mired in as it struggles to establish itself as a legitimate art form and vehicle for narrative.  Few would have this level of emotional debate if the term was being used in a Gibson novel or Spaihts script, those mediums have been established as legitimate, but as frustrating as these debates can be and as challenging and confrontational as certain phrases become, these are also the growing pains of any form of media as it comes into its own and are more than worthy of the conversation.

Deus Ex: Mankind Divided is actively in development and will be released sometime next year.