Eidos Montreal released a pile of new concept art for Deus Ex: Mankind Divided today, designed to showcase the appearance of "some of the major cities around the globe" in the game's unhappy near-future. The gallery includes shots of Barcelona, Berlin, Cologne, London, Paris, Rio, and several others, but it's the Moscow image which has caused controversy. Specifically, the presence in it of an "Augs Lives Matter" banner held by protesters.

That of course is a reference to Black Lives Matter, the highly-charged political movement protesting the systemic racism and abuse faced by African-Americans. The negative response to the adaption of the slogan, albeit in a futuristic setting, is that Eidos Montreal and publisher Square-Enix are borrowing the imagery too lightly, and being tone deaf to real world issues. Here's a sample of some of the criticism.

The response to the game's handling of politics in its marketing has been skeptical because trust needs to be earned, and it hasn't been.August 2, 2016

So it looks like Deus Ex: Mankind Divided has abandoned any pretence of understanding the social struggles it's appropriating.August 2, 2016

maybe I'm wrong! Maybe the new Deus Ex actually does take a stand on something. But only *the game* can do that. Not the marketing.August 2, 2016

This isn't the first time the game has generated heated debate. Eidos Montreal's use of mechanical apartheid, another politically loaded term, to describe the segregation of augmented humans in the Mankind Divided game world also led to complaints that the game was appropriating real-world horrors for the purposes of PR.

Executive art director Jon Jacques-Bellet te told Polygon at the time that people weren't giving the game enough credit as art, saying at the time that ...when we're dealing with serious subjects suddenly we re treated as little kids that are just doing videogames again. This whole thing is completely ridiculous. But as Austin Walker notes above, something being art doesn't absolve it from criticism. Quite the opposite.

It's possible that Mankind Divided will contribute meaningfully to the conversation about entrenched racism and the real-world violence it drives, but history tells us that's far from a given. On the one hand, gamers have fought a long-running battle for their medium to be taken seriously, and from that perspective difficult subject matter shouldn't be off limits. However, if developers treat raw, real life issues ham-fistedly, they should expect the same criticism that films and books receive.

Clearly this is a complex issue, and one which warrants greater discussion. I've reached out to Square Enix for comment, and will update if and when I receive a reply.

Picture how your city might look in a world post-Aug Incident. Grim, right? Well, so long as you live in Barcelona, Berlin, Cologne, London, Moscow, Paris, Rio de Janeiro, Stockholm, Sydney, or seaside town Blackpool (featured in the image above) rest that simple organic brain, because the Deus Ex art team has done the imagining for you.

As a means of showcasing their skills, members of the Deus Ex: Mankind Divided art team have envisioned the Aug Incident (where the world's augs were simultaneously driven to vicious insanity) via some neat dystopia-inspired artwork. Observe:

Apologies if your hometown isn t covered, but that might be for the best. I live in Glasgow, so my city isn t up there either then again, the art might actually be an improvement. For more Deus Ex: Mankind Divided artwork, check out Andy's look at its grim vision of the future.

Deus Ex: Mankind Divided is due to launch August 23.

Of course chortle Deus Ex: Mankind Divided was already gold, given the overwhelming amount of the colour featured in both this game and its predecessor. But 'gold' is a term that here means ' the game is done', and it's very unlikely to suffer another delay like the one that pushed it from February into the mechanical hinterland of August.

The Deus Ex Tumblr announced the news, with a lovely photo of the development team, and a big gold arrow pointing to the tiny master disc that houses the game. If you need more Deus Ex and you can't wait until August 23, why not read our impressions of the first seven hours of the game, from this month's issue.

Time travel to the cyberpunk world of 2029 with PC Gamer UK issue 295, courtesy of this month s cover star Deus Ex: Mankind Divided. Andy donned his own mechanically augmented power suit (I understand he stores it alongside his collection of onesies) and joined Adam Jensen for the first seven hours of his latest venture.

Elsewhere inside, the PC Gamer team gathers the 100 greatest PC games of all time. This is of course undisputed and naturally your personal favourite is ranked 101. Sorry about that.

Join us for massive previews of the likes of Witcher card em up Gwent and martial arts action role-player Absolver, among many others, and come see our comprehensive head-to-head supertest of the best gaming keyboards available today.

Issue 295 is on shelves now, available at My Favourite Magazines, and digitally through Google Play, the App Store and Zinio.

Then again, why not let us do the work by subscribing? Save up to 25% on the cover price, have each issue delivered to your door and treat yourself to our lovely exclusive subscriber covers. Like this un:

This month:

• Andy plays the first seven hours of Deus Ex: Mankind Divided.
• The PC Gamer team reveals the 100 greatest PC games of all time.
• Massive previews of Gwent, Absolver and more.
• Samuel explores the new horror of Resident Evil 7.
• Phil takes a hell march back to Red Alert 2.
• We put gaming keyboards head-to-head in supertest.
• And much more!

Building futuristic cities as atmospheric and intricate as those in Eidos Montreal s Deus Ex games is a huge undertaking, but it all starts with concept art. Here I ve collected some of my favourite pieces from Mankind Divided, which give you an idea of how these worlds are designed.

Mankind Divided s world is a lot more fractured and uncertain than it was in Human Revolution, which gives the game a darker, more dystopian feel. All this striking concept image is missing is some music by Vangelis.

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This is one of Jensen s new experimental augmentations, the pulsed energy projection system, or PEPS for short. It s a non-lethal projectile that, when upgraded, can target several enemies at once.

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Elias Chikane is Jensen s new pilot, replacing Human Revolution s Faridah Malik. He flies a similar VTOL aircraft, but their relationship isn t as cosy. Chikane is, like many others, suspicious of anyone with augmentations.

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Prague s blend of historical architecture and modern, brutalist structures is one of the game s coolest visual ideas; almost as if the city itself is augmented. It s also the first Deus Ex city hub we get to explore during daylight hours.

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Golem City is a ghetto for augs on the outskirts of Prague. It s inspired by the Kowloon Walled City, a densely populated settlement that existed in Hong Kong until its demolition in 1994. Here are some photos of the real thing.

Jensen hasn t changed much he still has his trademark pointy beard but his wardrobe has been refreshed. The high collar here is reminiscent of Deckard from Blade Runner s similarly stylish coat.

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The makeshift streets of Golem City have been decorated with fluorescent lights, sculptures, and murals. An attempt by the residents, perhaps, to bring some life and personality to an otherwise grim, hopeless place.

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Jensen arrives in Prague by train. Task Force 29, the Interpol-funded counter-terrorist group he now finds himself working for, are based in the city. Their HQ is underground, hidden beneath an ordinary-looking shop.

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Jensen visits a commercial area in Golem City, where the streets are lined with market stalls. There s also a heavily guarded prison nearby, and an optional side mission involves helping someone to break out.

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Prague is at the centre of an extreme anti-augmentation prejudice sweeping the world. This mistrust is mirrored in their aggressive, militaristic police force, who look more like they re waging war than keeping the peace.

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Even though they re living in a depressing cyberpunk future, the artists in Mankind Divided s world have decorated the streets of their cities with beautiful, abstract sculptures like this. It s the prettiest dystopia.

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In Mankind Divided we witness the aftermath of the so-called Aug Event, in which augmented people around the world were driven violently insane and millions were killed. This explains why many fear the rise of the technology.

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The city hubs in Mankind Divided are much larger and a lot richer in detail than those we explored in Human Revolution. In fact, Detroit and Hengsha feel positively tiny when compared to Prague and Golem City.

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When Jensen arrives in Prague the train station is attacked by terrorists. He survives, of course, and later finds himself investigating the crime scene. Which would be easy if it wasn t for the armed police guarding it.

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A slightly redesigned version of Human Revolution s combat rifle. The attention to detail in the game is remarkable, from its many futuristic weapons and vehicles, down to simple props like coffee cups and office furniture.

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This cluttered bookshop in Prague is owned by V clav Koller, an underground augmentation specialist who Jensen helps out of a tight spot. The entrance to his illegal workshop is hidden, naturally, behind a bookcase.

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A heavy police presence means tensions are always high in Golem City. As you walk the streets you ll see augmented people pinned against walls being searched and hovering drones with spotlights scanning for trouble.

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This is Viktor Marchenko, a member of the Augmented Rights Coalition. He s believed to be behind numerous terrorist attacks, despite ARC s founder, Talos Rucker, being opposed to violence.

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The game s prologue mission is set in Dubai, in this abandoned, half-built luxury hotel. It serves as a tutorial, reacquainting you with Jensen s augmentations and giving you a taste of the slightly tweaked controls.

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An extended look at a new level from Deus Ex: Mankind Divided debuted at The PC Gaming Show during E3. The footage shows a truncated version of a mission set in Dubai, starting with the option to choose whether to equip yourself with lethal or nonlethal gear from the get-go.

Next, Adam Jensen skydives from a plane without a parachute and lands like an anime character, tearing through the environment in a semi-stealthy, very violent string of cyborg ninja moves. It s a nice look at one side of the Deus Ex spectrum, how players can clear out a room with or without anyone noticing. Plenty of familiar staples make a comeback, but it all looks much more fluid than it ever has. Hopefully, this means when shit does inevitably hit the fan, the FPS battles will be more fun than strictly functional.

Deus Ex: Mankind Divided releases August 23rd of this year.