According to Eurogamer.net, voice actor Elias Toufexis, famous for playing Adam Jensen, confirmed a new Deus Ex game is not coming in 2026. He made the statement on Twitter, joking the people in charge are “psychopaths.” This follows his post showing four 2026 projects, including Bungie’s Marathon and three under NDA, which sparked fan speculation. The last main series game, Deus Ex: Mankind Divided, was released in 2016 by Eidos Montreal and Square Enix. Square Enix sold the IP and Eidos to Embracer Group in 2022, which then canceled a Deus Ex project in 2024 with layoffs. Embracer Group still controls the franchise as of now.
The Frustrating Cycle of Hope
Here’s the thing with Deus Ex: it’s a masterclass in blue-balling a fanbase. A voice actor posts a cryptic schedule with NDAs, and everyone immediately jumps to the most hopeful conclusion. And you can’t blame them! Mankind Divided ended on a massive cliffhanger back in 2016. That’s eight years without a payoff. So when Toufexis, who is Jensen for a generation of players, has to publicly shut it down with a sarcastic jab at management, it stings. It feels less like a joke and more like a shared, exhausted sigh from someone inside the machine.
Who Are The “Psychopaths” In Charge?
Look, Toufexis is almost certainly pointing a finger at Embracer Group. They’re the Swedish conglomerate that went on a wild shopping spree, buying up studios and IPs like Square Enix’s western assets in 2022. Then the music stopped. Their much-hyped $2 billion deal fell apart, and they entered a brutal “restructuring” phase. That’s corporate-speak for canceling games and laying people off. The Deus Ex project axed in 2024 was a casualty of that. So, are they psychopaths? From a fan’s perspective, sitting on one of gaming’s most revered sci-fi IPs while shuttering its development sure seems… irrational. But in the cold logic of corporate consolidation and debt management, it’s just another line item.
Is There Any Hope Left?
Maybe. But it’s a very faint maybe. Toufexis’s comment, while funny, reveals a deep-seated frustration with the current rights holders. Embracer’s goal now seems to be stabilizing, then licensing or selling its IPs to other publishers. Crystal Dynamics, also bought by Embracer in that 2022 sale, just announced a new Tomb Raider. So there’s a precedent for franchises escaping the vault. But for Deus Ex, the path is murkier. It’s a demanding, narrative-heavy, systemic RPG—expensive and risky to make. Would anyone commit to that now, especially to properly resolve the story from 2016? I’m not holding my breath. Basically, we’re waiting for Embracer to decide Jensen’s future is more valuable as someone else’s problem.
