Mission 3:
Investigating the Suicide Terrorist
Outside the Sarif building, Adam runs into Megan's mother, Cassandra Reed. She tells him she was stopping by to see him and asks how he's dealing with the augmentations. Adam says he's holding up fine. She tells him that she's still not convinced of the police report about her daughter's death and suspects foul play, and asks Adam to follow-up with one of the investigators on the case, Chase, who left the force and took up work as a security guard at an apartment complex. Adam agrees to look into the matter for her.
Adam heads down the street to the LIMB clinic, where a receptionist greets him. She says that his test results turned out fine, and that he shows no signs of neuropyzyne dependency like other augmented civilians. She tells him about his augmentations and the usage of Praxis kits before he leaves.
Down the street, Adam finds the apartments and meets with Chase. He tells Adam about his work on the Sarif case, and said that too many parties were involved and too many details were overlooked. Chase says that the best lead is to check out Captain Penn's computer at the precinct. He also suggests that Adam check the lockup next to the station for the archive of case evidence.
After exploring the area further, Adam finds Brian Tindall's apartment and heads inside. As he's searching the apartment, a junkie breaks in and begins yelling for Tindall. Adam dispatches him and heads out. He finds Tindall down the street and asks him to give back the security footage of Carella. Tindall tells him that things aren't that simple, and that he's not selling neuropyzyne - he's giving it away to augmented people who need it. Adam tells him about the junkie in his apartment, and Tindall realizes that the goon was sent by two rival dealers who are trying to threaten him. The agent convinces him to take responsibility for his own actions, and he relucantly hands over the footage. Adam returns the footage to a grateful Carella, who gives him a reward.
At the police precinct, Adam finds his former colleague Wayne Haas sitting at the front desk. Haas is shocked to see him, but insists that Adam can't be let into the morgue to examine the body because of orders from higher-up.
Haas rails at Adam for an unspecified incident (the "Mexicantown Massacre") that resulted in him shooting an augmented kid and being demoted to desk duty as a result. Adam absolves him of his actions and says that it wasn't his fault. Realizing this to be the case, Haas accepts Adam's apology and allows him inside. Adam investigates the upper offices and Captain Penn's computer, where he finds that a man named Manderley bypassed the local medical examiner and is having someone of his own choosing perform the autopsies on the Sarif victims. Adam heads outside to the lockup.
Once there, Adam opens the police vault and finds the evidence, which include Megan's laboratory notes about a "Patient X" and her bracelet. Adam returns to Cassandra and tells her that the sensitive evidence the police hid was that the attackers were using chemicals to burn the bodies beyond recognition. He gives her the bracelet, and she thanks him before he leaves.
Back at the precinct, Adam infiltrates the morgue and meets a medical examiner. Adam lies that he was sent by Manderley, and asks if the neural hub is still operable. The examiner says it was modified before he walks off. Adam retrieves the hub, and Adam orders him not to bring it to the Sarif building, and instead take it to his apartment to uplink and transfer. Adam leaves the station.
At Adam's apartment, he connects the neural hub. Pritchard begins accessing it remotely and discovers that someone else remotely commanded the hacker to kill himself by accessing his system. He tells Adam that he's traced the proxy's signal to a control center in Highland Park. Before Adam can leave, Sarif calls to tell him that there is another transmission jamming Sarif's computers that is being emanated from a satellite in Derelict Row. He asks Adam to shut off the signal first before heading to Highland Park.
Outside, Pritchard sends him a message that an informant named 'Ezekiel' has asked to meet Adam. The agent heads to the meeting place and finds Sanders, who gives him a datapad with codes that he thinks might be useful to Adam. He tells Adam that as far as he's concerned, his debt is paid.
Adam continues on to Derelict Row and dispatches several gang members on the way to the dish. Once he shuts it down, Sarif radios to say that the signal is off, and Malik arrives on the roof to pick him up. With that, he heads towards Highland Park...
Tropes:
- Absurdly Spacious Sewer: The sewers underneath the city can easily be traversed and are tall enough for a person to stand in.
- The Atoner: Haas, who still blames himself for the Mexicantown incident. One of the possible ways to complete the speech challenge with him is to absolve him of any guilt for his actions.
- Awesome, but Impractical: The P.E.P.S. gun, found inside the police station, allows you to shoot large energy blasts to knock out enemies. Yet, it is very large, ammo is scarce and the same effect can be achieved with the much more affordable and ammo-plentiful tranquilizer rifle.
- Bad Ass Book Worm: Adam's apartment reveals him to be a well-read and intelligent operative (although his place is a mess). He has books throughout his apartment on precision clock-making, as well as others on criminal law, cybernetics, psychology and history.
- Ballistic Discount: Tindall can be dealt with by just shooting him and taking what you need. Doing so earns a What the Hell, Hero? response from Carella.
- Call-Forward: An email in the police station makes reference to Joseph Manderley, who would later run UNATCO in the original game.
- Chekhov's Gunman:
- If Josie was saved in the previous mission, her husband Greg gives Adam a big discount at a black market dealer named Seurat (along with an experience reward).
- Sanders will also give you codes to the FEMA base if you let him escape in the previous mission.
- Deus Angst Machina: Adam is revealed to have suffered through this by searching through his apartment. He lost his girlfriend (and most of his co-workers), his dog was euthanized when he was out during the surgery to save his life, and he was augmented against his consent.
- Developer's Foresight: Nearly every mission during the first visit to Detroit can be completed early if the player knows where to go and what do — and doing so nets you unique dialogue:
- The transmitter signal can be shut down in Derelict Row before you're asked to by Pritchard. Doing so causes Pritchard to ask why Jensen was in the area in the first place, while Sarif later calls and congratulates Adam for thinking one step ahead (even casting shade at Pritchard in the process).
- Much of Jenny Alexander's investigation sidequest (Cloak & Daggers) can be completed before you properly (re)introduce yourself to her.
- The same can be done by finishing Carella's sidequest before he requests Adam's help.
- Dirty Cop: Wagner and O'Malley.
- Dirty Harriet: Jenny Alexander, who works as an undercover prostitute and enlists Adam to help her stop O'Malley.
- Foreshadowing: By completing the "Motherly Love" quest, you find a suspicious report from the station claiming that someone made Megan's corpse unable to be identified...
- Heartbroken Badass: Adam is still deeply affected by Megan's death, and there's an achievement for choosing to keep her locket instead of giving it to her mother.
- The Informant: Letitia, an ex-cop who has become homeless and offers to sell tips on the area to Adam in exchange for credits.
- Interface Spoiler:
- Likewise, you can upgrade your augs with Praxis kits (and check out the upgrade screen) long before the receptionist at LIMB explains to you what they are and what they're used for.
- You can buy Typhoon ammunition from the LIMB Clinic, despite the fact that it's still a prototype at that point in the story and hasn't been released to anyone yet. Lampshaded by the receptionist, who tells Adam that Sarif made a large donation to the clinic in his name and he has access to top-of-the-line items.
- I Own This Town: In response to the police department's stonewalling of his request to get the hacker's wetdrive, Sarif contends that he claims to have access to the department's pension fund and can make them hurt on that side, implying significant connections.
- Just Following Orders: Discussed. Haas says that no one can get into the morgue as per the chief's orders. Adam calls him out on this stance.Adam: Should I have given you an order? You're very good at following those.
- Kleptomaniac Hero: Played With. When you break into Tindall's apartment, a junkie comes in while you're exploring, asks you what you're doing there, then tries to kill you.
- Mess of Woe: Adam's apartment is a disaster zone, and was likely caused by him in his depression over the intervening six-month period.
- Monty Haul: Rooting around the police station enough will net you a boatload of free experience (from hacking various items), as well as access to an armory that includes the first P.E.P.S. energy gun in the game. The rest of the city doesn't skimp out either, with several Praxis Kits to be found, a garage unit (located right near Seurat's apartment) that offers several high-grade weapons, and a semi-secret area in Derelict Row (accessed from jumping to a fire escape) that will net you a free rocket launcher and ammo, which can be sold for over 2000 credits.
- Mythology Gag:
- You can shoot hoops at the basketball court in the slums, just like the original game. Successfully doing so nets you an achievement.
- One of the NPC's near Derelict Row can be heard whistling the first game's theme song.
- One of the ambient music tracks that can be heard on a radio in the precinct is a piece of combat music from the first game.
- No Hero Discount:
- Rescuing Josie during the previous mission results in her husband giving Adam a 25% discount at Seurat's weapon shop, which nets very cheap ammunition.
- Played with. Adam is told at the LIMB Clinic that Sarif made a large donation in his name (which gives him access to their top-of-the-line gear), but Sarif evidently expects Adam to still pay full price for the items.
- Noodle Incident: The exact circumstances behind the "Mexicantown incident", which caused Haas to hate Adam.
- "Not So Different" Remark: O'Malley claims that he and Adam are alike (because they both see the world as a series of cold, hard facts) if the "Cold" option is taken during the conversation about his corruption.
- Rage Against the Reflection: Reading the emails in the Chiron Building lobby area reveals that the managmeent has been withholding sending a new bathroom mirror to Adam, because he has been breaking them in a rage.
- Releasing from the Promise: Sanders gives the FEMA base access codes to Adam and says that his debt has been repaid, before insinuating that he will treat Adam like any other police officer from that point forward.
- Sequence Breaking:
- It's possible to take out the intercom in Derelict Row before you go to the police morgue, despite having no reason to do so at that point in the story. Doing so earns alternate dialogue with Pritchard.
- Likewise, Tindall can be dealt with before obtaining the neuropozyne sidequest. It earns some sharp words from Carella afterwards if the player talks to him.
- Shout-Out: Two of the police officers in the station compare the rise of bioaugmentation to RoboCop. Even better, one of the cops discussing the matter is named Murphy.
- Tempting Fate: One of the emails in the station mentions that a young officer with high-level connections has been placed in a safe position to protect him from violence until he has enough experience to be promoted. Said officer is in charge of the armory.
- Tragic Keepsake: Megan's bracelet, which Adam finds in the police lockup. He can either give it to Megan's mother or keep it for himself.
- Unusually Uninteresting Sight: Played with. The cops don't seem to care if you use alternate routes to get into the station itself (like jumping a fence in full view of an officer). However, if you hack any of the computers in view of an officer (and you aren't hidden), they'll immediately whip out their guns and become hostile.
- Violation of Common Sense: You can use boxes to hide yourself while hacking consoles and computers in the police station, even if said consoles are right out in the open. Evidently, as long as no one has line-of-sight on Adam, he doesn't exist.
- Vulnerable Civilians: Civilians throughout the hub world can be attacked and/or killed, though at the risk of drawing police or gang intervention.
- The Watch Maker: Adam is revealed to have taken up clockmaking as a hobby during his sick leave.
- With This Herring: A notable subversion — you'll discover at the local LIMB clinic that your boss, Sarif, has made a "generous" donation on Adam's behalf, which allows him access to top-of-the-line items (including Praxis Kits and ammo for a weapon you haven't properly unlocked yet). However, the items still cost money, and it's presumed that Adam will have enough money at some point to buy them.
- You Bastard!: The in-game achievement itself will call you this if you choose to take O'Malley's bribe.
