Game-design time:

With Human Revolution, DeMarle and the narrative team had a bit of breathing room because the game was set so far before the original Deus Ex. There was time and space to build something totally new within the existing universe. But with Mankind Divided, and any other sequels that may follow, that space is shrinking. “With the sequel, we now have to stay true to what we were building,” she says, “but we also have to be aware that we’re getting closer and closer to the established future.”