Deus Ex, like Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines, is the kind of game someone ends up reinstalling every time it’s mentioned in an online discussion. The Lay D Denton mod, which came out in 2020, is a bit of a big deal, because it shows us how much modern technologies can be used to improve or modify older games and give them a second life, or at least a few more hours of fun.
Birth of a Mod
A game as mythical as Deus Ex has seen lots of strange mods. From the madness-inducing Malkavian mod to quality of life or graphical improvements. Yet there is a mod that no one thought about, because they didn’t think the game needed it: J.C. Denton becoming a female character. The mod in theory sounds very simple: it turns the J.C. Denton we know and love into a female, swapping the male model for a female one and changing every single one of Mister Denton’s voice lines.
What is really interesting here is that someone would take such a long amount of time, effort and skill in order to add this kind of content to such an old game. But one thing is certain: it works, it’s fresh and it’s certainly an interesting and welcome change to those who have played and replayed Deux Ex to the point where there’s no room for surprises. Besides, a female Denton was cut early into the development of Deus Ex, so in a way, this is adding what should have been there in the first place.
The delivery of the lines makes it seem like they’ve always meant to be there.
Lay D Denton’s Voice
Now it’s VERY difficult making the raspy, badass, somewhat neutral tone of J.C. Denton work well with a female character, yet the voice actress Karen Rohan seems to have nailed every last detail, from the more serious voice lines to the most remarkable and wacky lines. It’s really difficult to leave the soul of a character intact after a sex change, but she really played her part well: listen to this video by Lay D Denton Project:
(Video by Lay D Denton Project)
It is indeed very difficult to make a character as quotable as J.C. Denton work with such a different female voice. But if you pay attention to the video you can hear the same energy in whatever “Miss Denton” says. That covers with not-so-silent place.
Not Just a Pretty Voice
Despite Rohan’s excellent work, a model-swap and revoiced player lines won’t simply do the job for Deus Ex. That’s why modders have taken it one step further: they have edited every voice line that refers to J.C. Denton as a man, and changed everything. The incredible amount of work required to make this mod so immersive is remarkable. So here it is indeed: the mod you didn’t know you wanted. What do you think about it? Leave a comment and let your opinion be heard!
Voice recast is not enough, all references to Denton as a male have been edited!
