Ivan Berk

"I once thought I could save the world... now look at it"

— Spoilers for Deus Ex: Mankind Divided follow!

Ivan Berk is an augmented character living in Prague. He is partially responsible for the bombing of Růžička Station in 2029, as it is him who plants the explosives.^[1] Berk is in affiliation with Viktor Marchenko, a member of the Augmented Rights Coalition. Marchenko promises that Berk will become a "legend" due to his role in the bombing.^[3]

Biography[]

Before the Aug Incident of 2027, Ivan worked as an auto mechanic in Prague, and was one of the best in the city. When Hugh Darrow's signal went out, he lost control and began acting violently, but was able to lock himself in the basement of his house to protect his wife, Melissa, from his actions.^[2]

After the Incident, Ivan is forced to move to Golem City because of his augmentations, and Melissa willingly chooses to go as well to be with her husband.^[4] Melissa's brother Simon Whittaker, an officer of Tarvos Security Services, has been trying unsuccessfully to get the couple out of the Aug ghetto and back to "where they belong" ever since.^[5]

In 2029, Ivan is arrested by corrupt Prague police who intend to kill him to "harvest" his augmentations, and sell them to the Dvali. With the help of Alex Vega, who gets arrested around the same time, Ivan manages to escape confinement.^[2] During the escape, Ivan wanted to execute one of the corrupt cops in cold blood, but Vega convinced him to not do it. Before he flees, his words indicate that he was committed to ARC.

Not long after escaping confinement, Ivan is seen walking behind Vega in Růžička Station while she is speaking with Adam Jensen. Shortly afterwards, bombs detonate at the station.

Just prior to the detonation of the bombs, the station's security camera footage caught sight of Ivan dropping off bags at sites where the bombs went off. However, the footage is corrupted shortly after the bombing. Due to the corruption of the footage, Task Force 29 could only extract images showing an unidentified augmented man in a yellow hoodie dropping bags where each bomb went off. Because the bags were the same as those used by ARC and its leader Talos Rucker, Jim Miller sends Adam Jensen into Golem City to bring in Rucker for questioning.^[6]

In Desperate Measures, it is revealed that Whittaker corrupted the footage to protect his sister, Melissa. Whittaker also confirms that Ivan took part in planting the bombs, and notes that Ivan is dead after the bombing.

Notes[]

In an e-mail from Marchenko, it is implied that he expects Berk to die during the bombing. He is also seen walking further into the station where the most damage is done shortly before the bombs detonate.
Further corroboration of Berk's death during the explosion can be found in the email "yellow hoodie" on Rees Davis' computer in the Task Force 29 Headquarters.

Trivia[]

According to the concept art of Ivan Berk, his leg augmentations are made by the augmentation manufacturer Isolay.
According to the trailer in which he is beaten by the cops, his cybereye prosthesis are made by Sarif Industries.
Ivan Berk was originally just created to feature in trailers for Deus Ex: Mankind Divided. His role in the plot was later added,^[7] but his appearance in the game itself is still very brief.