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At the very least it is different.
In Mirror’s Edge, you play as Faith, a runner in an underground network that attempt to bring the truth out in an otherwise oppressive society. These runners serve as messengers that deliver sensitive messages from one party to another. It turns out that Faith’s sister is a cop who was framed for the murder of a candidate for mayor and it is now up to Faith to discover why her sister was framed. The story, told through a mixture in-engine cutscenes and stylish 2D cutscenes, works well enough to keep you hooked and playing.
Much ado has been made of Mirror’s Edge first-person platforming gameplay for good reason: it’s unlikely you’ve experienced something like this before. You’ll run from roof top to roof top, across walls, and through buildings, as you get to your next destination. As you run, you’ll gain speed and the ability to leap over objectives, jump over railings, and slide under pipes. You’ll need to use all of the moves at your disposal to get through the levels, especially if you want to make a good time on the leader board. You are guided through the level by following objects painted in red, which show you loosely where you should be going next.
The biggest issue with Mirror’s Edge is that—like old-school platformers--the game is based on trial and error. Once you nail the scene the feeling of excitement you get out of it is quite exhilarating but it will take at least a handful of tries—if not many more—to successfully complete that run. The game was designed to have you play over and over again to find the best route but you can’t help but feel frustration when you come to a complete stop during your fifth run or a mistimed jump causes you to die. There is something called runner vision, which will point the camera in the direction that you should be going but it doesn’t always work.
Along the way, you’ll encounter armed enemies that you’ll probably want to avoid. Faith does have a limited set of melee moves but you’ll be quickly overwhelmed if you try to fight more than a couple of enemies at the same time. You do have the ability to enter quick-time event to disarm enemies but this requires great precision. Once you get the gun, you’ll find that the gunplay in the game isn’t nearly as refined as anything else and it’s only good for a couple of shots.
In addition to the main story mode, Mirror’s Edge also includes speed runs and time trial modes, both of which feature online leaderboards. Playing the game and nailing the runs to perfection has its own intrinsic value but being able to boast about your accomplishment online is always a plus.
Visually, the game is a stunner though more so for its art style than any technical elements. The world of Mirror’s Edge is super clean—almost to the point of being desolate sometimes—but it also comes across as beautiful the way everything works together. Faith’s animations are almost universally well done and the enemies that you’ll encounter all look great.
The audio work in the game is very well done. The voice acting in the game is well done thanks to believable performances and solid dialogue. The sound effects are amazing, capturing every step along the way, as well as the increasingly heavy breathing of Faith. The soundtrack is riveting, with a solid beat that accentuates your best runs. It all works together very well, too.
Mirror’s Edge isn’t for everyone. The game has a lot of trial and error, which will undoubtedly turn off some gamers who simply don’t want to go through the same level for another shot. But the feeling you get when you have a successful run—or when you beat a time you previously through was your best—is amazing and makes the experience worthwhile. -- Jose Liz, PGNx Media
---- Nov 16, 2008
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