19th Entry - Mirror's Edge

Mirror's Edge (Xbox 360)

So I'm making up for the last few weeks. It's going to be a ridiculous slew of games, as a whole bunch of great stuff has come out since November. We'll start with this new EA franchise.

Mirror's Edge isn't the newest game out, but it definitely takes the cake for innovation.

I first saw the cover art for Mirror's Edge at Gamestop on the "coming soon" shelf. Poke and I both automatically dismissed it, thinking it was really stupid looking alongside such greats as my beloved Dead Space. However, it has managed to make me eat my words.

The game pits you as Faith, a part of a underground kind of smuggling ring who are called Runners. The world they live in is constantly monitored and watched, and Runners provide the communications between those who still fight for independence.

The game itself is a first-person adventure. It has shooter elements, but is not actually a shooter. Instead, you spend the game "free-running" over obstacles and also fighting off policemen and security forces. You can choose to use martial arts to fight off your enemies or just simply shoot them with their own weapons. The graphics are rather stunning, with a good use of bright color that sets it apart from the various shades of gray so present in other games. The EA team has done a great job creating a futuristic city from the ground up, and you'll be seeing all parts of it, from insides of offices to the tunnels of a subway.

Alright, alright, so what's good about it? Well, a lot. But it's still a new franchise with some defects.

So the good. Like i said, stunning graphics, awesome level design, and a interesting premise. The cutscenes are done in an cool cel shaded style. As for the game itself, the campaign is short but challenging. Playing on "easy" doesn't actually make it much easier, it only means you won't get shot up as much by the police. In this sense, if you don't learn to use the controls well, you'll be frustrated easily.

The "Runner Vision" helps immensely; it is a tool that highlights your next objective by shading it red on the HUD. Which, really, is another high point of the game. The HUD is flawless in that it barely exists, never cluttering the screen with things I don't care about. Definitely a good thing.

Another great boon to the gameplay is the inclusion of the martial arts combat. It's extremely satisfying to be running along at full speed, when all of a sudden a cop pops out of nowhere, and to not only not stop, but jump on him and use him as a springboard to get away. There are too many moves to list, and the combat is limited only by your own imagination, and you know, gravity. But only kind of. :)

There are some levels which can only be described as supremely badass. I think somewhere between jumping between two cranes over a 300 foot drop and kicking overzealous gun-toting bad guys in the face, I experienced Mirror's Edge at its best. I'm just sorry it couldn't always be that great.

Now of course, the bad.

The game has nothing truly wrong with it. It also has nothing truly GREAT either, which leaves it's "innovative" gameplay feeling like a cheap gimmick which has roped you in and then left you lonely and friendless. To put it in the most confusing words possible, Mirror's Edge over-reliance on it being "different" is it's greatest flaw. Every moment in-game screams, "HAHA LOOK WHAT I CAN DO! FLYING DROP KICK YEHAAW" and while this is great for the first few levels, it becomes contrived by the end.

Despite reasonable character design, they still manage to kill off the one character who we all know would be killed off. In addition, we never had time to become attached (to any of the characters, really). The in-game moment has the air of "YOU AREN'T GOOD FRIENDS WITH HIM BUT HE'S DYING! WHERE IS YOUR SOUL, FEEL BAD YET?" These kinds of moments in games are pretty crippling, and indeed, I lost interest in the story after that point. However, the game shamelessly chugged along to its cliche ending. Ah, well. Innovation and good stories can't all be in one game. (Wait, I'm getting something here...DEAD SPACE. Ok, there we go. WAIT, WAIT...FALLOUT 3. Ok. I'm feeling better. Onwards.)

Mirror's Edge, like so many other games, starts out great, loses its momentum, and begins riding the fine line between greatness and total boredom. Despite being different, that alone is not enough to thrust it to the level of greatness all games aspire to.

When I played through Mirror's Edge, I couldn't seem to decide if it was mediocre, crappy, or breakthrough awesome. After beating it, i think it's safe to say it's a little of each.

Final words: Rent it. Worth a playthrough and $5.

6.5/10