Mirrors Edge Review

As a fan of original titles, it didn't take long for Mirrors Edge to catch my eye with its unique story, interesting mechanics, and stunning visuals. Mirrors Edge is a first person, platforming game developed by DICE at EA Studios, released in 2009.

Story and Setting:

Mirrors Edge presents a moderately original story you don't see to much in video games today. The game takes place in a fictional city set in the future that is being ran by a corrupt government. You play as a woman named Faith who is a member of a group known as the Runners. The Runners are couriers that relay messages across the city while avoiding the corrupt government law enforcement who the Runners call Blues. Runners are experts at parkour running and fighting, which consists of rooftop running and jumping as well as wall running and mantling in a very quick and fluid manner. During a normal delivery, Faith discovers that

her sister Kate has been falsely accused of murder and suspecting it to be a set up. During the course of the game you will be running across rooftops and evading Blues trying to find out who framed Kate and why. The plot keeps you into the game in its entirety but the main issue with it is its length. With the main story taking only an average of six hours to complete with very little replay value and no multilayer to expand on, the game was hard to come back too, which was a problem considering the sixty dollar price point the game had at launch. However, this does not make the game and its story any less memorable.

Soundtrack:

Whether you are running and jumping on rooftops, or being chased by Blues there is always a piece being played to fit the moment. I found my self purposely getting detected by police just so they would come after me because the chase music made it so intense and enjoyable. The games main theme being and instrumental version of “Still Alive” by Swedish singer Lisa Miskovsky just goes so well with the flow of the gameplay.

Gameplay and Visuals:

These two topics are without a doubt the games most strongest points. With it being a first person platforming game, it surprisingly feels very smooth and fluid. The same can be said for the hand to hand combat system, very fluid and easy to learn. There are not button combinations here, you can fly through this game with only a few button presses, yet it still retains its challenged which is a very important accomplishment. There is shooting in this game but it is optional, which is a good thing. The gun play is very clunky and difficult to use, clearly not meant to be a main feature in the game. The graphics however were nothing short of amazing, I remember when the game was first revealed and how I didn't know it was gameplay that was being showed, I thought it was a cinematic trailer, very impressive. There can be a few stutters in performance here and there but overall the game kept is crisp clean look and still ran very smoothly, a goal games today struggle with.

Mirrors Edge is a great game that has its flaws but in none the less still a great game. Games like this show how original and fun games have the potential of being, it all comes down to the people who are making it and if they have the skills and passion for bringing it to life  Fortunately for this game they had the right people behind it, for the most part, and with a sequel set to release is the near future there is allot to be excited about.