Mirror's Edge

"Mirror's Edge is a game that brings something new and different to the genre. From the stylish graphics to the fast-paced gameplay, it will draw you right in and won't let you go."

The setting

A clean and beautiful city of tall, gleaming skyscrapers and low crime rates... But it's far from the utopia that it seems to be. The totalitarian government is monitoring every minute of the citizens' lives. The only way of confidential communication is to send messages physically... And that's exactly where Runners come in.

The heroine's story

Faith has lost her parents in a protest march against the government. She was forced to grow up on streets, where she was trained to become a Runner. Now the corrupted authorities have captured her sister, and Faith has to find a way to rescue her while working as a Runner for city's crime lords.

The graphics

Unreal Engine 3 delivers incredible graphics and supports all modern techniques such as HDR rendering and per-pixel lightning. The game also features a brand new lighting solution developed by DICE - the end-result is some truly breathtaking scenes.

Unlike in most modern realistic first-person games, the world of Mirror's Edge is bright, clean and colorful. There is, however, a distinct lack of the color green, which emphasizes the sterile architecture of the city.

The gameplay

...Is like nothing you've ever seen. Mirror's Edge combines parkour and free running elements with simple, context-sensitive controls and interface (the is no HUD whatsoever!) to provide complete freedom of movement and, quoting senior producer Owen O'Brien, to "convey the strain and physical contact with the environment". The camera bobs up and down as you run. You see the hands and legs of the heroine as she performs jumps, slides, grabs, somersaults and other impressive displays of acrobatics. If you lose health, the colors around you become desaturated.

A unique system called Runners Vision will highlight escape and chase routs and help you navigate across the city. Reaction Time will put things around you into slow motion mode, helping you plan your Running route.

Since fluid movement is so important here, you will have to plan your moves and chain them in order to gather momentum and overcome the biggest obstacles. While it's true that Faith can use guns, there are drawbacks - the bigger the gun, the more it slows her down. That's why it's entirely possible to walk (er, run) through the entire game without firing a single shot, if you choose so.