MIRROR'S EDGE CATALYST (PS4)
One of the breakout success stories of gaming’s seventh generation, Mirror’s Edge wowed gamers in 2008 with its super-sleek presentation and relentlessly exciting parkour platforming. It was only fitting then, some eight years later, that the game received a sequel. Somewhat inevitably given the tastes of the time, Catalyst would see its universe expanded into an open-world endeavour.
The player reprises the role of Faith Connors, a runner who, as we join the action, is finishing a two-year spell in a correctional facility. The world she steps back into will be familiar to fans of the original: a whitewash megalopolis with a heavy corporate security presence and a culture of surveillance. Living off-grid is difficult, but when Faith links up with old friend Noah, she soon stumbles across a priceless bit of tech held by Gabriel Kruger, a rich and ruthless player in the tech landscape. His company’s plan appears to be to infiltrate and influence the thoughts and behaviours of the populace. Suddenly, Faith and her band of runners become the last bastion of hope for free thought in the City of Glass, and matters become further muddied by the re-emergence of her sister.
The posher parts of the city are draped in opulent purples
Eight years is a long time between instalments, but Mirror’s Edge has lost none of its style. A whitewash city typically offset by splashes of eye-catching bright reds, Glass is at once impressive and intimidating. DICE’s vision is meticulously realised, with caste segregation resulting in a significant contrast in the appearance of the various sections of the city. Whilst the more austere areas play host to a prominent security presence, heavy air traffic and ample industrial furniture to navigate, the rich areas, notably Regatta Bay and Ocean View, see elaborate, glass-walled housing drenched in lavish purples. In these residential areas, the public is largely absent and the developer has, quite deliberately, created housing environments so tidy, that they feel empty and unlived in. An overwhelming absence of individual identity is implied by the lack of personal artefacts or distinguishing features. Catalyst’s populace resembles unfocused shadows, permanently lost in their personal circumstances. There’s something familiar yet uncanny about this living façade: it’s very clever.
The missions lack a little of the drive and urgency that typified Mirror’s Edge’s frantic chases, but they’re still playable. Rooftop pursuits mix with office interiors, elevator shafts and some large scale highlights, including scaling precarious buildings with the aid of construction workers’ equipment and the final level, a massive skyscaper built of glass. Maxing out the Focus bar allows Faith to vault quickly whilst sending guards sprawling into each other, which is great fun. It’s a shame that for the most part though, the close-quarter combat feels wooden and unsatisfying. A faster frame rate fits the game’s clinical style, though without the distinctive speedy wind effect of the first game, it feels oddly sanitised in comparison.
The missions lack a little of the drive and urgency that typified Mirror’s Edge’s frantic chases, but they’re still playable. Rooftop pursuits mix with office interiors, elevator shafts and some large scale highlights, including scaling precarious buildings with the aid of construction workers’ equipment and the final level, a massive skyscaper built of glass. Maxing out the Focus bar allows Faith to vault quickly whilst sending guards sprawling into each other, which is great fun. It’s a shame that for the most part though, the close-quarter combat feels wooden and unsatisfying. A faster frame rate fits the game’s clinical style, though without the distinctive speedy wind effect of the first game, it feels oddly sanitised in comparison.
Catalyst’s controls are more or less the same as the original, meaning you’re in for another dose of enjoyable parkour with all manner of wall-running, climbing, swinging and sliding. Faith also acquires a couple of gadgets, most notably a winch, which is handy for spanning large expanses in the city. The controls are really good and the myriad of move combinations makes exploring fun and surprisingly organic. You’ll need plenty of patience as the game demands joypad dexterity and good timing: expect Faith to plunge to her doom hundreds of times before you’ve finished everything. As mentioned earlier, its open world will prove divisive. Whilst the freedom with which Faith can run is cool, there’s nowhere near enough variety, or quality, to the side missions. Fragile deliveries, covert deliveries and diversion opportunities are all essentially point-to-point, against-the-clock events that play out in almost the same way, and none of them are especially enjoyable. In theory, the larger playing space should have negated repetition, but you will find certain parts of the city, particularly around safe houses, start very quickly to feel familiar.
The 22 Dash missions prove the highlight. You guessed it: these too are all about running a route as quickly as possible. Getting 3 stars in each will demand not only experimenting with different routes but a mastery of Faith’s extensive move set too. Wall-running into a jump may save precious seconds, tucking in Faith’s legs as she vaults results in fractionally less time lost in the air, whilst rolling on landing is more effective than letting her stumble. This already addictive endeavour is enhanced greatly by online leaderboards, where the player is graded by their position relative to others who’ve tackled the dashes. Elevating yourself into the top 10% on a given run is sure to see your level rise, and seeing how high you can climb the ranks is really addictive.
The 22 Dash missions prove the highlight. You guessed it: these too are all about running a route as quickly as possible. Getting 3 stars in each will demand not only experimenting with different routes but a mastery of Faith’s extensive move set too. Wall-running into a jump may save precious seconds, tucking in Faith’s legs as she vaults results in fractionally less time lost in the air, whilst rolling on landing is more effective than letting her stumble. This already addictive endeavour is enhanced greatly by online leaderboards, where the player is graded by their position relative to others who’ve tackled the dashes. Elevating yourself into the top 10% on a given run is sure to see your level rise, and seeing how high you can climb the ranks is really addictive.
Catalyst suffers a few miscellaneous troubles. It’s possible to lose collectibles gathered should you die short of activating a checkpoint, or quitting a story mission before finishing it, which is needlessly frustrating. Speaking of collectibles, though you won’t need all of them to attain the platinum trophy, there are still far, far too many: more than 600 in all. Having to juggle secret bags, documents, gridleaks, recordings and electronic parts is fatiguing and most feel like exercises in box ticking. Matters aren’t helped in this regard by a bright white map that, in keeping with the game’s distinctive style, proves difficult to interpret because of a lack of distinctive landmarks.
Though the story isn’t bad, it is thoroughly unoriginal. This expansion of the Mirror’s Edge universe relies too much on trite, well-worn themes such as rival runner cabals, corporate conspiracies and personal debts owed. There are times when this reboot confuses, particularly in its disappointing sister arc. Faith’s one-time twin Kate, reimagined as the now-younger sister Caitlyn, adopts an antagonistic line that will make little sense to those who enjoyed the original. Most of the new characters fail to hit the mark for a variety of reasons, though the acting is decent across the board.
Though the story isn’t bad, it is thoroughly unoriginal. This expansion of the Mirror’s Edge universe relies too much on trite, well-worn themes such as rival runner cabals, corporate conspiracies and personal debts owed. There are times when this reboot confuses, particularly in its disappointing sister arc. Faith’s one-time twin Kate, reimagined as the now-younger sister Caitlyn, adopts an antagonistic line that will make little sense to those who enjoyed the original. Most of the new characters fail to hit the mark for a variety of reasons, though the acting is decent across the board.
Mirror’s Edge Catalyst fails to chime with its sandbox setting, not so much because of its mechanics, but more down to its unadventurous activities. Taken as a whole though, the game is still plenty of fun. Its excellent first-person platforming remains a fantastic challenge and, whilst it will irritate at times, its very rewarding. Whilst the combat could have been considerably better and the main missions lack a little of the adrenaline-charged focus the original possessed, the City of Glass is an evocative setting and one that, thanks to its catalogue of fiendishly moreish dash challenges, will likely see players returning for some time. Not as good as its predecessor, but still worth experiencing.
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