Gamescom 2015 may be over, but the hype certainly lives on. This year’s show was packed with awesome demos, new debuts, and plenty of good ol’ fashioned spectacle. Though many games shined on the floor this year, few carried as much clout and overwhelming anticipation as Mirrors Edge: Catalyst. For anyone who is unaware, the original Mirror’s Edge was a successful game that made its debut in November of 2008. Yes, you’re reading that right, the game came out six years ago! That may not seem like a long time to some, but to die hard fans of the first game it’s been a lifetime. Check out the announcement trailer!
So why the nerdgasm? What makes Mirror’s Edge so cool? And what can we expect in this new addition to the series? Excellent questions! Lets start with what makes Mirror’s Edge awesome. To start, I cannot stress enough how refreshing it is to see strong female characters on screen. Too often these days, entertainment force-feeds us very familiar and unrealistic depictions of women. They are usually auxiliary characters that serve the purpose of being the love interest, or the scantily clad warrior. There are exceptions, but for the most part, we’re stuck with caricatures of women who are hard to connect with or care about, and this is probably due in part to the fact that men write those roles.
Faith is set apart from the rest of the chicks you’ve met so far because she is not only protagonist of the game, but she was created by a woman. Rhianna Pratchett, who I’m sad to say has no involvement in Catalyst, wrote the story for the Mirror’s Edge game and the comic book. She has been instrumental in changing the way women in games are viewed and redefining their roles. Like the new Tomb Raider? She wrote that too. Like the way the new, new Tomb Raider looks? She wrote that too! Faith is a badass to an uncanny degree, and yet Pratchett still manages to ground her in reality. Faith’s strength is her conviction, her weakness is her stubbornness, her fears lie with her sister—she is a compelling character all on her own, but the gameplay emphasizes this like no game has before.
In the city of Glass, Faith is a runner. She is one of many who have chosen to take a stand against the oppressive, all-encompassing corporation that has seized the city through bureaucracy and force. You take hold of Faith in her missions to experience the city and the story through a first person, parkour style of play. You solve puzzle, fight enemies, and traverse terrain—all in first person. The fast paced action in many of the levels is sure to get your blood pumping, and the high-stakes acrobatics make sure that it stays pumping.
Now lets get to the new stuff. There isn’t much to be said at this point, but here’s what we do know. Though this is the second game, it is a prequel. This means that this is a younger Faith than we see in the first game, and perhaps even more daring. We can expect many of the same mechanics from the first game as well as the same setting. Developers are emphasizing the rise of Faith, an improved combat system, and open world travel. This is HUGE. Making the game open world allows the developers to sneak in any number of Easter eggs, hidden collectibles, and even side missions. These things have not been confirmed yet, but based on the first game I feel comfortable in my expectation of some of them. After all, it will have been seven years between games by the time Catalyst comes out.
The game runs on the Frostbite 3 engine, which is responsible for other visually stunning games like Battlefield 4. The game is currently available for pre-order on PC and PS4. Pre-ordering the game will get you some in-game content, but there is also a limited collectors edition that will get you a bit more for the retail price of $199.99.
Mirror’s Edge: Catalyst is slated to come out in February of next year, and based on the pre-alpha footage (watch it below), I believe that it will be well worth the wait.