A Brief Look At Mirror's Edge

I took a brief look at Midnight Club: LA yesterday offering some small thoughts on the game. Today I continue with a brief look at Mirror's Edge.

The first word that comes to mind when I think of Mirror's Edge is, well, different. The reason for that I think is fairly obvious too; it is different. Whether it is the game mechanics, graphics or even just the concept of the game; it is unlike anything we have seen before. It redefines what can be done with the first person perspective and for that alone the game's developer, DICE, deserve to be commended.

Nevermind all that though, what is important here is what I thought of the game. I am happy to say that I thoroughly enjoyed it. It has its flaws, naturally, but even with those I still thought it was an exhilarating game and an awesome first attempt at a Parkour title. It is however, something you need to engage with as its best elements -- finding the best path through a series of obstacles -- are almost hidden within the game. Not until you learn the levels and play through the Time Trials watching a ghost from another player, will you learn how to spot alternate routes and the ability to see them on the run. Enemies only pose more of a distraction from spotting these routes and it is those kinds of things that makes the game frustrating unnecessarily. On the first run through you will find yourself in situations where you don't know where to go next or where you need to take out enemies and to me, it just contrasts with what the game should be about.

Everyone else has made these criticisms before though so what I will say is that the game was certainly a lot better than I was expecting it to be. Before release people were anticipating it, but were also skeptical and I believe that influenced how I approached it. After playing I came away thinking that the game provided me a new experience and was entertaining. What can I say? I loved it and really hope that DICE can learn from their first attempt and improve upon it for the inevitable sequel.

Again, these are just some brief impressions of the game. I have more in-depth thoughts on the way. Stay tuned in the next couple of days for a brief look at another game.