Mirror's Edge Catalyst (PS4, 2016)
I've toyed with the idea of various clever introductions to a review of Mirror's Edge Catalyst but I can't really decide on one which I think works. It's a "reboot" of one of my favourite games ever. It was released eight years after the original, so surely there's something ripe for potential? A new, wider audience for something that was a cult hit more than anything else? Increased technological capabilities allowing for more content? A combination of the original and new ideas, complementing each other for something truly great?
I've not looked back at my Mirror's Edge review from a few years ago before reading this for the same reason I haven't replayed the original game after finishing Catalyst. I want to get my thoughts on this down first before I'm properly reminded of what the game isn't. In any case, I think it was best summed up with the phrase "I f***ing love this game", so it's fair to say Catalyst was something I was going to examine in great detail both when I played and when I wrote about it.
You are Faith Connors, the vaguely Asiatic looking woman on the box who is a Runner in the city of Glass. Glass exists as a consumer and corporation-driven autocratic dystopia, where Runners act as messengers and couriers for the black market and people who need to do things without anyone else finding out. They do this by keeping off the streets and on the roof tops of the city, all of which are suspiciously designed to aid free-running and parkour. Faith starts the game being released from jail, so I'm going to assume she wasn't very good at it. That's one point off for Catalyst already. Once she's out Faith joins up with her old boss and makes a series of new friends while uncovering a fresh conspiracy to drive the free will out of the citizens of Glass once and for all.
There's so much about this game for me to criticise I barely know where to start. Let's try the story. The bulk of the story elements suffer from the same problem a lot of the characters do in that they're not properly introduced or properly resolved. EA produced a comic to go along with the game which I have ordered but not read. This is mentioned in the loading screens where a message tells you it's how you can find out how Faith ended up in prison. Er, no. I shouldn't be surprised with EA I suppose, but making your story and game less engaging in order to sell a comic book seems like a bad move to me. (At time of posting, the copy I ordered still hasn't arrived. I also have so far resisted the urge to buy the limited edition art book for £25)
The game starts off with a confusing premise and doesn't get better as it goes on. The ultimate conspiracy uncovered by Faith & Friends is something called Reflection, where the Families and the Conglomerates conspire to inject everyone with nanobots so their moods and desires can be controlled. Quite a good idea, as far as dystopian sci-fi plots go. Catalyst's problem with it is found in that last sentence. Who are the Families? Don't know. Who are the Conglomerates? All the companies whose logos you see dotted around, I suppose. When is Reflection explained? Shortly before the mission where you go to try and destroy it, which you finish in fifteen minutes, at which point it's over. Throughout the game there's a strongly amateurish sense to the way things like the story are depicted, with very little pacing, explanation or real sense that there's any risk involved for anyone.
The ending is particularly awful for this. Reflection is stopped, the main bad guy apparently disappears, and... life goes on completely as normal. The post-credits scene has a news bulletin with an update on it followed by Faith & Friends standing back in their hideout, completely as they were when the game started. Faith says something infuriatingly trite like "we didn't start an uprising, but we started something." The gall to try and pass off what happened as profound or meaningful. The ending felt quite similar to the rest of the game - unfulfilling, uninteresting and just sort of... there.
While some of this detachment can (hopefully) be explained by that comic I'm waiting on, I'd hope it can make the characters make a bit more sense. Faith is insufferable. She's a whiny, impulsive child with pretty much no redeeming qualities. And an annoying haircut which just manages to stay in front of her eye with the game's logo tattooed on it at all times, so you can't see it. Much of her character development takes place through flashbacks, which combined with the standard audio diaries you find attempts to explain her and her family's place in Glass. It doesn't. Her mother was a scientist of some sort. Then an uprising happened, her parents died, and Faith and her sister Caitlyn get separated.
Oh, and it turns out Caitlyn was taken and adopted by Gabriel Kruger, head of Kruger-Sex and the game's main bad guy. She was renamed Isabel. Isabel ends up kidnapped by some of Faith's friends to hold Kruger to ransom, and of course this revelation springs upon us out of nowhere. The thing is, I was the only one shocked by it. Shocked is a polite way of putting it. Faith barely reacted, none of the other people in her group reacted, it was really strange. I feel as if this is a pretty serious revelation that warranted more attention when and after it was revealed, but it just isn't. Even at the game's end when there's clearly supposed to be some internal conflict on Isabel/Caitlyn's part, it's flimsy and pathetic.
Let's see what other characters we have. There's Noah, who's in charge of the Runners and apparently a father figure to Faith. He falls victim to the comic allowing the game to forego any character development, as Faith clearly cares about him more than I do. There are some other Runners faith meets called Icarus and Noah. Who cares. There's Dogen, a mysterious Asian man who looks like the Captain from the third Matrix film who Faith owes some sort of debt to. Another victim of the comic. There's Rebecca Thane, leader of the rebel group Black November who I can only assume is supposed to represent the current decade's internet outrage machine. She shouts, she wants deaths, she's very violent. She doesn't do much. Her character is actually explained in audio diaries. By the time I got to the last one I actually shut it off because of how annoying she was.
Kruger, the main bad guy, is also quite pathetic. It's ironic that in a game centred around corporations and an erosion of identity at the expense of fitting in has a primary antagonist who is about the most beige, unremarkable, unthreatening and unconvincing villain possible. In a completely sterile world, this is the best we can do. Absolutely nothing remarkable about him whatsoever, apart from the fact his name's everywhere. This reflects what I mentioned earlier about the story being told in an amateurish way. I don't know how else to describe it, things like this just sort of exist and we're supposed to go along with its inferred characteristics because it's the way they are. It's the bad guy! Dislike him, even though we've given you no reason to.
So, pretty much- no, every character is repulsive in some way. That's not everyone though. You can't forget Plastic, a high-functioning autistic teenager who is a genius who controls various electronic things in the city as Faith is doing missions. You know how in Borderlands you have Claptrap as a companion and one of the running jokes is how obnoxious and unavoidable he is? Imagine that but with none of the charm. Imagine Sheldon Cooper if he was a child and self-aware enough to play himself as a character. It's hard to find a sympathetic character in this game but Faith's main aide manages to be as irritating as they come and sums up all of them quite well. Smug, superior and dismissive of people who question her about things she states as fact without ever having explained them. Maybe it's all quite meta.
The writing doesn't help with any of them. There's not really a better word to describe the writing than 'childish'. I've already said that the story and character development is poorly done but the actual dialogue is probably the main reason for this. The characters are all very basic. It feels like one of those young adult novels about rebelling against some oppressive force, but not a particularly good one. Everyone is reduced to one or two basic traits which must be exhibited in everything they say. The final nail in this particular coffin is the animation. Characters' mouths often won't move in sync with what they say. For a game released in 2016, this is inexcusable. I started trying to get a screenshot with a cringeworthy subtitle on it like I usually do to open this review, but I quickly realised I was wasting my time. There's far too much to choose from.
The story and characters are crap, what then of the gameplay? Rather than linear levels we have an open world. As mentioned it's an open world conveniently set up for people to run around on the top of it, but it's there. Based on the 8th gen sandboxes I've played, I like this one. It's surprisingly large and moving around feels organic in almost all of it, which is quite an achievement given the scale of it. Missions mostly take place in areas inaccessible in free-roam but outside of these there are plenty of different activities to take part in. You're stuck with the basic open world stuff but at least it's relevant to the game, if slightly obnoxious because of it. "Hey, Runner! Deliver this package to someone. Now." Alright. You take it, you run, you get to your destination but because you were two steps away from the small circle in front of them when the timer ran out, you failed. If you do this, at least try to make it realistic.
There are other delivery missions where you can't be seen by KrugerSec and some where you have to divert attention by running through groups of them within a time limit. These are better, but there's not really much point to any of them. You don't gain anything besides XP to unlock abilities, and you get plenty of that just from missions and going around the city naturally. it depends on how invested you are in the game and the world, but I didn't get a lot out of them. I suppose this is what Runners are supposed to do, but they don't seem to exist for any purpose other than their own sake.
The game almost does well with open world tropes with its billboards. In a consumerist-driven world there are obviously going to be billboards proclaiming how great the corporations are. Focusing on a counter-cultural character then means this can be subverted as part of a typical element of open world video games. Great. Go and take down the evil corporate logo and replace it was a great symbol of the resistance. The problem with a few of these in Catalyst is how inaccessible they are. One in particular needed a jump into a completely pitch black area - even with the brightness turned up full. You could barely see anything. There was some scaffolding type stuff in it you had to climb and jump between to get up. The game really annoyed me here. By all accounts, looking at this area you would assume you weren't supposed to go into it. The first game had areas like this that were just little cubbyholes or empty doorways. Their being dark meant there was obviously no reason to go into them. Here though, the game takes what should be a slam dunk open world busy-making opportunity and makes it tedious, unnecessarily difficult and deliberately obtuse. Great work, lads.
Also, when you hacked a billboard it displayed your 'runner tag', which you could customise based on stuff you unlocked by doing things in-game. Well, that unlocked the things you could customise it with, but you'd have to download the Mirror's Edge app (rated 2.7 on the Google Play store at time of writing) to do so. I refer you to my Tearaway review. Stop trying to draw the player's attention to things which aren't the game. With an added dose of f*** Off, EA.
Elsewhere in Token Open World Bullshit we have collectibles. The main one of these are GridLeaks, where the Grid (imagine Google Glass but working and much more invasive) everyone is connected to has leaked big floating orange things and Faith has to pick them up. This honestly feels like something put in because an open world game needs bullshit collectibles, but there's no self-awareness or purpose to them so it just feels trite as a result. They're there in addition to Runner Bags and Documents, which don't differ materially or offer any purpose themselves either. Hmm. The deliveries often mention the chance to earn 'scrip' which I presume is in-game currency, but no such thing exists. Was there another aspect to this game planned but not implemented? It almost makes sense, since you have a debt to repay to Dogen. I assumed I'd have to do stuff like missions and side-missions to build that up, but no. Maybe an opportunity wasted.
The last complaint I have about the city is that I can't really tell what some of it is supposed to be. There are different distinct areas you have access too. I think this best way to describe them is districts. The game tells you what class of people live there but it doesn't have much relevance to gameplay since you don't interact with any of them. There are two areas in particular that I don't understand though, both near a harbour/sea front area. Running around them it's obvious that they include residential areas. You move through some relatively open-plan buildings with things like kitchens and beds in them. Outside of these however, and probably taking up more space than the 'interiors' you have, well, the same thing. Endless amounts of couches, seats, tables, various things that look like people are supposed to use them. But they're all empty. Is this communal? Is it someone's house? This area in particular feels like something designed purely with aesthetic in mind, but it just makes the city feel more empty and soulless than it's clearly supposed to be.
** I wrote this review and went back to play the original game again. There's a difference in the way the city is depicted, but I don't think it's really up for debate which looks best. They're both heavily stylised, but Catalyst's looks like it's out of necessity because they can't render it properly. The accessible areas in Catalyst aren't the whole city - there are a few districts you can explore, but a much more sprawling metropolis beyond those. It all looks the same. As I was playing I took several screenshots when I reached a point with a great view, but these spots were few and far between. They also had to be framed carefully. In the first Mirror's Edge, there's so much more detail and care you'd struggle to tell which game is from 2008. Close-up, far away, it all looks better.
The notion of XP is one of the game's more modern and infuriating schemes. It serves no purpose. You get XP by doing all the things I've listed and you can unlock combat, movement and gear bonuses. The movement upgrades are particularly galling, as several are basic running moves from the first game which don't seem to have been taken out for any other reason than to impart a false sense of progression on the player. There's some thematic purpose since Faith has been in jail for two years, but if this were relevant then surely moves would be unlocked automatically, rather than at the player's progression? Stuff like the gear additions that allow her to swing or pull herself up to ledges like a grappling hook work this way, why is it just them?
Obviously in a game like this controls and movement are integral to its success. They're okay. They're noticeably simplified from Mirror's Edge, even considering several moves being unlockable. It's possible to reach full running speed with one button press. While this increases accessibility and broadens appeal, it makes the game much easier. I don't want to sound elitist but there's very little challenge in speed runs now. Rather than the game being a mix of challenge and precision it's more focused on the pure satisfaction of timing jumps and climbs right to get past obstacles that makes you stop and reconsider your approach. I don't think that's a benefit.
The movement in an open world setting is quite strange as well. The ease with which Faith gets up to full speed means it's very difficult to explore because the controls are so sensitive. I like the Mirror's Edge art style and aesthetic. Being able to explore an entire city of it at will should be and mostly is an enjoyable experience, but if you're just looking around a room or an area it can be awkward to do it at your own pace. Maybe even hold down the boost button to walk slowly, that could've been an option. With the collectibles and a few easter eggs the game obviously incentivises you to look around, but it doesn't seem to give you the controls to go along with it.
The biggest problem with moving around the city and missions is Runner Vision. In Mirror's Edge this was fairly simple. Objects you could use to advance in a level glowed red. This formed a key part of the game's aesthetic with the starkly contrasting colours, and symbolised the experience and mindset of the Runners who used them regularly. This is mostly retained for Catalyst, although with more open plan levels and a sandbox world it's not possible to have a linear route to everywhere you want to go. In this case, Runner Vision is a small red trail that shows you where to go. Every possible destination you could set in the open world, this thing flashes along the ground showing you where to go. Very convenient you might think, trying to explore lots of complex looking rooftops.
This might be the case, but it means all your movement is the same. You always take the same routes. You have too as well, because if you ignore the Runner Vision you'll probably get lost or stuck, and have to turn it on anyway. This completely undermines the point of an open world Mirror's Edge game and doesn't address complaints about linearity from the first. The linearity isn't gone, you just have the illusion of an alternative. Plus, in missions it will randomly turn off in certain sections. When this happened I usually left it off, preferring to try and explore a level and work it out myself. I don't know why it goes off though. In these situations it feels like a bad piece of game design that's been implemented badly.
I think I've done quite well in avoiding comparisons to the first game but I can't any longer. Combat. f*** me. The first game had a strange relationship with this. Faith is a skinny girl in a vest and shorts. Faith is often challenged by private security who're wearing riot gear and armed with light machine guns. In Mirror's Edge the combat was pretty standard and simple, with the option for using guns available. In all situations though, running away was the best choice. It was also possible in all situations, with a trophy for completing the game without using a gun. This helped the game stay true to its central theme of running, since the weapons were clunky and obviously awkward for Faith to use.
Catalyst doesn't have guns. It also has a range of enemies, some with guns, some with sticks, some with tasers. It also features the stock advice during loading screens that running away is often a preferable option to fighting. That'll be why, on multiple occasions, the game features missions where you're forced to fight. Where you're in an enclosed area up against four guys at a time, who you can only attack one at a time. Who you can only do real damage against by hitting them with different kinds of attacks. Where the most powerful attacks involve you building up Focus by stringing together some running/jumping/moves and utilising these when striking, such as wallrunning, turning, jumping and kicking, or springboarding off a small ledge and into a flying kick.
Why.
The.
f***.
Combat was one of the most criticised aspects of Mirror's Edge. Probably because it was so clunky. Why, in any other similar game, would you try and develop it, even insist on it in certain situations? The best bit is the guys with guns have some visible body armour and go down in two kicks. There's guys with sticks and what look like bulletproof vests who could take ten kicks to the face and barely stumble. I don't understand why this is here. Even with the nature of an open world game in mind, running away from the police is always more effective than trying to fight them. In Catalyst it's even necessary, as if you cause enough of an alert most of the game is locked out until you're at a safe house. I don't want to say what Catalyst aimed or is supposed to be, but if it's a Mirror's Edge game it shouldn't, it can't, be overly focused on combat in any way.
Oh, once you've purchased all of Faith's combat upgrades everyone drops like flies. Of course they do.
** Again, after playing the original I actually have some positive feelings towards the combat. Being able to use the environment much more against enemies is a good thing. The amount of occasions you're forced to do it on aren't.
One particular aspect of Mirror's Edge I enjoyed was the sound and music. It had its signature song and other soundtrack pieces composed for each level. This meant all the music you heard fit in with each area and every bit of action you were facing. The ambient sound in an open world game is much more difficult, and even though Catalyst has the same composer and similarities in some music pieces, it ends up really disappointing. There's a jukebox in Faith's main hideout that plays what I assume are most of the ambient tracks, but they're all forgettable. This is an aspect of the game I'd definitely call disappointing rather than bad or infuriating, because it's potentially a real strong point of the game which just seems wasted.
** One of the tracks the jukebox plays is much better than any of the others, being much more evocative of the first game's soundtrack. It's from that game. It's the starting music from the final chapter. Of course it is.
My final complaint is about the story and structure of the game itself. It's short. There are a few side-missions for characters which are equally short. I was actually surprised when the story ended, I think my detachment from events was covered in an earlier complaint but there are examples. There's one mission where Isabel/Caitlyn is being kidnapped. You have to run around a building site and deactivate some turrets for an escape route. You do that while the actual story and action is described to you by someone else. I don't think it's a good reflection (chortle) on a game when the story is happening while you're somewhere else and doing something much less interesting sounding.
If you want to skip to the final line of this review for something more succinct, I'll say this. I tried very hard to like this game. It tried equally hard to put me off. It won, barely. There was (and still is) a lot of potential for an open world Mirror's Edge game to be well made and worth your time, but this one misses the point of why the first one was popular while doing little to endear itself to anyone else. It feels cobbled together with several elements seemingly not implemented to a full or proper extent. If I didn't like the first game so much I would probably care more. Ultimately though, I'm just meekly disappointed.
