Mirror's Edge
Has anyone else downloaded the demo yet?
I was really surprised by it. Seeing the gameplay videos where Faith moves so smoothly, jumping, sliding, rolling, I was like, “Okay, that looks cool, but how is it really going to play? I’m going to be falling off ledges and jumping into walls.” But it turns out that with a bit of practice, you really can do really sweet-looking acrobatic jumps and rolls and stuff relatively easily.
One thing that bugged me a little, though, is that they use FPS-style controls; you move backwards and forwards and sidestep with the left stick, then use the right stick to look around. Those controls are familiar to FPS players, but I don’t really see this as a game where you need to sidestep much - I think it would have worked better with standard one-stick control where you turn left and right with the left stick. Then you’d also be able to use the face buttons on the controller for jumping and such instead of the shoulder buttons. (Come to think of it, maybe there’s a way to configure things this way in the options…)
I thought the demo was outstanding. I for one am glad the game doesn’t really use the face buttons because FPS dual-stick control is a favorite and I play with the left-handed stick layout making simultaneous movement and face button presses difficult. I’d like to hold out for the PC version but I don’t know if I can take the wait and I fear that it may somehow become an inadequate version.
I invert the Y axis - I don’t know why, but console FPSs have just always felt more natural that way… maybe one too many games of After Burner as a kid - and turn off the reticle. It always annoys me to have to re-do those settings every time I start the demo.
Current records:
Playground One: 1:02:12
Edge: 00:52:56 - Getting that third star on Edge is gonna be tough, I think. I can’t figure out where else to cut time…
Ars Technica has a review posted already. The conclusion: The game’s too short and the levels are too similar. =[
1Up’s review. They give it an A-, though the text of the review has more gripes in it than I’d expect an A- title to have.
Okay, I’ve had Mirror’s Edge for a few days now and have been playing it. When it’s good, it’s good and fast, but too often it slows down and forces you to search for a path (especially if you play with runner vision off). There’s also a few too many cheap moments; usually due to frustrating level design that’s too unforgiving if you’re not exactly spot-on with your input, but there was also one particularly cheap “boss battle” of sorts near the middle of the game. My controller has become a missile more often than I’d like to admit. When it’s on, it’s on, but when it’s off, it’s just another game, sadly…
Okay, first Xbox 360 controller destroyed.
Wow, those things take a lot of abuse. But thanks to Mirror’s Edge’s cheapness on the hard difficulty on that fucking atrium level, I bounced it off the floor and managed to knock the left joystick loose. Then, while trying to repair it (fucking weird-ass screws), I just decided to hell with it and started hammering on it. Even then the thing wouldn’t satisfyingly turn to chips and pieces like Sony’s controllers do.
gg Mirror’s Edge.
EDIT: $50 for a replacement?! WTF. Dammit, next time I’ll just throw it at a couch cushion.
I should be kept away from children.
