Released last February by DICE, Mirror's Edge is a first person game of speed, precision, and path-finding that takes place (primarily) on the rooftops of a future city. In the game you play as Faith, a 'runner' who find herself embroiled in a political murder mystery that hits a little too close to home. Using her wits and athletic ability, Faith sets out to resolve the mess that has been precipitated by unknown antagonists.

Faith - click to enlarge

The first thing that you will notice when you fire up Mirror's Edge is that the graphics are superb. DICE has gone the extra mile in creating a cityscape worthy of a vibrant future surveillance society; the environments that you traverse range from clean and polished business suites to gritty construction sites, each of which feels convincing.

The character models are top notch. Faith, when you do catch a glimpse of her, is exotically beautiful and her twin sister Kate likewise shines. Merc and Celeste are equally well rendered and even the faceless blues (police) are a pleasure to look at.

Mirror's Edge tells its story through a combination of traditional dialog-drive narrative and environmental cues. The immediate plot is conveyed to the player using direct character conversations; everything you learn about where you need to go and what you need to do is stated plainly by Merc or another character. In contrast, the majority of Faith's back story and the history of events that led the city to become a totalitarian regime are conveyed through the environment in a manner very similar to a Valve game. Posters, electronic billboards, and graffiti all weave together to create a sense of history and cohesion in the game world.

One of many dangerous jumps - click to enlarge

There are three major types of game play within Mirror's Edge: running, puzzle solving, and combat.

The majority of the game is spent running across rooftops, through buildings, and around obstacles. At the beginning of each segment you are given a destination, and you must try to negotiate the environment to reach your goal in a timely fashion. Mirror's Edge excels during these sequences. As you sprint through the city scape certain objects will be highlighted in red to signify that they are of special interest. (For example, a pipe you need to climb, a board that you should jump off, etc.) The entire experience feels very organic; after getting used to the controls the entire world seems to open up for you and you will find yourself madly dashing over, under, and through your surroundings, Faith's footfalls ringing in your ears.

The game gets intense when the blues - government police - show up. Faith is usually unarmed, and often the correct response to seeing an officer of the law is to run fast and hard. Careening over rooftops with bullets impacting all around you is an utter rush, and your survival instinct will be kicked into high gear. More than once I caught myself letting out a gasp in sync with Faith, so perfect was the game's simulation.

Of course, Mirror's Edge is more than just running.; some levels require you to solve an environmental puzzle to reach a specific location in order to advance the plot forward. Your ultimate destination is almost always obvious, however for the times when you do not know where to go you can press the ALT key to force Faith to look in the direction that you're aiming for. The puzzles in the game are fifty percent finding a path through your surroundings and fifty percent executing some precise acrobatic moves. Thankfully, if you're solving a puzzle you are never under attack, and it is rare that a puzzle room will kill you outright.

Taking down a blue - click to enlarge

The biggest knock that I have heard against Mirror's Edge is that the combat system is frustrating. Sometimes you are forced into a fight, and cannot run. Faith is unarmed, which is a problem since your assailants always carry at least a pistol, if not something more deadly. To take out a blue you need to combine your basic attacks (punch, flying kick, sliding kick) with well-timed disarm maneuvers. Once a cop is down you can take his weapon, however your ammo is limited and will rarely last you more than two additional kills. After dispatching the enemies it is usually in your best interest to discard your weapon and carry forward unarmed - Faith is far less quick and agile while encumbered.

There is no mistaking it - Mirror's Edge has some difficult sequences and you should expect to die frequently when learning the levels. Thankfully, DICE saw fit to place frequent hidden check points throughout each level, and so you will rarely have to repeat more than a minute of content when you inevitably get yourself killed.

In summary, Mirror's Edge is a stylish game that represents a thrilling departure from standard FPS fare. Running through the city scape at breakneck speed is intense, and feels unbelievably fluid and organic. While there are a few frustratingly tough sections in the game, they are not frequent enough to tarnish an otherwise fantastic experience. Best of all, the game routinely goes on sale at the digital download sites - I picked my copy up for $5 on Direct2Drive. If you enjoy FPS games then you owe it to yourself to try this unique title.