Beyond: Two Souls came out on top of this week’s WeView poll, and it is sure to bring a divide in opinion amongst readers.
Beyond, as most of you know, isn’t a traditional game, much like Heavy Rain, Quantic Dreams’ previous title. The input is minimal, with the main focus being the narrative, which leads to different pathways depending on your decisions. What’s more Beyond boasts a cast including Ellen Page and Willem Defoe.
Personally I loved Beyond, even after its shaky start. The first couple of hours left a lot to be desired, and I found it difficult to make out what was really going on. The timeline was essentially a fragmented mess at some parts. However, with the help of Defoe and Page, who put in some great performances, by the end everything seemed to come together for a satisfying finish.
Blair reviewed the game for TSA, and I think it’s fair to say he didn’t enjoy the game quite as much as me. He said Beyond had an “incredibly jumbled story, almost amateur writing and some cumbersome controls”. Not to mention the “lengthy sequences which drag on for far too long”.
It wasn’t all negative though as Beyond showcased some wonderful acting performances as well as being a “stunning spectacle in terms of visuals”.
He concluded:
Beyond is a tale of squandered potential. With acting talent such as Page and Dafoe on board, music from legendary composer Hans Zimmer and visuals that give the PS4 launch line-up a run for their money, it’s such a shame that when it comes down to it, the incompetent story and poor gameplay mechanics leave a lot to be desired.
Now it’s over to you. Did you enjoy Beyond, and manage to make sense of the story and eventual meaning? Or did you feel that it resembled a bit of a jumbled mess? Let us know in the comments below. Be sure to give the game either a Buy It, Bargain Bin It, Rent It or Avoid It rating. We’ll collate your thoughts in next Monday’s verdict article.
JR.
Bought this based on how much I enjoyed Heavy Rain and it didn’t disappoint. The fragmented timeline worked for me and made the story all the more mysterious – even genuinely scary in places. The gameplay does require a little patience initially but if the story grips you like it did me, it’s easy to forgive these shortcomings. Buy it.
Feri
AVOID! Let me tell you why.
ACTING
To be honest, I don’t even understand why a lot of people talk about spectacular performances here. Just that it’s two well-known actors, it doesn’t necessarily mean that their acting is minimum spectacular. Most of their scenes are soap opera clichés (ironically enough, if you remember the really well-done kitchen scene that was a test for Heavy Rain), which may be above the average video game performance, but clearly aren’t worth the price of these actors. And I empathize big time, because the dialogues are badly written and the characters are one-dimensional – even a good actor can’t do much with these.
GRAPHICS
Beyond is a pretty game, especially in the details, from cloth and hair simulations to tears and character models. The only problem is that in 70 per cent of the game you are running around in uninspired, everyday environments. It seems the game has no art direction at all, it wants to be sooooo realistic that it forgets how boring it is to play in ordinary places. There are exceptions, of course, but the majority of the sets are pretty flat and uninteresting.
GAMEPLAY
So first David Cage (who is becoming just as annoying a self-appointed prophet as Peter Molyneux) tried to improve the very innovative controls of Fahrenheit in Heavy Rain into a quite distracting, overcomplicated system, then he simplified this for Beyond to the point where the player starts to feel his control unnecessary. The game just plays itself, with no risk of dying, no risk of making a bad choice, no risk of anything. It turns the player into an absolutely passive audience, and when it give them the controls (like in the Aidan sequences) then it constantly changes the rules without explaining why. Aidan can move this object in this scene, but not in another. Aidan can go through this wall, but not through that (seemingly similar) one. Aidan can go far away now, Aidan must remain close then. The whole concept is a mess, and ultimately, Aidan’s part in the whole game is nothing more then trying to find the next white dot on the screen and do the one thing that can be done with it.
And the game does the same with Jodie: sometimes she can run, sometimes she can’t. The action sequences are unclear, and since she can’t die anyway, there is no point in winning them. And let’s not even mention that horribly out-of-place stealth level.
STORY
In other words, situation excercises from the first year of drama school. Jodie is not a very immersive character in the first place, especially because David Cage tries way too hard to make her interesting, making her a Carrie-like victim in one scene and a ruthless action hero in another.
The story is weak and it would be entirely predictable if the mixed up timeline trick wasn’t played out (except for Willem Dafoe’s character, which is still predictable). Yes, a lot of scenes are very manipulative and provoke emotional responses, but that’s not enough for a story. On top of this, the timeline zigzag mostly backfires on character bounds, and the ending is pathetically explanatory, making the player feel stupid. That would work for a Twilight Zone episode, but for heaven’s sake, 8 hours long? Maybe someone should tell David Cage that if he wants to make Hollywood movies, then stop making video games. Then again, he’s quite a bad writer, maybe it’s not a coincidence why he doesn’t make Hollywood movies.
Again, avoid at all costs, and if you want to play interactive dramas, go for Gone Home, Dear Esther or Journey. Those were made by people who actually understood game mechanics AND storytelling.
Tuffcub
So utterly wrong you couldnt be wrong if you were the mayor of Wrongtown. :P
Feri
:)
Tuffcub
Buy it. It’s not a game, it never was going to be, and if you can get over your preconceptions of what you should and shouldn’t be able to do, it is utterly unique. Enjoyed every single second of it and there are some mindblowing set pieces.
Sitorimon
Buy it, buy it, buy it!
I could not put it down! The story had me guessing at the beginning and slowly things came together. I can see why people would be put off by it, but I had an absolute blast. Also, if you ever get a chance, playing two player can be funny because you might be wanting Aiden to behave and then your mate (or my other half in my case) ended up trolling every scene and making my choices interesting :-)
TSBonyman
It’s the best thing Quantic Dream have done since Heavy Rain, BUY IT.
stueeeee
I did enjoy it. I liked heavy rain too, but this was intriguing focusing on one character.
I think maybe they should have done it without the time jumping to make it easier to follow but I did put a couple of puzzles together when it flashed back.
I see it as the things we played were the important bits of Jodie’s life that shaped her into the person she is at the end.
I liked the variety it had of being in different situations although there was a couple of dud chapters- the ‘war’ chapter didn’t sit well but it did have me hooked for a bit. The chapter with Jodie being homeless was a standout bit for me and was sublime all the way through. I also enjoyed the ones when she was a child where you just explore the environments and do everyday things- more games should let you do non ‘gamey’ things.
I think bargin Bin it, should be experienced but because of the mixed reception get it as cheap as poss in case it’s not for you!