Now don't let the title put you off. Beyond is a great game and unlike any other game other than it's predecessor Heavy Rain. Saying that, Heavy Rain fans won't be disappointed. The gameplay comprised of QTE's is extremely similar only a little more painful with the action moves you pull have directing the main character Jodie which can end up a clumsy mess if you can't read her body movements. Beyond isn't the holy grail when it comes to story telling either. You can see David Cage's ambition in the way he sets out to convey emotion in his characters but emotions often run too high in situations where it just feels unnatural. Some of the script also hits the ear wrong. But you can forgive Beyond for delving into unfamiliar territory and trying to accomplish movie-like production values. Ellen Page and Willem Dafoe are essentially pioneers in this field and expanding art-form and actually do an excellent job acting-wise to keep the story moving. Some scenes are just magical and remind you just why you're playing and why you like interactive entertainment say much. It's the little things such as having a snowball fight or roaming the streets homeless looking for money to buy food that make the game shine and what it should have concentrated more on. Instead it drags you all around the world and doesn't give you a chance to keep your feet on the ground. The ending also is plagued by a similar problem. You are asked to decide who to spend your life with. Friends you've made along the way or your so-called love interest who never really managed to forge a connection in the first place.
As for as graphics go it's probably the best looking game on Playstation 3. Lead game character models look scarily accurate even portraying pores and facial hair close up. Some of the background NPC's though look more like they were lifted out of Heavy Rain. Particle effects make an excellent environmental attribute really adding to certain levels with snow or fire. There is a few nagging performance issues such as FPS hits and screen tearing during certain scenes but it's nothing too serious. Especially achieving so much on such old hardware. Sound design is good throughout. I didn't really notice any repeated dialogue that I always found in Heavy Rain and everything sounds crisp and clear. Still though, a game such as this begs the question whether we are actually playing a game or are we just acting a scene that David Cage is forcing us to play. It's both really, we are essentially controlling Ellen Page around a set full of boundaries, it can feel a little restrictive at times giving you only one path to follow. You might not want to do something for example be you have to for the scene to progress.
Even looking at all the problems Beyond has you have to admire that it's completely different and an extremely refreshing experience to other games on the market. If you're a fan of Heavy Rain I'd recommend you pick this up but don't go in expecting the Shawshank Redemption of video games.