Quantic Dream's titles are unlike any other in this industry and once again they've delivered in their own way. Beyond: Two Souls substitutes traditional tropes in video games and results in the game's importance exceeding its quality.
The story follows Jodie Holmes' life to the current day, introducing notable moments throughout her life in a non-linear order. Since birth, Jodie had an invisible connected entity that only she can see. From a very young age, Jodie has to discern between who's trying to help her and who only wants to take advantage of her gift for selfish or evil means. The game presents Jodie's experiences while being monitored in her makeshift home by scientists, forced to participate in the military and on the run from the law. The player controls Jodie and her "connected soul", Aiden. Though Aiden is only visible to Jodie, his existence is proven by affecting people and objects in the world. Aiden is intelligent and shows his own personality but almost always follows Jodie's instruction.
Controls will be familiar to those who've played Quantic Dream's previous title, Heavy Rain. Controls are now improved top to bottom, with intuitive action prompts integrating well with character movement. Fight scenes have a minimal user interface where the right stick movement must match Jodie's momentum as action slows down. Quickly anticipating Jodie's movement during slow-motion prompts can sometimes be misinterpreted, but is infrequent enough not to weaken these moments.
Controlling the spirit known as Aiden gives the illusion of power and delivers linearity. Here is where Beyond feels most like a video game. Jodie regularly asks for Aiden's assistance to progress and the objective isn't always immediately clear. The player can manipulate inanimate objects with a blue dot covering it. This mechanic sometimes impedes the flow of the story. Objects to control can be hard to find and the environment can be difficult to navigate. Certain walls and other objects can't be passed through by Aiden and the reasoning seems inconsistent.
Notable actors Ellen Page and Willem Dafoe among others deliver admirable performances in their roles as Jodie Holmes and Nathan Dawkins. Performances are captured for realistic movement and interaction and characters are rendered in very high detail. This comes together to deliver visually spectacular, high resolution, believable environments. Authentic facial emotions encourage sympathy or disdain accordingly from the player depending on the situation. The game is presented entirely in a 21:9 aspect ratio, not only to give the story a cinematic feel but for these visuals to be among the best on consoles this generation. Despite the graphical improvements this brings, it isn't practical or future-proof. The PlayStation 3 cannot match this aspect ratio, therefore the game doesn't have any visual advantage on a 21:9 display.
While Beyond's graphics are consistent, the same cannot be said about its story. What seems like a movie-length plot comes off as overstretched to accommodate gameplay. Non-linear story telling attempts to diversify the presentation throughout and inadvertently reveals a jarring split: When the game's action picks up is when it becomes less entertaining. On the other hand, moments that require little or no input from the player is when Beyond becomes more engaging. It never fully combines the two successfully for long periods of time.
As Beyond satisfyingly concludes, it's disappointing to think back and know around a third of the game's existence diminished its own overall quality simply for trying to be less of a movie. The game almost feels like a film trapped in a video game's body and suffers for trying to become something it's not. Even so, Beyond: Two Souls triumphs in ways almost no other game replicates. This unique and memorable presentation should be experienced by anyone with slight curiosity.