It’s a blast to traverse on the city’s rooftops and string together running/jumping combos in an effort to keep your focus gauge as high as possible which helps Faith become invincible to enemies and strengthens attacks that you will eventually use. The parkour in Catalyst is just as fluid, if not more so this time, compared to the original. The map that is used is a bit curious as the whole city is represented on it, but you only end up covering a third of it, if even that. However, we now have more of the city to explore as this entry goes open world. It’s a world that is familiar to fans with clean white buildings that have splashes of different colors depending on what part of the city you are in. Immediately you are put back into the life of a runner a person that makes deliveries and does odd jobs for those who don’t want to use conventional methods due to the city’s leaders and corporations wanting to keep tabs on everything. The plot of Mirror’s Edge: Catalyst takes place before the original game and starts after Faith is released from a juvenile corrections prison.
However, that may not be the question that should be asked, but rather, if the game is an improvement and if it’s enjoyable. The initial question is if the new Mirror’s Edge entry was worth the wait. The original game didn’t meet the initial projections back in 2008, but after eight years and a healthy following, we are once again able to control Faith through the city of Glass.
By all accounts Mirror’s Edge: Catalyst is a game that, from a financial point of view, probably shouldn’t even exist.