Mirror's Edge

Prince of Persia was the first game to feature free running, otherwise known as ‘parkour’ or urban gymnastics, but Mirror’s Edge is completely based around the concept from a first-person perspective.

You play a female ‘runner’ named Faith, an outlawed rooftop courier, who has a tendency to fall foul of the law and come under fire from helicopter gunships.

Embroiled in a plot that involves locating her sister and hunting a politician’s killer, much of the game is spent leaping between rooftops ­ a refreshing take on first-person adventure games.

Outdoors, the action takes place in an enormous environment that features some impressive 3D graphics. You might feel a twinge in your stomach when you lean over the edge of a skyscraper and look down at the insect-sized pedestrians and cars. If you lean too far, or misjudge a jump, you’ll fall to the ground with a sickening crunch (which happens all too often).

The sections of the game spent inside the buildings, rather than leaping between them, lack any of the detail and expansive punch you experience outdoors. In the early part of the game, you can run straight past the police, but later on the action becomes less fluid, as you’re forced to fight the bad guys.

Combat in Mirror’s Edge is frustratingly difficult. The game is intended to be semi-realistic, so Faith is knocked out after only two blows, while hand-to-hand fighting is repetitive and boring. You can pick up a machine gun to fight back, but this restricts your movement a lot.

The box includes a music CD with tracks taken from the game, which is great if you’re a fan of techno or electronic music, but of less value if you aren’t.

We only hope a sequel will improve the combat system and refine the dull indoor levels, as Mirror’s Edge has so much potential, but the end result is disappointing.