Gameplay
In Mirror's Edge, the player controls the protagonist, Faith, from a first-person perspective as she is challenged to navigate across a gleaming city, by jumping between rooftops, running across walls, and gaining access to buildings through ventilation shafts. This is accomplished by use of techniques and movements inspired by the disciplines of parkour and free running.[9] According to senior producer Owen O'Brien, Mirror's Edge aims to "convey strain and physical contact with the environment", with the goal of allowing a freedom of movement previously unseen in the first-person genre. In order to achieve this, camera movement has been tied more closely to character movement. For example, as Faith's speed builds up while running, the rate at which the camera bobs up and down increases. When a roll is executed, the camera spins with the character.Faith's arms, legs, and torso are prominent and their visibility is used to convey movement and momentum. The character's arms pump and the length of her steps increase with her gait, and her legs cycle and arms flail during long jumps.
A uniformed character, standing on a rooftop, falls back after being kicked. Two arms and a leg belonging to the player's character are visible.
Mirror's Edge features a realistic first-person view, with the character's limbs visible during hand-to-hand combat.
In gameplay, the character's momentum becomes an asset. The player must attempt to conserve it through fluidity of physical actions, encouraging the creation of chains of moves. If Faith does not have the momentum required to traverse an object, she will fall off or short of it.[16] Controls are simplified by being context-sensitive; the "up" button will cause Faith to traverse an obstacle by passing over it (i.e., by jumping, vaulting, climbing, or grabbing set pieces like zip-lines) while the "down" button will cause her to perform other manoeuvres like sliding, rolling, or crouching. To assist the player in creating these chains of moves, the game employs a system called "Runner Vision", which emphasizes environmental pieces useful for progression. Certain pipes, ramps, and doors are highlighted in red as Faith approaches, allowing the player to instantly recognize paths and escape routes. Further along in the game, the number of these visual hints is reduced to only the end goal, and the player can opt to turn off this hint system entirely. It is also used to create puzzles in which the player must figure out how to combine the highlighted set pieces into a chain of moves in order to reach the target. Another means of assistance to the player is a system called "Reaction Time", a form of bullet time activated by the player, slowing down time and allowing the player to plan and time their next move without losing momentum or tactical advantage.
The player character can hold weapons, but O'Brien stressed that "this is an action adventure. We're not positioning this as a shooter - the focus isn't on the gun, it's on the person." Gameplay in Mirror's Edge focuses on finding the best route through the game's environments while combat takes a secondary role. Completing the game without shooting a single enemy unlocks an achievement for the player. Consequently, guns may be obtained by disarming an enemy, but when the magazine is empty, it will need to be discarded. Additionally, carrying a weapon slows Faith down; the heavier the gun, the more it hinders her movement. This introduces an element of strategy in determining when to trade agility for short-term firepower.
Along with the campaign mode, Mirror's Edge features a time attack mode, where the player must try to complete one of a set of special maps in the shortest amount of time. Best times can be uploaded to online leaderboards, where players can also download ghosts of other players to compete against. The maps are unlocked by playing through the campaign mode. According to producer Tom Ferrer, the time trial portions of Mirror's Edge are "bite-sized and short so you can grind them and play them and get faster and faster. It's not like playing an entire level."
Controls
Forward: W
Backward: S
Balance/walk left: A
Balance/walk right: D
Press Button/Interact: E
Slow motion: R
Jump/Climb/Wallrun: Space
Duck/Roll/Slide: Left Shift
Punch: Mouse 1
Grab/Pickup: Mouse 2
Turn around: Q
Those are the basics, you will have to do combos like: Left shift mouse 1, for a low punch, and: space Q space, to run up a wall and back-flip off.
Plot
Faith, after completing a delivery to fellow Runner Celeste, learns from Merc that her sister Kate may be in trouble at Pope's office. When she arrives, she finds Kate standing over the body of Pope, insisting she has been framed for murder and requesting Faith to discover the cause. Faith finds a piece of paper with the name "Icarus" on it in Pope's hand. Kate remains at Pope's office to provide distraction for Faith's escape. From a former Runner, Jacknife, Faith learns that Pope's head of security, a former wrestler named Ropeburn, may be connected to Pope's murder. Faith meets Lt. Miller, at Kate's behest, narrowly avoiding arrest. At Ropeburn's office, she overhears him setting up a meeting at a new place downtown. At the meeting, Ropeburn discovers Faith's presence and attacks her, but Faith gains the upper hand and throws him off the roof. As he is hanging above a long drop, she tries to interrogate Ropeburn, but before he can reveal anything he is killed by an unknown assassin.
Lacking other leads, Faith investigates the security firm that has begun aiding the police force in their crackdown of Runners. She finds they are behind "Project Icarus", a programme designed to train their forces in parkour to chase and fight the Runners. Evidence also leads Faith to the trail of Ropeburn's killer to a boat in port; after chasing the unknown entity, Faith discovers the assassin is actually Celeste, who is now a part of Icarus under collusion to keep herself safe, and warns Faith to consider the same. The arrival of the police allows Celeste to escape.
With Kate convicted for Pope's murder, Merc has arranged the police convoy transporting her into an ambush spot for Faith, and Faith is able to help Kate run free. When Faith returns to her hideout, she finds it has been attacked, Merc on the edge of death and Kate recaptured. In his dying words, Merc tells Faith that Kate is now at the Shard, Mayor Callaghan's office and where the main servers that run the city's monitoring systems are located. With Miller's help, Faith is able to enter the Mayor's private offices, destroying many of the servers to gain access to the roof. On the roof she finds Kate held at gunpoint by Jacknife. Jacknife reveals he too is part of Icarus, and has been part of the plan all along to lure the Runners out of hiding. When Jacknife tries to take Kate onto a waiting helicopter, Faith is able to jump on, knocking Jacknife out of the helicopter to fall to his death but also damaging the helicopter in the process. Faith helps Kate to escape safely from the falling helicopter.
During the end credits, media reports that Faith's actions have only served to intensify Project Icarus, and Faith and Kate are still wanted for Pope's murder. However, with the servers damaged, the population is cautioned to avoid using electronic means of communications until the servers are restored.
Screenshots
Yes folks the moment you've all been waiting for:
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