I have to admit, I miss Mirror’s Edge, but I know we probably won’t see more of it after DICE squandered the goodwill of their fans with Mirror’s Edge: Catalyst. It was a series that was near and dear to me, all because of its fascinating gameplay direction that didn’t follow conventional mechanics back in the late 2000s.
Who would’ve thought a game about leaping from building to building would work? Yet it did, and it even helped define a cultural moment around parkour and minimalism in the late 2000s.
Parkour was the heart of Mirror’s Edge, and that was its core identity. The game didn’t even encourage combat, as the ideal way to deal with enemies was to shove them off a ledge or land a well-timed dive kick. All Faith needed to do was push forward, keep running, vault over ledges, and shimmy along the edges of buildings. It was that simple.
It was a game that understood its strengths. Everything about the first Mirror’s Edge was focused on simply being a clean, direct experience. Even the use of primary colors in the game’s level design added to its minimalist aesthetic. You could easily tell where to go just by following the colors. It was one of the first games to start the now-common “yellow paint” trend in level design.
That simplicity and minimalism ultimately attracted players who didn’t even realize they were looking for something like it. Even the story, while sparse, carried just enough weight for its time.
Faith, as a character, was the centerpiece of the Mirror’s Edge titles. It wouldn’t exist without her. When it comes to iconic Asian characters in gaming, she doesn’t have much competition. Her visual appeal led to a wave of cosplayers and fans emulating her look, from the signature eye paint to the short bob haircut and tank top outfit. For every person dressed as a Big Daddy or Little Sister during that era, there were always one or two dressed as Faith Connors.
Unfortunately, the series has since faded into near obscurity. Many modern gamers haven’t even heard of Mirror’s Edge, apart from the protagonist’s face or as “that parkour game.” And that kind of makes me sad.
The Swedish studio DICE seems to have forgotten Mirror’s Edge altogether in favor of its more popular Battlefield titles. We may never see Faith return in any form, and that’s a real loss. Mirror’s Edge is a tough series to continue, especially after the failure of Catalyst, which turned it into the opposite of what it once was: a bloated open world that abandoned its simple roots.
However, the fact is that while reviving the series might be challenging, remastering the original game shouldn’t be. Maybe that’s the sign DICE and EA need to see that people are still craving more Mirror’s Edge, even after it quietly disappeared from the spotlight.
They just need to take a leap of faith.
For more Mirror's Edge content, stick with us here at Gfinityesports.com, the best website for video games.