Mirror's Edge: Seven Years in the Making

[Andy Chalk]

Mirror's Edge: Seven Years in the Making

Mirror's Edge [http://www.amazon.com/Mirrors-Edge-Playstation-3/dp/B00149ND28/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=videogames&qid=1279056949&sr=1-1] took seven years to make and while the game wasn't exactly a huge commercial success, former DICE CEO Fredrik Liliegren says it was nonetheless very beneficial for the studio.

Released in late 2008, Mirror's Edge was in many ways a significant departure from mainstream game designs. The first-person "parkour simulator" featured intense, bright colors, an entirely unobstructed HUD, realistic movement and gameplay that focused more on evasion than confrontation. It was flawed in many ways but also extremely innovative, but it never really caught on at the cash register, posting respectable but far from outstanding sales.

In spite of that, Liliegren, who co-founded Gaming Union [http://www.dice.se/]. "I think they achieved that goal. I think they learned a lot, and I think that they definitely got a lot of press out of it, [an] insane amount of press actually, given that they didn't really sell that well. So I think it raised DICE itself for a developer that thinks out of the box."

"Knowing that that product was in development for about seven years [laughs], and given that it wasn't Mirror's Edge when we started, but it was one team working on 'the new IP' for seven years, I think they did a strong final," he said. "They did something different that people hadn't done before. I think it needed a second generation so they can tweak on it, I played it a little bit."

EA confirmed in June 2009 that a "small team" was working on Mirror's Edge 2, but nothing else is currently known about the game.


Permalink

 

[the_tramp]

7 Years!? That's what... a year for every 30 minutes of gameplay. That being said, I loved Mirror's Edge and am eagerly awaiting the sequel so they must've done something well.

I suppose the length isn't really an issue now that I think about it as there's so much extra material contained within, I've spent a significantly longer period of time on the speed run sections. It's a joy to get a few friends around and try to beat each other until we get the 3* ranking.

 

[DarkSaber]

7 Years!? That's what... a year for every 30 minutes of gameplay.

Heh ninja'd. I was gonna make a crack about 7 years for one of the shortest games ever too (CoD 6 is up there too.)

 

[Blanks]

Awhile after mirrors edge release the website was asking what people wanted for the sequel

An Open world was one of them, naturally i chose that

 

[Jack and Calumon]

Longest development time on contrary to gameplay length?

Calumon: It took them seven years to just play? Or were they playing all along?

 

[Silk_Sk]

I'd like an auto target system for more accurate jumps and other things. It was just so frustrating to miss that pipe jump by only an inch or two.

 

[NamesAreHardToPick]

Man, a 7-year development puts the game in an entirely different light for me. I loved the artwork and thought it was awesome for a quick "art" game but the first-person view is totally unforgivable for a game that's had serious development time when it's so heavy on platforming and melee.

I know 3rd-person platforming games are played out and everyone wants something different, but they exist BECAUSE IT WORKS. If you're going to mess with a successful formula at least offer a functional alternative.

What kind of multiplayer did the original Mirror's Edge have?
I can imagine parkour races and time attack scoreboards, co-op delivery missions, brawling.

 

[GrinningManiac]

Very interesting news

I enjoyed ME, though I found it frustrating that the game was more along the lines of "linear DO THIS MOVE AT THIS TIME RIGHT NOW EXACTLY OR DIE AND TRY AGAIN!" then actual 'free' running

Many a time I had to constantly retry one part because it was confusing as to where I was meant to go (no red when it would actually be helpful, I noticed) and it broke the rhythm and frustrated me to no end

 

[RanD00M]

I'd like an auto target system for more accurate jumps and other things. It was just so frustrating to miss that pipe jump by only an inch or two.

But that would make it so less fun.I wouldn't have it any other way then it was.

 

[Suskie]

This guy starts every sentence with "I think." Doesn't sound like a very confident man to me!

 

[Wandrecanada]

I'd like an auto target system for more accurate jumps and other things. It was just so frustrating to miss that pipe jump by only an inch or two.

There was an auto targeting system that I suppose most people didn't really use or even realize existed. It wasn't fool proof but it worked almost all the time when you where unsure where to go. Essentially you pressed the button and it would shift your focus on where you needed to go. For the majority of the long jumps to a tiny post it would lock you in correctly.

I'd also like to say that this game made my year during a time when FPS fluff and sequels of sequels were rampant. Between Mirror's Edge, Braid and other unique games Mirror's Edge completely floored me with it's blending of music, fast paced flowing motion and feeling of jeopardy. I have never before nor after experienced the adrenaline of a real chase inside a video game like I did with ME and I can't thank DICE enough.

 

[nonW00t]

I'm sure the 7 years means from someone's ideas up to the final code, not that it took 7 years to actually program. lol But damn, why didn't they think of making the game a lot longer in all that time! ha (Anyway, GREAT game, I still bask in it awesomeness.)

 

[Silk_Sk]

I'd like an auto target system for more accurate jumps and other things. It was just so frustrating to miss that pipe jump by only an inch or two.

There was an auto targeting system that I suppose most people didn't really use or even realize existed. It wasn't fool proof but it worked almost all the time when you where unsure where to go. Essentially you pressed the button and it would shift your focus on where you needed to go. For the majority of the long jumps to a tiny post it would lock you in correctly.

I'd also like to say that this game made my year during a time when FPS fluff and sequels of sequels were rampant. Between Mirror's Edge, Braid and other unique games Mirror's Edge completely floored me with it's blending of music, fast paced flowing motion and feeling of jeopardy. I have never before nor after experienced the adrenaline of a real chase inside a video game like I did with ME and I can't thank DICE enough.

I was aware of and utilized that mechanic But that's just in case you get lost. I mean a mid-run quick-on-the-trigger Metroid Prime-style shoulder-button auto-lock on a pipe to grab or pole to hang on. I appreciated the option to highlight usable objects in red but I didn't really like to use it. For the auto-lock you would already know the action you want to execute. It would just be easier to strafe into position while running and jump straight.

It could be utilized in combat as well. An auto-lock with a weapon would shift the focus away from the oppressive FPS style play and back to the environment, similar to how Metroid Prime practically invented the FPA genre. But it wouldn't just be for guns. For example, the it's-a-me achievement was a magnificent thing for me to stumble upon accidentally but it's very difficult to replicate. There are few situations where it was possible and in those situations it was very unreliable. I would have preferred it to be easier to execute to make the result worth the effort. A target system would solve that nicely.

And I do agree with you about the experience. It really was a fantastic game. It just had too many buzz kills. Nothing feels worse than stopping to look around to figure out where to go next in a game based on continuous movement. It took several play throughs to get a completely enjoyable experience and even then there seemed to be more running than actual stunts. However, once you know the courses inside and out you really understand how great a game it could be with a little tweaking.

 

[Byers]

For Mirror's Edge 2:

- More sensible plot exploration.
- Better control over the combat (or just remove the option of combat altogether).
- Make it last longer than 5 hours.
- Get rid of horrible anime cut scenes.

Bake for two hours, add salt as needed.

 

[Cpu46]

The demo was awesome, full game was a bit lacking, the soundtrack = Epic in music form

 

[Jared]

I think money well spent. It was new and fresh. Would lovE to see more!

 

[boxcat]

I demand I full city to run around in and plenty of chance to break the main character's legs with stupid stunts.

I would have played the first one till I was a husk of a man if there was such a feature in the Mirror's Edge.

 

[bluerahjah]

I love Mirror's Edge, I still pull it out every now and then when people are over, just to see their faces at some of the stuff you can do.
That being said, I could have definitely done without the combat part. It just seemed to make the game more frustrating for me.
Speed run and time trials should definitely stay for ME2, as those are still my favorite things to do.

 

[Unrulyhandbag]

I loved the idea and the feel of Mirrors edge, it had but two problems.

1) The tutorial made it seem you were being given the skills to explore the city then it turned out you were just speedy Gonzales in a small tube.

2) Rhianna Pratchett is NOT a writer; people should stop paying her.