Mirror's Edge - A must have!

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History:
Mirror's Edge is an upcoming first person action-adventure video game being developed by EA Digital Illusions CE (DICE), due for world-wide release on PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 in November 2008, and Windows-based PCs later in the winter.

The game was announced on July 10, 2007 and will be powered by the Unreal Engine 3 with the addition of a new lighting solution, developed by DICE. The game has a realistic, brightly-colored style and differs from most other first-person perspective video games in allowing for a wider range of actions—such as sliding under barriers, tumbling, wall-running, and shimmying across ledges—and greater freedom of movement, in having no HUD, and in allowing the legs, arms, and torso of the character to be visible on-screen.

The game is set in a conformist dystopia (opposite of utopia) in which communication is heavily monitored by a totalitarian regime, and so a network of runners, including the main character, Faith, are used to transmit messages while evading government surveillance.
A demo was released on the PlayStation Store on Oct. 30, 2008 and the Xbox Live Marketplace on Oct. 31, 2008.
Electronic Arts' DICE announced on Nov. 6, 2008 that Mirror’s Edge had gone gold.
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Gameplay:
Mirror's Edge aims to "convey the strain and physical contact with the environment", according to senior producer Owen O'Brien, and to instill a freedom of movement not yet seen in the first-person genre. This is achieved not only with the exercise of parkour, but also by tying camera movement more closely with character movement, such that the rate at which the camera bobs up and down increases as Faith builds up speed while running and the camera spins when she rolls.
Mirror's Edge features realistic first-person view and hand-to-hand combat.Also, the arms, legs, and even torso at times are prominent and their visibility is used to convey movement and momentum, such that Faith's arms pump and the length of her steps increase with her gait, and her legs cycle and arms flail during long jumps.
With such a heavy focus on movement, it is imperative to maintain momentum, which is done by an uninterrupted, fluid flow of actions, creating a chain of moves. Failing to string these moves together results in a loss of momentum, which can mean that Faith falls off or short of an object if a certain level of momentum is required to traverse it. Controls are simplified by being context-sensitive; the "up" button will cause Faith to traverse an obstacle by passing over it—for example, by jumping, vaulting, climbing, or grabbing set pieces like zip lines—while the "down" button will cause her to perform other maneuvers like slides or rolls, or simply crouch.

Runner Vision highlights environmental pieces in red, indicating where to go next.In order to assist the player in creating these chains of moves, the game employs a system called "Runner Vision", which derives its name from its purpose: to depict the environment the way a runner would see it, instantly recognising escape routes. It is a highlighting system that emphasises environmental pieces useful for progression—like pipes, ramps, and enterable doors—with the color red as Faith approaches, though it does not always indicate the best route. Further along in the game, the number of these visual hints is reduced to only indicate the end goal, though the player can opt to turn off this hint system entirely. It will also be 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", which is a form of bullet time that allows the player time to plan where to go next without losing momentum, as well as making the timing of jumps and disarms easier.

Although the player character can hold weapons, 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 will focus on finding the best route through the game's environments while combat takes a secondary role. In fact, on the E3 'Gameplay Walkthrough' O'Brien says that going through the game without shooting a single bullet unlocks an achievement, "Test of Faith" 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 and the heavier the gun, the more it hinders her movement, which introduces an element of strategy in determining when to trade agility for short-term firepower.

To increase the longevity of the game, there will be many messenger bags hidden in the levels for the player to find to unlock extras. Also, there will be a time attack mode where the player will try to complete small portions of a level as fast as possible. There will be online leaderboards as well as red "ghost runners" so that the player can see their fastest routes or the routes of people on the leaderboard.
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Characters:
The only playable character in the game is a runner named Faith. Faith was not the intended lead character. The developers ultimately “fell in love with her” among a number of originally planned characters in a multiplayer mode. Art Director Johannes Söderqvist explains that she has “grown a lot through the two years since she was ‘found’” and that her shoes come from a “concept artist having some fun”, “the tattoo on her arm…from her being a tech girl,” as the developers “didn’t want something like the yakuza…I wanted something more unique that would key into who she is as a person. If she was into electronics, she’d have a tattoo that looks like a circuit board.

The story follows Faith and her struggle to free her sister from a corrupt government. Her parents were killed while protesting against the government and she was forced to grow up on the street. One day, when she was still a young girl, she broke into an office belonging to a man named Mercury, who caught her but was impressed with her skills. Mercury then trained Faith as a runner. Faith was taught not to rely on modern forms of communication, partially because they are monitored by the police state. As Faith attempts to rescue her sister while running messages for the criminal underworld, she gets caught up in a series of events which lead to her being pursued by the totalitarian government. Acting as Faith's guide is Mercury, who will help Faith in her attempt to outwit and overcome the many government agents that are out to eliminate her.
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Setting:
The game's name derives from the mirror-like aesthetic of the city of tall, gleaming skyscrapers and Faith's existence on the fringes of that city along with other dissidents, who have been pushed to the edge.
Though set in a seemingly utopian city environment with low crime, clean streets, and sterile architecture, it is ruled by a totalitarian government regime that conducts unbridled levels of surveillance on citizens. In this world of communications monitoring, the only way to deliver confidential information between parties is to employ couriers (called runners) to physically deliver the information.

Aside from white, the city is dominated by primary colors and orange, but it has little of the color green, emphasizing the sterile atmosphere—even plants and trees are white. Grey was also avoided in order to distinguish Mirror's Edge from other games. Color is important as an indicator of health, since HUD has been eliminated from the game; as Faith takes damage and her health level decreases, the city's colors desaturate.
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Pictures: Courtesy of Wikipedia

Mirror's Edge is set in a gleaming, clean city.

Faith is a runner and the main character in Mirror's Edge. The shape of the design around her right eye closely resembles the game's logo.

Mirror's Edge features realistic first-person view and hand-to-hand combat.

Runner Vision highlights environmental pieces in red, indicating where to go next.

Demo Gameplay Video:
Mirror's Edge demo

 

Besides the main story, DICE also added a "time trial" in the game. I don't know it's like because in order for you to play the time trial in the demo, you need to have a pre-order code. But yeah, they do have time trials, im guessing it'll let you race against other players. Think about it, racing others on rooftops...

 

I think the game does support multiplayer. With the time trials i think it allows you to race with other players on the rooftops, but im not sure, i'll have to research...