Line #220 VideoGame/MirrorsEdge


1	[[quoteright:330:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/mirrors-edge-03.jpg]]
2	[[caption-width-right:330:''[[{{Tagline}} On the edge of the city, you find out who you really are.]]'']]
3
4	-> ''"We call ourselves Runners. We exist on the edge, between the gloss and the reality - The Mirror's Edge. We keep out of trouble, out of sight. And the cops don't bother us. Runners see the City in a different way. We see the flow. Rooftops become pathways and conduits, possibilities, and routes of escape. The flow, is what keeps us running. What keeps us alive."''
5	-->-- '''Faith Connors'''
6
7	''Mirror's Edge'' is a first-person action platform game developed by Creator/{{DICE}} and published by Creator/ElectronicArts for Platform/Playstation3 and Platform/Xbox360 in 2008 and Platform/MicrosoftWindows in 2009. The game utilizes MediaNotes/UnrealEngine 3.
8
9	The game is set in a [[{{Utopia}} big, shiny city]] in a conformist [[PoliceState police-state]]. You are cast as Faith Connors, an illegal courier or "Runner", whose job it is to hand-deliver messages and data [[LeParkour across rooftops and skyways]] to avoid ubiquitous government monitoring of movement and communications. The story follows Faith in her struggle to free her sister, a police officer who has been framed for the murder of the opposition candidate for Mayor of the city. While running her clients' illegal messages, she gets caught up in a series of events which lead to her being ruthlessly pursued by the totalitarian government herself. Mercury, Faith's trainer and mentor, acts as her guide, helping her outwit, outrun, and overcome the sinister agents out to eliminate her.
10
11	While the game is a [[FirstPersonShooter first person shooter]], guns are completely optional[[note]]There's even an achievement for not firing one in the entire game called [[{{Pun}} "Test of Faith"]][[/note]]. Instead, Faith uses [[LeParkour parkour]] to traverse rooftops and evade enemies. The rooftops turned into large puzzle pieces as players found their way to point B. The game also had an interesting art direction: the city was almost entirely sterile white [[SplashOfColor save for some sparse colors here and there]], and items and places that would turn red to point players in the right direction.
12
13	An [[Platform/{{iOS}} iPhone/iPad]] prequel was released in 2010. The gameplay was changed to a 2D ''VideoGame/{{Canabalt}}''-style platformer, and the plot involves Mayor Callaghan's attempt to turn the public against the police so she[[note]]She was male in the original game[[/note]] can replace them with her private military, something that was only hinted at in the original game.
14
15	Succeeded by the ContinuityReboot ''VideoGame/MirrorsEdgeCatalyst'' in 2016.
16	----
17	!!This game provides examples of:
18
19	* AbortedArc: The [[spoiler:"runner assassins"]] are supposed to be a huge deal. However after appearing in one mission they are never seen or mentioned again. WordOfGod states time constraints during development was the cause.
20	* AbsurdlySpaciousSewer: The storm-drain level, though it's justified as a storm drain designed to deal with ''tsunami flooding'', possibly modelled on the [[http://www.water-technology.net/projects/g-cans-project-tokyo-japan/ G-Cans Project]] located just outside of Saitama, Japan.
21	* ActionBasedMission: Usually the best strategy with enemies is just to run away from them, but there are a handful of places (such as the police ambush in the chapter "Heat") in which the player is forced to engage them directly.
22	* ActionGirl: Faith, but most of the main girls are as well, are capable of fighting security guards and roof-hopping.
23	* AirVentPassageway: Features prominently throughout the game. Lampshaded on the penultimate level, when a voice overheard when moving noisily through the vents says, "Jesus, the rats are getting huge!". [[spoiler:This comment is possibly lampshaded when one takes the below-mentioned EasterEgg into account.]]
24	* AllThereInTheManual: Little about the city, the Runners, and Faith is explained in the game. More information can be found from the trailers and press coverage about it, and a tie-in comic written by the game's writer Creator/RhiannaPratchett provides some background details.
25	* AlmostDeadGuy: [[spoiler: Faith arrives at Mercury's hideout just in time for him to give her the information she needs before [[DiedInYourArmsTonight dying in her arms]]]].
26	* AmbiguousTimePeriod: As with its location, the City of Glass could be chronologically anywhere from the late 90s to late 00s, though no later than the mass adoption of smartphones.
27	** One elevator news snippet mentions The Shard being built in 2012. But it's still unknown how many years afterwards the game is set.
28	* AnyoneCanDie: Among the many casualties, [[spoiler: Merc, Jacknife, and possibly Miller stand out]].
29	* ArtificialStupidity: You can pretty easily shake off Pursuit Cops in the first encounter by sitting on a high spot and watching them run in impractical paths as they try to get you.
30	* ArtShift: The Flash-animated cutscenes contrast highly from the playable levels.
31	* AsceticAesthetic: The minimalist yet believable art direction with creative and ubiquitous use of bold, saturated colors for the City's appearance is certainly among the game's strongest selling points.
32	* BackStab: If you can get Faith behind any Blue - even a ''Pursuit Cop'' - your stealth disarm will lay them flat. You still won't get a Pursuit Cop's M26 melee taser, but you will jolt them with it.
33	* BadassPacifist: It's very possible to play Faith as one, and in fact, this is how you get the best times. Don't stop and fight, just outrun everyone.
34	* BagOfSpilling: When you die, any guns you picked up along the way will not respawn with you, so if you, for example, attempt to sneak a handgun through an entire level [[BraggingRightsReward just to see]] whether it's possible to [[WhyDontYouJustShootHim just shoot]] the final boss, but miscalculate a single jump, well...
35	* BallsOfSteel: A [[SlideAttack slide kick]] in the groin is a very effective method of dispatching armed enemies (disabling them for just enough time for a disarm)... except [[CrazyPrepared the heavy troopers who explicitly wear groin protection with their armor]] and therefore only receive normal damage from such kicks. Also, the groin kicks don't work on the Parkour Killer, an early indication [[spoiler: that [[SamusIsAGirl it's a girl]]]].
36	* BenevolentArchitecture: The city seems ''very'' well supplied with convenient cables and pipes running between rooftops. Especially for a city which seems to consider ''traçeurs'' its Public Enemy Number One. On the other hand, almost every building has roof-mounted fences, often electrified or topped with razorwire.
37	* BigBadFriend: [[spoiler:The Parkour Assassin turns out to be Faith's best friend Celeste, who realizes the Runners are about to be exterminated, and agrees to help the bad guys to save her own sorry ass]].
38	* BigBrotherIsWatching: Although he's kind of a slacker, given the overall efficiency (or apparent lack thereof) of his police state, it's that he's watching but may or may not care what he sees.
39	* BittersweetEnding: Faith successfully [[spoiler:rescues her sister and kills the man responsible for Pope's murder, but the BigBad is nowhere to be seen, and they are both fugitives wanted for multiple murders. Her best friend has betrayed her, killing her beloved mentor and training the brutal police forces to kill all Runners. However, she was able to shut down the City's SinisterSurveillance, at least temporarily, and that's what Runners do in a sense - enable the Resistance to plan in privacy. This battle has been won, and [[SequelHook the war continues..]]]]
40	* BlackDudeDiesFirst: [[spoiler:Inverted. Kreeg is the only runner you meet in-game that isn't dead by the end of it. [[HesJustHiding Unless Celeste survived, that is]]]].
41	* BlackHelicopter: The CPF, and other city-sponsored fighting forces, like to travel in these. They're usually armed, and their machine gun fire adds an extra element of danger to RoofHopping.
42	* ABloodyMess: In the first post-tutorial mission, Faith bursts through a door and sees is a splatter of red on the floor that looks like a spray of blood, until she looks closer and notices it's just spilled paint, perhaps hinting at her first combat encounter with police forces that comes right after.
43	* BodyguardBetrayal: [[spoiler:Ropeburn sends the Parkour Assassin to kill Pope.]]
44	* BookEnds: The prologue and the final level both end with Faith [[spoiler:jumping onto a helicopter]].
45	* BoringButPractical: Despite the game's emphasis on melee combat and running, you might find that it's easier and safer to handle attacking cops or PK elites by knocking out one, taking his gun, and using that gun to shoot all the others.
46	* BrickJoke: A rather sad one. An office worker from PK decides that their project to eliminate runners, the horrible working conditions, among other controversial things [[spoiler:such as "interrogating co-workers"]], isn't worth it and sends a mail that he's quitting. This is detailed in his personal diary and the rant can be read on his computer. [[OhCrap The file containing said rant is found open on his computer when you get to the PK facility]]. [[spoiler:When you go through the depths of the facility, you find a corridor filled with windows leading to interrogation rooms. An office worker is in one of them and he is beaten and bloody.]]
47	* BulletTime: "Reaction Time". For when precision maneuvering and disarming mooks head-on is a matter of life and death, accept no substitutes. However, it does not slow down bullets.
48	* CaptainErsatz: Celeste bears a strong resemblance to ''WesternAnimation/AeonFlux'''s Scaphandra, particularly her appearance in the video game.
49	* CargoConcealmentCaper: In the mission "The Boat", Faith sneaks aboard the eponymous boat by hiding in the back of a cargo truck delivering goods to it.
50	* ChekhovsSkill: [[spoiler: The disarm-from-behind move you learn in the tutorial from Celeste is what Faith uses to defeat her in the fight with her later on]].
51	* CityWithNoName: The City's name is never revealed in this game. In ''VideoGame/MirrorsEdgeCatalyst'' it's revealed to be "the City of Glass".
52	* ClimacticElevatorRide: Reaching the final level's objective requires an especially long elevator ride. It shows how high the Shard rises beyond the rest of the city's skyline, where the player has been running for the entire game.
53	* ClimaxBoss: Faith's rooftop chase and kung-fu duel with the Parkour Killer. Hunting down and taking out a Runner gang leader as an attack helicopter stalks Faith in the iOS prequel.
54	%%* {{Cloudcuckoolander}}: The unseen janitor whose office Faith breaks into in one level.
55	* ColourCodedForYourConvenience: Faith has been running for so long she instinctively sees useful terrain as bright red, and even if you turn this feature off some elements of the architecture remain easily identifiable thanks to their color schemes (bright red doors and blue walkways).
56	* ConvenientlyEmptyBuilding: The game takes place in the height of summer, so it's not immediately apparent that many of the levels take place during very early morning or late evening when most people would still be sleeping or have finished work several hours ago. The mall is closed for renovation before its "grand re-opening" (though there are commercials in the game claiming it's open 24/7) and many levels take place in construction sites or maintenance areas. However, it's all deliberate, as the complete desolation in the middle of a major city is a large part of the game's dystopian theme.
57	** The [[SubwaysSuck subway]] station, like the mall, was closed for renovation.
58	* CopyProtection: Those who have pirated the game would see Faith slow down, as if she has second thoughts about jumping, and if she attempts to jump, she'll fall down, thereby preventing the pirates from completing the game.
59	* CorruptPolitician: The opening narration tells us that the political elite are corrupt. The ending implies it's not ''that'' bad, but there's at least one man out there willing to murder opponents.
60	* {{Courier}}: The runners' jobs is to deliver physical information so it can't be tracked by The City of Glass' government.
61	* CowboyCop: To the city police, it seems like the standard procedure to arrest a Runner can be boiled down to "fill the fucker with lead until they stop running. Then DoubleTap". Hell, it's not even unusual to have them shoot at you [[ThereIsNoKillLikeOverkill with the heavy artillery]] ''before'' they actually order you to surrender! Keep in mind that, in a PacifistRun, Faith actually does ''nothing'' but run away from them and won't even carry a weapon, meaning that there is absolutely ''no'' reason for them to use deadly force against her. Then again, [[JustifiedTrope the city IS a totalitarian state]], so, abusive police forces are [[TruthInTelevision part of the bunch]] (even if breaking out the attack helicopters and armored SWAT teams for ''one'' unarmed woman running around the rooftops still sounds a bit much). [[spoiler: However, turns out you're ''never'' facing actual cops, but [[PrivateMilitaryContractors Pirandello-Kruger mercenaries]], trying to defend a conspiracy to replace the police with their own private force]].
62	* CrapsaccharineWorld: The city seems like a pretty nice place to live for an oppressive police state; it's a clean, sunny place where the people are healthy and the economy seems to be in good shape, which raises the question just what the deal is. Then again, the CowboyCop entry may be a good indicator there is indeed something very, ''very'' wrong with that place...
63	* CutsceneBoss: Faith's "fight" with the minor villain Ropeburn consists of a cutscene and one quick time event before [[spoiler:he's shot by one of Faith's [[EvilCounterpart Evil Counterparts]]]].
64	* CutscenePowerToTheMax: Averted. ''Everything'' Faith does in the 3D cutscenes can be executed with precisely timed inputs (except the hugs). In the opening, for example, Faith does a wall run, turns, ''triggers reaction time'', then jumps onto the head of a crane. The only thing keeping players from doing it is a shortage of cranes (initially, anyway).
65	** An interview with the developers revealed that the intro sequence didn't just use a series of the available animations - it was actually a recording of that section played by one of the devs! The concept was to show players what they would be able to do later in the game.
66	** Played straight in one of the animated cut-scenes where Faith is surrounded by several armed Pirandello-Kruger mercs. She drops down and is surrounded by heavily armed mercs, all within close quarters. Faith all of the sudden goes Rambo and takes out all of them with melee combat as if she was this one-woman army. In the game, you can be surrounded by them, but don't expect to fight out of them like in the cut-scene or expect to do so unscathed. The whole purpose of combat in this game is to fight to run away.
67	* DamselInDistress: Kate Connors is wrongfully imprisoned and Faith spends the rest of the game trying to save her.
68	* DarknessEqualsDeath: A black screen is better than seeing the messy results of a long fall.
69	* DesignStudentsOrgasm: After the November Riots crush the spirit of the people, The City grew like a forest.
70	* DifficultButAwesome:
71	** Disarm counters instantly take down an enemy and give you a free weapon, but you need to be in melee range[[note]]which means rushing at someone who is shooting at you[[/note]] and have very precise timing[[note]]there's only a split-second long window for assault rifle and combat shotgun-wielding mooks, almost necessitating the use of Faith's [[BulletTime Reaction Time]] ability[[/note]]. Enemy melee attacks do a lot of damage, too, so, if you fail to grab once, you might not get a second chance.
72	** The Wall-Run Kick spins an enemy around, leaving them vulnerable to disarm attacks. Good luck getting an enemy into position to do that.
73	** It's possible, with a ''lot'' of practice, to become a Parkour Kungfu Master and kick the shit out of cops while looking incredibly badass.
74	* DiegeticInterface: In that there ''is'' no interface. Other than an optional white "crosshair" dot to prevent motion sickness, you have no health bar, ammo counter, Reaction Time meter, or anything. For instance, to find out where you need to go in a level, you press a button and Faith automatically looks in the right direction.
75	* DisneyVillainDeath: [[spoiler:Jacknife is punted out of a helicopter by Faith.]]
76	* DodgeTheBullet: ''"No one catches a Runner. That's kinda the point."''
77	* DoesNotLikeGuns: Faith, and if you never use any of the guns that are dropped, you earn an Achievement/Trophy.
78	** To add unto Faith's perception of not liking guns, you get a different radio-report playing in the credits, detailing that most [=PKs=] and officers have been hurt and not killed.
79	** In the reboot, Faith cannot hold guns, period. It is not even an option.
80	* DoNotDropYourWeapon: Enemies only drop their guns when they die, and Faith's disarm moves are all one-hit knock-outs.
81	* EasterEgg: [[spoiler:Towards the end of the penultimate chapter ("Kate"), after correctly sniping the convoy's engine, quickly look up and snipe the middle dot on an orange sign showing nine dots. Quickly zoom out, and a giant rat, about the size of a car, will dart down the street. [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TtaIzSmhuls Click here to watch it, if you're curious]].]]
82	** A newscrawl in one of the elevator reports on the ongoing war in Sedaristan from ''VideoGame/BattlefieldBadCompany'', another game by DICE.
83	* EdgeGravity: While it only appears in a few places, this is one of the many nearly invisible AntiFrustrationFeatures. Getting too close to an edge and stopping will have Faith lose her balance, quickly regaining it and repositioning herself a little more from the edge.
84	* ElevatorEscape: Just like the conveniently placed construction equipment. It's as if [[GeniusLoci The City wants to help the Runners in their rebellion.]]
85	* ElevatorSnare:
86	** This happens while you're chasing Jacknife, resulting in you having to take the other elevator.
87	** Happens to your opponents a couple of times, too, with Faith getting the elevator closed just as a hail of bullets strikes the doors.
88	* EliteMook: The Pursuit Cops can do a lot of the same parkour moves Faith can, so, outrunning them can be challenging. They also deploy smoke grenades to conceal incoming attacks and won't hesitate to use their tasers on Faith if they're unable to reach her directly. In addition, they're extremely proficient in hand-to-hand combat [[note]]if you haven't spent a lot of time fighting, and don't know how the [=PCs=] telegraph their attacks, you're in for a [[CurbstompBattle walloping]][[/note]], making it nigh-suicidal to attack them head-on. In case one is brave enough to do so, the Wall Run Kick becomes crucial to defeating them, allowing Faith to [[HoistByTheirOwnPetard take them out with one of her disarming grabs]], and attacks from above are still an instant knockout. [[EscapeSequence Merc will advise you to flee]] whenever you encounter one.
89	* EscapeSequence: As you might guess, a game about running is full of these. On many occasions, you might find that luck, skill, and free use of guns lets you fight your way past enemies you're supposed to flee from, but that won't fly when they break out the helicopters.
90	* EverythingIsAnIpodInTheFuture: While all weapons and electronic devices seen on desks in the offices are black, the entire rest of the game world follows the [=iPod=] design concept.
91	* EvilCounterpart: Two, actually. There's [[spoiler:Celeste,]] the Parkour Assassin pursued by Faith through much of the game, and [[spoiler:Jacknife, the retired Runner]] who takes responsibility for the entire evil plot in the final showdown, despite being just TheDragon to the (never seen) BigBad.
92	* ExecutiveSuiteFight: Averted, Faith makes her way, and avoids the police, through several office buildings throughout the game.
93	* ExplodingBarrels: Played straight. Faith is usually unarmed, but her opponents can set them off for extra damage if she is near them. In a cutscene, Faith takes a gun from [[spoiler:Celeste]] and kills a bunch of baddies by exploding a barrel.
94	* FacialMarkings: Faith has a tattoo around her right eye, making it resemble the "runner's mark" that features prominently in the game.
95	* FallOfTheHouseOfCards: In a cutscene near the beginning of the game, Faith is passing time in Merc's lair building a house of cards. When she hears that Kate's in trouble she springs to her feet, knocking the whole thing over.
96	* FauxActionGirl: Kate Connors is supposed to be a trained policewoman but she's a DamselInDistress for most of the game. On top of that, the one opponent she ever faces knocks her out.
97	* FemaleGroinInvincibility: The first hint that the masked Parkour Killer is a woman (if her pain yelps when taking damage don't give it away earlier) is that, during her boss battle, she takes regular damage from crotch kicks that briefly stun almost any other enemy in the game.
98	* FirstPersonDyingPerspective: Implied with [[PlayerCharacter Faith's]] death via falling from a high height. We see Faith's falling from her POV, however we don't see the final moment, only her view being obscured and a SickeningCrunch sound afterwards.
99	* FlippingTheBird: The "Sweet Goodbye" achievement. This is achieved by jumping forward, doing a 180-degree turn while in the air and then pressing the attack button in quick succession. This will make Faith flash a V-sign while falling backwards (this is the equivalent of flipping the bird in Britain, Ireland, and New Zealand).
100	* FollowThePlottedLine: Only a few missions actually show you the destination early on. Having lived in the city all her life, as well as being used to rooftop navigation, it's generally assumed that Faith knows her way around the city.
101	* {{Foreshadowing}}:
102	** Notice [[spoiler:the computer screens when Faith finds the information about Project Icarus. All the runners have their information filled in or marked as "unknown" - except for Celeste, whose info is marked as being "Classified".]]
103	** Also, when [[spoiler:Merc says "Who knows who [Jacknife]'s working for now", the elevator Faith's in is showing advertisements for Callaghan, Pirandello/Kruger, and [[BreadEggsBreadedEggs both Callaghan and Pirandello/Kruger.]]]]
104	** This one is really subtle, but during [[spoiler:New Eden, if you try to use the elevators again once you're in the mall, you get a special error message saying the elevator controls have been seized by Pirandello/Kruger; the same error screen that appeared on the elevators in Robert Pope's building before it was raided by PK officers. Some players might brush this off, but to attentive players it's an early warning that you're walking into a trap.]]
105	* FragileSpeedster: Faith simply can't take on more than one or two Blues head on before getting shot to hell. This is not a problem since she can frequently zoom right past them. If you compare speed runs on Website/YouTube, you'll find runs where some enemies fail to appear entirely - normally they are set to intercept Faith, but the player is so far ahead that they can only break down the door and yell "Freeze!" at an empty room. Buh-bye!
106	* FrameUp: The event that begins the action. Kate, Faith's sister, is framed for the murder of Pope, the only hope the city has of getting better.
107	* GameplayAndStorySegregation:
108	** The heavy presence of cameras is focused on as one of the city's invasions of privacy, but there are no consequences for running right past one and at no point are they treated like something that needs to be avoided.
109	** Falling more than a certain distance will kill Faith instantly, except for predetermined cutscenes (also an example of CutscenePowerToTheMax).
110	* GenderFlip: The original mentions Callaghan as a male exactly once in the entire game. The iOS version mentions her as a female several times.
111	* GenericistGovernment: The City of Glass is implied to have a representative democracy, after all, Pope was preparing for an election, but little else is stated about the government's style and function other than the oppressive/privacy invading stuff.
112	* GenreMashup: {{FPS}} + a PlatformGame; lots of running and jumping and a pinch of handguns and all from first-person perspective.
113	* TheGhost: Drake, who is apparently an operator working with Merc and the runners, comes up in conversation several times, but is only seen once as a picture on a computer screen.
114	%%* GodSaveUsFromTheQueen: In the iPhone/iPad version, where Callaghan is female.
115	* GoombaStomp: Just landing on people isn't necessarily deadly, but it can be turned into one of the faster and safer one-hit takedowns in the game... [[DifficultButAwesome if you can pull it off]]. Pulling it off also nets the [[CosmeticAward achievement]] [[Franchise/SuperMarioBros "It's-A Me!"]].
116	* GraffitiOfTheResistance: The Runners and other anti-government activists mark their caches with graffiti.
117	* GratuitousForeignLanguage: Gratuitous Simplified Chinese and GratuitousJapanese gibberish on shipping crates.
118	** Averted on a particular door that does have the correct Japanese "立入禁止", "Entry Forbidden". Everything else is gibberish, though.
119	** While in-game Chinese is correct (here the Traditional variant is used), translation at times seems to be somewhat lazy, with an omnipresent "非請莫入"(basically "no admittance without invitation/authorization") standing in for more detailed notifications, such as "Maintenance area".
120	** You will occasionally run into some Korean and Cyrillic characters.
121	* GroinAttack: Faith's [[SlideAttack slide kick]] maneuver aims for the groin.
122	* GunsAkimbo: [[spoiler:Miller in his BigDamnHeroes moment with a pair of guns]].
123	* HeroKiller: The Parkour Killer kills runners; infamous for it.
124	* HeWhoMustNotBeSeen: The BigBad, [[spoiler:Mayor Callaghan]], is mentioned but never actually appears in the game.
125	* HiredGuns: [[spoiler: The "police" that Faith runs from for the entire game are actually private security forces that are assimilating the official police force.]]
126	* HoistByTheirOwnPetard: A couple of Faith's disarm moves involve knocking out the offending mook with their own weapon's stock. Most notably, if a disarming grab is performed on a Pursuit Cop, Faith uses their taser to electrocute its wielder.
127	* {{Homage}}:
128	** The part where Faith slides down the sloped edge of a skyscraper to escape an armed helicopter is very reminiscent of Creator/JackieChan's famous stunt in ''Who Am I?''.
129	** Faith scrambling up, along then off a crane doesn't recall a certain scene in a movie perhaps? No? [[Film/CasinoRoyale2006 Here's a hint.]]
130	* HyperspaceArsenal: ''Very'' much averted. Carrying weapons reduces Faith's speed and agility, so while she can disarm enemy mooks and use their guns against them, she must usually discard them immediately; how can you shimmy up a pipe while carrying a [[{{BFG}} .50 caliber sniper rifle?]]
131	** The exception is the pistol and the machine pistol, which are both small enough that Faith can carry them without slowing down a bit. Unfortunately, they also have the smallest ammo magazines out of any weapon in the game (except the shotgun, but that's another story entirely).
132	* IfIWantedYouDead: Jacknife says this when Faith accuses him of being the mysterious assassin. [[spoiler: He's not, but he did ''hire'' the assassin.]]
133	* IfYouCanReadThis: A naïve InnocentBystander is TemptingFate when he types that he pities the SinisterSurveillance who has to monitor his porn surfing. He offhandedly wondered what they'd do if they learned he was quitting his job; [[spoiler: tie him to a chair and [[ColdBloodedTorture beat him bloody]]?]] Guess what? [[spoiler:''[[ForegoneConclusion That's exactly what they do!]]'']]
134	* ImpairmentShot: When Faith takes a bullet, her eyes water and strain from the pain, damaging her peripheral vision. This means the screen's edges flash red and blur.
135	* ImperialStormtrooperMarksmanshipAcademy:
136	** The entire game is based around the premise that a police state has police who can't reliably hit moving objects, even with [[MoreDakka fully automatic weapons]]. Believe it or not, this is TruthInTelevision. Most people (including a number of experienced ''cops'') sincerely believe that MoreDakka will instantly reduce targets to hamburger. Inexperienced and/or overconfident law enforcement officers regularly empty their badge-granted leadspitters at unarmored targets at less than five meters, and don't put a scratch on them because they forget to ''aim''. Burning off too much ammo at once blows accuracy to hell. Also, Police forces that rely too heavily on intimidation never really get enough weapons practice. Add all that up, then order the poor, doomed mooks to hunt down a human hamster. HilarityEnsues.
137	** Averted when playing on Hard difficulty. Can you say OhCrap, Runner? The first shot by any mook almost always misses, but lets them sight in on you. ''Every'' shot after that can be expected to hit unless you take cover - [[PocketProtector real cover]]. This makes various sequences very difficult due to not being able to disarm or defeat mooks.
138	** Played straight in a cutscene, where a whole group of police shoot at Faith and Celeste (neither of whom has any sort of cover) for several seconds without hitting.
139	** Enforced in the reboot. As long as Faith is not still, bullets miss.
140	** And really, is it so unrealistic that even cops and mercenaries can rarely hit a trained runner [[LeParkour moving both horizontally and vertically with a changing silhouette]] at a dead sprint?
141	* InstantWinCondition: [[spoiler: Booting Jacknife out of his helicopter and rescuing Kate apparently causes all the PK officers on the roof that would've filled the two full of lead right afterwards to vanish into the ether, and the game apparently doesn't care about the hordes of blues swarming the building either as the game ends right there instead of depicting Faith and Kate's escape.]]
142	* InsurmountableWaistHeightFence:
143	** Averted, since the game is mostly played atop skyscrapers, in that while Faith can jump over fences and most other obstacles, falling off the edge means instant death. That last part is TruthInTelevision, by the way.
144	** There are spots where an obviously non-fatal drop still causes death. [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XopNFEJCfsk Example.]]
145	* ItsAllUpstairsFromHere: The last level is a really long climb.
146	* ItsPersonal: Faith happily zips past the cops, and the police department don't dispatch a small platoon to deal with one runner. That is, [[spoiler:until they take her sister]].
147	* JustifiedTutorial: Faith was injured before the events of the game in unspecified circumstances and Merc had to check to see if she was 100%. It's also skippable.
148	* LawEnforcementInc: Pirandello/Kruger has [[spoiler: basically assimilated the official police force.]]
149	* KentBrockmanNews: The poorly disguised propaganda broadcasts that pass for network news throughout the game.
150	* LaserSight:
151	** The snipers have these, apparently to give away their position. [[FridgeBrilliance Then again, those "laser sights" may simply be visible due to Runner Vision !]]
152	** It's really useful when ''you'' have a SniperRifle, too; not only do you sensibly have the laser switched off, but you can use their beams to trace up to them with the scope. It even produces a handy little dot if they're behind cover!
153	* LeaningOnTheFourthWall: When Faith is in an elevator, the TV screen on the elevator flashes various messages about the state of the city. One message outlines tips for determining whether someone you know is secretly a Runner, and one of the tips is "A fondness for the color red", the dominant color of the game's "Runner Vision".
154	* LightIsNotGood: Everything in The City of Glass is perfectly clean and shining white, and there is never a single wisp of cloud on the perfectly blue sky. Yet it all feels very sterile and there's almost no sign of actual life, except for lots of construction sites and hordes of police chasing after you. It makes the entire place actually a bit creepy, or at least unnerving.
155	* LivingIsMoreThanSurviving: Celeste tells Faith: "Survival is overrated. You need to live a little too." [[spoiler:That's why she betrays the Runners.]]
156	* LovesTheSoundOfScreaming: One of the achievements in the smartphone game is "Scream for Me," where Faith makes the PK mercs...[[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin yeah.]]
157	* MadeOfIron: Faith can take a sniper bullet in the back while wearing only a tank top, and it slows her down a little. She also drops a respectable distance through a glass ceiling and lands ''in the glass'', yet is able to get up and keep running like nothing happened.
158	* MagnetHands: Averted. Faith ''cannot'' perform delicate maneuvers, or even run quickly, when carrying most weapons. She can stuff a single pistol ''or'' SMG in her trousers, but that is ''it.''
159	* McNinja: The [[EvilPlan bad guy's master plan]] turns out to be [[spoiler: a scheme to train Blues in LeParkour as "[[SuperpoweredMooks Pursuit Cops]]" in order to hunt down Runners at their own game]].
160	* MeaningfulName:
161	** Mercury, whose [[CodeName code name]] clearly refers to the [[http://tinyurl.com/22ggbd Ancient Roman messenger of the gods.]] Also, he's frequently referred to as "Merc" which can also be taken as shorthand for "Mercenary", which the Runners are, to a degree.
162	** Faith, too; she "keeps the faith" regarding her sister's innocence and her own profession. The ending [[spoiler:has her literally ''and'' figuratively making a leap of Faith]].
163	* MentorOccupationalHazard: [[spoiler:Mercury, a mentor to many runners, including Faith, is killed near the end game. It's by one of his own pupils, too!]].
164	* MissionControl: Mercury. ''"I find the work, chop it up, farm it out. The runners do it. It's a tidy arrangement. Everyone gets paid, and nobody sees a thing."'' [[spoiler: That is, until he meets his untimely demise in the penultimate chapter. Miller then takes the role of directing Faith for most of the Shard chapter until he is presumbably discovered and shot dead off-screen]].
165	* MoreDakka: The machine gun. Extremely deadly when it's in an enemy's hands and extremely satisfying when it's in Faith's.
166	* MysteriousMercenaryPursuer: Inverted with the "white guy". Certainly a mysterious mercenary, but it is you who's chasing him.
167	* NeverFoundTheBody: [[spoiler:Celeste is not seen after Faith blows up a gas can between them and some incoming Blues after their final showdown. However, it is implied that Faith doesn't think Celeste is dead, but rather does not want to deal with her anymore due to how upset she is]].
168	* NoodleIncident: At the beginning of the tutorial, Merc mentions that Faith was taken out of action for a while due to an unspecified injury she sustained.
169	* NonStandardGameOver: You'll get one if you fail to [[spoiler: shoot the engine of the police truck carrying Faith's sister to jail]] in Chapter 8. You'll also get one if you lose Jacknife in Chapter 2 or [[spoiler: the Parkour Assassin]] in Chapter 7.
170	* NoticeThis: Faith's "Runner Vision" highlights certain objects along her route in bright red, showing the player which way to go, though it ''doesn't'' always show the best route. You can [[SelfImposedChallenge turn it off]] from the options menu. It is forced off on Hard difficulty, which would be unbearable if it didn't require you to have cleared the game to play on Hard.
171	* NotTheFallThatKillsYou: Averted. You can roll or crouch to avoid damage from ''sensible'' jumps, but more than that and you're going splat, and you get a couple of seconds to meditate on your failure.
172	* OffscreenVillainy: Most of the crimes committed by the people in charge of the city don't happen onscreen in the present day.
173	* OnlyAFleshWound: Taking too many bullets in succession will kill her, but getting shot "only" once or twice barely slows Faith down.
174	* OnlyInItForTheMoney: [[spoiler: {{Face Heel Turn}}ing and training SuperpoweredMooks pays better than an illegal courier service, and the cops don't shoot at you.]]
175	* PacifistRun: The only person Faith ''must'' kill is her EvilCounterpart, which she does [[CutsceneBoss automatically]] by [[spoiler:jumping from the roof of the hundred-and-ten-story Shard onto a helicopter, booting him '''''[[DisneyVillainDeath right out the other side in the process.]]''''' Of course he fires his SMG all the way down and kills the rotors, meaning Faith and Kate are stuck on a falling helicopter...]] In fact, you earn a special achievement, "Test of Faith", if you complete the game without shooting anyone with a firearm (except the convoy). Funnily enough, the achievement is strictly for not ''shooting'' anyone; you can throw Blues into the path of an oncoming train or off skyscrapers and still [[TechnicalPacifist be considered a pacifist]]. However, if you don't shoot anyone, then you will have to deal with at least a couple of enemies in other ways, if only because even Faith isn't fast enough to dodge a heavy machine gunner camped right by the door she needs to use.
176	* LeParkour: The entire premise of the game is running and jumping between buildings, cables, etc. Actually, it's an unbelievably over-the-top and virtually ''suicidal'' form of parkour.
177	* ParkourAssassin: The Pursuit Cops trained by Project Icarus, including [[spoiler: Celeste.]] The EliteMook of the Blues, these are by far the most difficult enemy Faith has, mostly for the fact that even their snipers can't do half the things a Runner can - and Pursuit Cops ''can.'' Their tendency to attack in groups and ability to block attacks makes a fight mostly unfeasible, but they can be beaten, and if you can get an opening to stealth-disarm one, it's a satisfying sight.
178	* ThePiratesWhoDontDoAnything: Faith is supposed to be a courier, but only gets to deliver a single package before getting caught up in the storyline. It's explained in the tutorial that Faith was out of commission for a while due to a NoodleIncident injury and the story begins a bit after she recovers. Her sister is more important than her job.
179	* PlatformGame: The developer was trying to innovate by making it first-person, though this led to several people, including [[WebAnimation/ZeroPunctuation Yahtzee]], complaining that you wouldn't be able to see the character's feet before jumping.
180	%%The game suffers from the lack of proprioception, the sense that lets you know where all the bits and pieces of your body are at any given moment, which is why you can touch your fingers to your nose with your eyes closed (unless you're drunk). It also suffers from the fact that your brain is constantly comparing the inputs from different senses. So when your eyes tell you you're running along a rooftop and doing flips, but your body tells you you're sitting perfectly still, the result is motion sickness. So it causes problems because of what it doesn't tell you, and because of what it does tell you. - Dude, what are you rambling about? Yes, this is a thing, but there are so many other games where that have similar UX and where that doesn't happen. Why? Because the screen takes up maybe a fifth, a sixth, or even smaller area still from your entire field of vision. Everything around it is perfectly still, giving enough visual reference to not confuse input from vision with input from feeling seated. This is not a VR game where this would actually become an issue.
181	* PoliceState: The City of Glass is majorly totalitarian; monitoring everything and cracking down hard on anyone who tries to evade their sight.
182	* PostCyberpunk:
183	** Both the games visuals and plot place it firmly into the post-cyberpunk genre; very clean, very shiny, and also an oppressive police state where the heroes are the ones who can avoid them. At the same time, futuristic weapons or electronics are completely absent. The few times people do use computers, it's to read documents during cutscenes, and the most complex electronic devices the player uses are elevator buttons.
184	** Averted in the reboot. Pure Cyberpunk with eye implants, vertibirds, drones, and electronic walls that can scan your ID with a touch.
185	* ThePrecariousLedge: Faith slows down long enough to creep across ledges on the rooftops, such as during the training sequence whilst following Celeste. These short sections come with PlummetPerspective too.
186	* PressXToNotDie: When [[spoiler:Ropeburn swings that pipe at you, grab it or he'll smack you one and throw you right off the building!]]
187	* PretentiousLatinMotto: The real reason why [[spoiler:Miller]] takes his sweet time to unlock the last elevator in the last level is to give you time to read the motto on the wall: "Finis Coronat Opus" (Lat. "[[UtopiaJustifiesTheMeans the end crowns the work]]", a slightly more pretentious way to say "the end justifies the means").
188	* PrivateMilitaryContractors: If you look closely, you'll notice the more heavily-armed [[{{Mooks}} "Blues"]] in the game wear black PK uniforms instead of the blue CPF uniforms worn by the city police. Faith herself somehow misses this little detail until a CPF character points it out to her in the very last level. Turns out they're all security forces of Pirandello/Kruger, a PMC that turns out to be one of your main enemies.
189	%%* ProfessionalKiller: The "white guy".
190	%%* PsychoForHire: [[spoiler:Jacknife]].
191	* PunchClockHero: Ropeburn was hired by Pope to protect him from the mayor's lackeys. [[spoiler: Unfortunately, he was one of those lackeys.]]
192	* PunchClockVillain: [[spoiler:Celeste still hangs out with the other Runners and hints to them to give up that life, as her other job is training a new unit of mercenaries that will capture or eliminate all Runners in The City of Glass.]]
193	* RacingGhost: A transparent red one. Some gamers follow it at a reduced pace just to witness the coolness from a third-person perspective.
194	* RealIsBrown: Gloriously averted, for once, with brightly colored buildings and clear blue skies. Although green is mostly absent to give a feeling of sterility. Even the plants are white.
195	* RedOniBlueOni: On a large scale, the City is divided between the TotalitarianUtilitarian government (which is associated with the color blue through their police force and Jacknife. The police force are even called "Blues" by runners) and the runners, the defiant, passionate young couriers who evade their control (who specifically associate with red via "runner vision" and their personal effects).
196	* RegeneratingHealth: Any harm sustained by Faith will fully go away in several seconds. As there is no health meter, the game communicates Faith's status through telltale visual feedback: minor injuries merely desaturate and add a slight vignette to the image, but when the edges of the screen begin flashing red, it's time to seek cover.
197	* ReasonableAuthorityFigure: Lieutenant Miller recognizes that Kate, his co-worker, is being framed and is willing to work with her sister to clear her name, even if that sister happens to be a Runner.
198	* RoaringRampageOfRescue: The main focus of the game, especially toward the end when [[spoiler:Merc is killed and Kate is taken]].
199	* {{Roofhopping}}: Running start, jump off the ledge, cross the gap and roll to a stop. Whoosh! That's how Faith gets around.
200	* SamusIsAGirl: [[spoiler: The boss of Chapter 7 is Celeste, whose alter ego was presumed male.]] Hilariously, your first clue is when [[spoiler:she doesn't really react to your [[GroinAttack crotch-kicks]]]]. Another giveaway - [[spoiler: when you hit her she grunts girlishly, and how many girls have you [[ChekhovsGunman met so far]] in the game? Faith, Celeste, and Kate.]] Two of those are fairly unlikely. A third giveaway -- and a pretty clever one at that -- [[spoiler: when you're escaping the mall and the Parkour Killer waits for Faith to catch up, she does Celeste's idle animation: that restless hop you first see in the tutorial.]]
201	* SceneryPorn: The game's art style and primarily rooftop-based levels naturally lend themselves well to fantastic views of the expansive skyscraper-dotted cityscape.
202	* ShortRangeLongRangeWeapon: If Faith gets up in their faces, her opponents will attempt to club the SheFu master with their weapon rather than shoot her. Then they wonder why she's holding it all of a sudden.
203	* SickeningCrunch: When Faith jumps/falls off a roof; splat!
204	* SinisterSurveillance: The specific reason for the existence of Runners is that there are people who don't want the StateSec spying on them so they send physical messages.
205	* SlidingScaleOfShinyVersusGritty: Mayor Callaghan ''did'' "clean up this town..." By making it into a police state.
206	* SniperRifle: The fact that Faith can take more than a single shot from a [[{{BFG}} Barrett M82]] seems to make her [[MadeOfIron somewhat more]] than a FragileSpeedster... which may be why the Blues eventually decide to ZergRush her.
207	* SoftGlass: In one level, Faith evades the police by jumping onto a glass ceiling, falling ''right on top'' of the broken shards and simply walking it off.
208	* SpeedyTechnoRemake: There are ''ten'' remixes of "Still Alive" (no, not [[VideoGame/{{Portal}} that one]]) available on iTunes, 4 of which come packaged with the original on a separate CD in the PC version.
209	* SteamVentObstacle:
210	** Steam vents are particularly irritating obstacles because they require you to stop and rotate the nearby valve for a couple of seconds. In a game where even ''braking down'' is generally not desirable. Almost all of them are seemingly only there to give the game some extra seconds to load the next section of the level.
211	** Usually these vents kill you instantly if you try to just pass through the jet of steam, but there's one in the [[EternalEngine Pirandello/Kruger]] level which activates on a timer yet only causes mild damage, [[GoodBadBugs if it hurts you at all]], allowing you to [[SequenceBreaking skip waiting for it to turn off]].
212	** In the Platform/{{iOS}} version, these kill you faster than getting shot, and appear fairly often in levels that take place indoors.
213	* SunshineNoir: The City is perhaps the most glaringly bright dystopia ever envisioned.
214	* SuperpoweredMooks: The "Pursuit Cops" who show up in a few of the later levels and try to chase Faith using the same skills she has.
215	* SuperWindowJump: Runners, like [[Webcomic/TheOrderOfTheStick Dashing Swordsmen]], learn how to leap through plate glass without being cut.
216	* TakeOurWordForIt: It's a bit difficult to get across how the city's policies affect the average citizen in a video game focusing on an illegal courier. However, given that Faith and many others make a living they must have a sufficient customer base.
217	* TattooedCrook: All the Runners have tattoos of some sort.
218	* TechnicalPacifist: Toss as many Blues off skyscrapers as you like, but as long as you don't ''shoot'' them you still pass the [[CosmeticAward "Test of Faith"]].
219	* TemptingFate: The final boss's taunt to Faith: "You can't live on the edge all your life, Faith. Sooner or later, you have to jump." And jump she does.
220	%%%
221	%%% What does it mean?
222	%%* TankTopTomboy: Faith. Her outfit is a black tank top with white lines going down the sides.
223	* TheVeryDefinitelyFinalDungeon: The Shard. This bluish and reflective prism-shaped skyscraper counting over 100 floors and serving as the local government HQ can be seen looming in the distance from practically any point in the City, enforcing the theme of constant surveillance. Each mission takes Faith closer and closer to the Shard, and the final confrontation takes place on its rooftop.
224	* ThemeTune: "Still Alive". Not to be confused with [[VideoGame/{{Portal}} that other song.]]
225	* ThirdPersonSeductress: Averted. This game is played from a first-person perspective, and [[PlayerCharacter Faith]] wears practical clothes for a ''traçeuse'', namely a tank-top, cargo-pants and ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jika-tabi jika-tabi]]'' shoes. Her appearance is only apparent in the cutscenes.
226	* ThrowAwayGuns: Faith throws away her gun whenever she runs out of ammo, and you cannot reload a gun at all. It's justified, since she can't carry extra bullets and the guns slow her down anyway.
227	* TightropeWalking: Faith can run on thin pipes and planks if need be. This can involve manual balance (not just keeping her upright by wiggling the stick or Sixaxis) such as when Faith had to run on a crane; at these times her survival is dependent on the skill of the player at keeping her feet centered, not just her center of gravity. In-game comments allude to the danger of this trope.
228	* TimeTrial: One mode of the game is completing a course in the shortest time possible. The place for the Time Trial DLC even takes place in some rather abstract levels specifically designed to have players go through trial and error for the best time.
229	* TitleDrop: In the intro movie: ''"We call ourselves Runners. We exist on the edge between the gloss and the reality; the Mirror's Edge."'' In this case, it seems to be not so much shoehorning the phrase in as it is explaining it, which is kind of a nice change from the norm.
230	* TitleIn: The beginning of each level has an on-screen caption stating Faith's location within the city and the time it begins.
231	* TrademarkFavoriteFood: Faith and Merc really seem to like pizza.
232	* TrainEscape: ''Subway'' trains though quick application of Parkour, both above and below the ground.
233	* TrainingDummy: Celeste serves as one during the tutorial on hand-to-hand combat and gun usage.
234	* TrialAndErrorGameplay: Expect a whole lot of hitting the concrete from a great height, or cops busting your head open.
235	* UniqueProtagonistAsset: Faith has her LeParkour skills to help her evade enemies and reach locations. [[spoiler: Then she meets the "Pursuit Cops" and her asset is no longer unique. It's RunOrDie time.]]
236	* UnnecessaryCombatRoll: Averted, since RealLife ''traçeurs'' use the exact same roll to keep from going ''ker''-'''splat'''.
237	* UnstoppableMailman: Faith's job is an illegal courier for physical mail, regardless how many death-defying jumps she has to make.
238	* UseYourHead: During the fight against [[spoiler: Celeste]], if Faith keeps attacking her for too long, she blocks counters with a headbutt to the face. If Faith's health is low enough, she could even be killed by that counter.
239	* VideoGameCaringPotential: Story requirements notwithstanding, a PacifistRun is perfectly possible, and you're even awarded an achievement for doing so.
240	* VideoGameCrueltyPotential:
241	** In the tutorial, you can shoot your best friend. Despite the tutorial saying, "[[CaptainObvious Don't shoot your best friend]]."
242	** You have a few opportunities to throw enemies off of high places, if you're feeling sadistic. The most noticable option for it is when a shotgun-wielding PK comes out from a construction building as you parkour through it, your most likely reaction is to jumpkick him head-on.
243	** ''You'' try keeping your cool instead of disarming an enemy and using his weapon to utterly slaughter his comrades after you are treated one time too many to the sight of Faith falling dead on her side with the screen blacking out to the sound of "Arrest the suspect !"
244	* VideoGameSliding: Sliding under objects is an important part of Faith's parkour-inspired move set.
245	* VoiceWithAnInternetConnection: Mercury assists Faith with intel through a radio; the internet itself is monitored. [[spoiler: Until he gets killed. Then Miller takes over during the final level.]]
246	* WalkItOff: It's slightly disconcerting to have survived several bursts of automatic gunfire and recovered, only to corner the guy and get laid out by two consecutive {{Pistol Whipping}}s.
247	* WallJump: Faith is practically freaking Spider-Man. Just don't try to Wall ''[[WallCrawling Crawl]]''. Show ''some'' respect for the laws of physics!
248	* WhatHappenedToTheMouse: During that final confrontation, there are {{mook}}s shooting at you. After the confrontation--which does not involve fighting them, or leaving the area on a permanent basis--they are gone. We can assume that the {{mook}}s fled the scene when [[spoiler:the chopper lost control. You wouldn't like to be on a roof when a chopper loses control and is about to crash into said building.]]
249	* WhereTheHellIsSpringfield: The City's location is ambiguous. Clocks throughout the game depict the letters "E.T.", as in "eastern time", which would make you think it's on the East Coast of North America. Not so fast though, because the City's coastline matches Shenzhen Bay near Hong Kong, much of the City's architecture bears a decidedly Asian vibe to it, and traffic is on the left side of the road. Then there's two official languages, English and Chinese. All of this adds up to confusing the hell out of anyone trying to figure out where the City is beyond "somewhere in East Asia", and that's probably intentional.
250	** At the very least it is set somewhere on (an) Earth since there is mention of the USA and UN...along with [[VideoGame/BattlefieldBadCompany Serdaristan and Tasbikistan]]
251	* WhiteIsPure: In the game, the City of Glass is represented in white and chrome to reflect its status as a pristine symbol of Conglomerate greatness.
252	* WilhelmScream: Appears in the smart phone prequel. Kick a merc off a building and you'll hear it.
253	* AWinnerIsYou: After [[spoiler: clearing the final level and saving Kate (again), they just hug without a word, the camera pans out to show most of the city, and the credits roll. The ''only'' epilogue we get is during the credits, in the form of a brief news soundclip suggesting that Faith and Kate have eluded the police once again, which is hardly a surprise given the many daring escapes Faith pulled off in the story.]]

Context VideoGame / MirrorsEdge