The freedom of choice as a mechanic is not new in video games as most role-playing games (RPG) for example, normally have them to help with developing the lead character, improve immersion, or even just for the sake of having it. The consequences of these choices range from the inconsequential to the introduction of a major quest for example, or – in rare and extreme cases – can decide the outcome. Detroit Become Human by Quantic Games, however, is built around the choices the player makes for each of its three main protagonists, while making expositions about equality, humanity, and civil rights along the way.
As another interactive story game developed by Quantic Games, a master of the genre, Detroit Become Human lets you take control of three androids: Connor, a detective android in charge of rounding up fellow androids that have gone ‘deviant’; Markus, a care-giver model whose consciousness is awakened thanks to his owner and then goes on to fight for equal rights for androids; and Kara, a housekeeper android who must protect and take care of a little girl named Alice. All three have their own stories to tell interspersed with the general theme of self-awakening.
Unlike most video games, the interactive story genre encourages the players to actually put themselves into the shoes of the characters by making their choices for them. The end consequences of these choices would, of course, have to be shouldered by the player whether it be success or ruin. That’s exactly where Detroit Become Human shines. Just like previous Quantic Games before it like Heavy Rain and Beyond Two Souls, even the seemingly minor action might have huge consequences in later chapters. Something as simple as spotting a gun while cleaning a room opens up opportunities that you can use later on.
Unlike Heavy Rain, however, the character’s fates need not necessarily be arbitrarily “good” or “bad”. While any of the three characters can possibly and irretrievably (at least for two of them) die in the middle of your play-through, it actually feels somewhat “natural.” You will control what paths either Connor, Markus or Kara will take and how they will get there. You can choose to sacrifice your relationship with one character in order to do what you’re supposed to do. For example, while Alice serves as a sort of moral compass for Kara, trying to preserve your standing with the little girl will actually make things somewhat harder for you. On the flip-side, ruining your relationship with her will definitely have an effect on what might happen later on in the story (if you survive that far, that is).
Detroit Become Human’s storytelling is great, at least, until the moments when the game starts to rely on lengthy expositions than letting the player come to that same realization themselves. While this is great for someone like me who doesn’t mind his media to be “wordy”, it may from the drama story-like experience, and may even bother gamers who prefer that the expositions come in a more subtle form than having a philosophical treatise every time. Think of Westworld except that it has no Anthony Hopkins to make some of the expositions really, really pleasurable to listen to. While it is a bit unfair to compare the writing in this game to Westworld, it can’t be helped because they share so many similarities. The difference being that Westworld relied more on “show” while Detroit Become Human relied too much on “tell”.
But the mountainous dialogue is alleviated in part because of your ability to control what happens next. The whole structure of the game itself is altered by your very choices in a way that I feel is much deeper than Heavy Rain, Life is Strange, or the Tell Tale games. Sometimes the consequences of your choices and actions don’t become apparent until at least a chapter or two afterwards and unlike Life is Strange, even a wrong decision can “feel” like the right one in light of how the narrative changes itself to accommodate your moral compass. Like all games, there is a “good” outcome of course, but you are encouraged to create your own story out of the choices you will make.
The game’s biggest success, however, is its ability to play with our emotions in the same way it messes with our heads with the choices you had to make. It is hard not to get attached to any of the three protagonists and that in turn, is infectious enough to extend to the people they meet. If a game manages to make me have some fatherly concern for the welfare of what IGN’s review called “the least charismatic video game child that ever existed”, then it is probably doing something right.
Detroit Become Human is a visual treat that is on par with the best the PlayStation 4 has to offer. The remarkable motion-capture technology – most especially the performance captures – that Quantic Dream has, helps the game to flesh out future Detroit with all its beauty and squalor as well as the people in it. This technology and visual integrity has been featured in past Quantic Dream games Heavy Rain and Beyond Two Souls (albeit in an older form), but Detroit Become Human takes it a step further by harnessing the power that the PlayStation 4 has over the previous system. A power that even now some developers fail to truly grasp. I found the first few hours of gameplay to be visually overwhelming as some of the locales are colorful and vibrant. I like how the visual styles create a contrast between the white representing technology and the androids, and the drab brownish hue that represents the poor of future Detroit.
The colors are also deceptive: beneath the clean exteriors of the androids, there is a mixture of various colors representing the feelings and emotions of sentient beings starting to learn how to think on their own. The visual cues represented by that circular disk on the android’s left temple being the only indicator of the internal struggle that is happening before the player’s eyes. As they explore and affirm their self, their colors start to become more human in concert with their actions becoming more and more “natural”.
The exceptional music might be attributed to the fact that different people made the scores for the different protagonists. This helps making each storyline distinct from each other even as there is a common theme among all of them. The sound effects are also great and playing the game using a gaming headset is very rewarding.
The controls are standard Quantic Games fare, although if I am to compare it with Heavy Rain and Beyond Two Souls, it seems a little easier this time around. Maybe because the Dualshock 4 allows much more possibilities in terms of what you can do. But I am just happy that it no longer requires a lot of Heavy Rain’s finger gymnastics. This control scheme has been adapted by non-Quantic Games titles like Life is Strange, Game of Thrones, and The Walking Dead, and if there’s something I can say about it, it’s that the scheme does make action sequences a little too awkward. The Quick Time Events are quite easy to do, but in the context of an action-heavy sequence like with Markus, it can get a little too testy.
Action in video games need a stable camera with an unobstructed view, because you will be reacting to things happening in real time. Granted, the game’s definition of “intense scene” is not the same as Ghost Recon Wildlands or The Division. But with the kind of controls this game has, it can pose a problem. Quick Time Events aren’t supposed to make fight scenes complicated, but with a lot of things happening in the screen for you to digest, it can work against you if you’re not ready for it. That’s really the only thing in this game that requires you to have any sort of “skill”, namely having lightning reflexes and finger-eye coordination to get through the QTEs. They are heart-pumping, to be sure. But they rarely make you feel like you are in control.
My issue with the camera isn’t just limited to action sequences. The exploration part too is hindered by the camera. The world is beautiful and the levels are engaging, but it can be a pain to navigate with how the camera is set-up. You can change the angle via the R1 trigger, but the options available are limited and sometimes doesn’t really help improve your perspective.
All in all, Detroit Become Human is a great game that pushes the “story drama” genre with great visuals, strong characters, and interesting topics. Some parts may be cliche, and the controls haven’t really changed much since Heavy Rain, but the approach to storytelling is good enough despite relying too much on expositions especially towards the latter half of the story. While the genre is not exactly accessible to the mainstream, its place as a “mature” video game with philosophical themes is more than enough to warrant it a place in the Hall of Classic PlayStation games.
*All images taken from various sources in the internet.
*A review copy was used for this review.