Sony opened their E3 press conference on Monday night with a major announcement of »Beyond« from French development studio Quantic Dream . Its founder and CEO, David Cage, personally introduced the forthcoming PlayStation 3 -exclusive interactive psychological action thriller, starring Ellen Page as both a voice and motion-capture actor, to a packed house of journalists. »Beyond« is subtitled »Two Souls« and covers 15 years in the life of a young woman by the name of Jodie Holmes. She has a psychic link to an invisible entity, known only as Iden/Aiden (the exact spelling is "a big question at the moment"), which gives her Firestarter -like powers. Moreover, there will be a strong emphasis on the mysteries of death and what happens "beyond" as she comes to terms with this extraordinary gift.





In the opening scene, Page's obviously traumatized character is being interrogated by police officier J. Sherman who found her on the side of the road with scrapes, cuts and tattered clothes. Although she remains silent, it becomes evident that Jodie may have paranormal powers. During the questioning, the lieutenant notices a fresh scar on the back of her head. As he reaches towards it, a coffee cup levitates off of his desk and smashes into the wall. For witnessing a cup shoot across the room on its own, the policeman maintains his composure pretty well. After he calmly exits the room, Jodie says to herself, "I know, they're coming," as if she's being told by someone that her predators are near. Sherman then comes across a fully-armed team of S.W.A.T. members that appear to be after the young woman. Is she really that dangerous? The next abrupt clip of scenes answers this question with a definite "YES". As she's being chased by the intruders, Jodie uses extraordinary telekinetic abilities to help her escape, destroy helicopters, flip trucks, shield herself from bullets and possess her enemies. Towards the end of video, the female protagonist again communicates with her ghostly partner, "Come on Iden/Aiden, I think they get the message."

» Beyond: Two Souls - E3 press conference (06/04/2012) «







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» Beyond: Two Souls - Forest footage (06/05/2012) «







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» Beyond: Two Souls - Train footage (06/05/2012) «







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Her involvement played an essential role in developing and creating »Beyond«, especially since Cage had her in mind from the first line of the script. When it came to finding an actress who combines strength and vulnerability, the Academy Award nominee seemed like a natural choice in the end. Talking with Cage described the game as "emotional, mature, unique" and "epic", explaining that its story will be shaped by the actions and decisions that players make while controlling Jodie's spirit as well as Jodie herself. As they traverse the globe, the unlikely pair faces incredible challenges against a backdrop of emotionally-charged events never before seen in a video game. "We are striving to create unique moments that players will remember for a long time," he added. "If you make the right decisions, maybe you will discover what lies beyond." The creator of the critically acclaimed interactive crime noire thriller »Heavy Rain« is convinced this concept will push the limits of interactive storytelling and all gamers will "instantly fall in love with Ellen Page."Her involvement played an essential role in developing and creating »Beyond«, especially since Cage had her in mind from the first line of the script. When it came to finding an actress who combines strength and vulnerability, the Academy Award nominee seemed like a natural choice in the end. Talking with Eurogamer.net , he compared their first meeting during the 2011 E3 Expo with a soft-focus scene in a romantic movie. "When Ellen came she was 10 metres away, looking for some strange French people somewhere, and when I saw her I felt, my God, that's Jodie. It's a very strange thing for a writer, seeing your character appear in front of you by magic, almost. As she was walking towards me, it lasted like 10 seconds, but it was a year for me."

Speaking further, the videogame designer had nothing but praise for Page who spent several weeks in Quantic Dream's new full-body performance capture studio in Paris to act out every scene. "She came in a very simple way... very easy to deal with, very professional, just wanting to give her best. She really respected the medium, which was something incredibly important to me, to have someone saying, 'I'm going to treat that as seriously as if it was a movie, I don't care it was a game.' When you direct someone like Ellen it's really like driving a Ferrari... It's really sensitive. You need to be very careful about what you say because she's going to give it to you."

For more information on »Beyond: Two Souls«, I strongly recommend reading the following in-depth articles by Eurogamer.net or checking out the already comprehensive collection of reports in EPO's press archive

Experience the new cutting-edge technology from Quantic Dream that creates one of the best-looking games ever seen on PS3.

Delve into a gripping and unpredictable action thriller starring Hollywood actress Ellen Page in the lead role.

Take full control of Jodie as well as the mysterious entity in spectacular action and adventure sequences. BEYOND: Two Souls (tm) is a unique psychological action thriller featuring Academy Award(r) nominee, Ellen Page in the lead role. Experience the incredible life of a person who possesses extraordinary powers through a connection with an invisible entity. Watch as your actions and decisions determine her fate and face incredible emotional challenges never before seen in a video game.

The game, which is apparently aiming for a PEGI 16 rating in Europe, is currently scheduled for release in the last quarter of the financial year - which is January to March 2013.



» The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson - 13th June 2012 @ 12:35 am ET / 11:35 pm CT [CBS] «

