Looking at Beyond: Two Souls

Beyond: Two Souls is an interactive game that was recently released. My friend had pre-ordered the game and was thrilled that she finally had it in her possession. It stars Ellen Page and Willem Dafoe. The game takes you through the life of the main character, Jodie Holmes and her connection to this supernatural entity known as Aiden. My friend is a hardcore gamer and always makes her she has the newest games to her advantage and plays the story non-stop until she moves onto the next. I remember her showing me the trailer months ago and I thought it was interesting. I’m not much of a gamer but more of an observer. As soon as she got the game installed, I was right over there so she can show e what all the hoopla was about. Instantly, I was involved and was enjoying the plot and action it provided. What does this have to do with design? Of course, everything! It was way all the elements of the virtual world resembled the real world. It impressed me so much that Jodie Holmes played by Ellen Page was in fact Ellen Page virtually. And how Dr. Nathan Dawkins played by Willem Dafoe was virtually himself. The realism that Beyond: Two Souls took was a direction that made me think about how design works. The realism helps the gamer or for me, the observer, to be completely and utterly connected to the storyline as if it was happening to us in real life. Look at the resemblance:

I don’t know what type of technology the game makers used but it surely has impressed me and got me emotionally invested into these character’s lives. And being a part of studying the behind the scenes of design has made me think even more about the simple or what I thought was simple of design differently. I’ve become more aware of my surroundings and not just let me subconscious relay emotions. Basically, I’ve been able to dissect the design world and this will greatly help me in business when I graduate. Take a second look at everything around you next time and you’ll unearth what I finally realized.