Electronic Arts is now accepting signups for a Mirror’s Edge Catalyst closed beta launching ahead of the game’s retail release in May.
All players with an EA Origin account are eligible for the beta on the PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Windows PCs. The PC edition requires players to install the company’s Origin client in order to download and participate in the beta at launch.
While details regarding the beta’s contents are not yet known, Electronic Arts notes that a persistent Internet connection is a requirement, meaning that players are likely to get an early glimpse at the game’s multiplayer component.
While players do not directly compete against one another in Mirror’s Edge Catalyst, developer EA DICE previously revealed that in-game actions will have an impact on others via asynchronous multiplayer mechanics. Catalyst features hackable billboards, for instance, which players can deface over the course of the game’s campaign. The visual results will then be seen by other players who are connected to EA’s online services.
Mirror’s Edge Catalyst also offers in-game leaderboards that pit players against their friends’ best times during specific challenges.
Announced in 2013, Mirror’s Edge Catalyst is an open-world adventure game in which players control acrobatic protagonist Faith from a dizzying first-person perspective. Catalyst is a storyline reboot and mechanical reinterpretation of the original Mirror’s Edge, which launched for consoles and PCs in 2008.
The original Mirror’s Edge was praised for its freerunning parkour mechanics, which carry over into Catalyst. Throughout the course of the game’s narrative, players run, climb, and vault across stark urban environments as they flee from their totalitarian pursuers. Useful training for the future? You be the judge.
Mirror’s Edge Catalyst premieres for the Xbox One, PlayStation 4, and PC platforms on May 24 in North America. A European launch is scheduled for May 26.
