Detroit: Become Human is shaping up to be the most ambitious game that David Cage and his team at Quantic Dream have made yet, and in the game’s E3 2017 trailer, Sony showed off just what kind of critical narrative choices players will eventually be making. It follows the struggle between androids and the humans attempting to control them, with chaos all but guaranteed to break out.
The trailer focuses on the character Marcus, an android who has begun breaking his fellow machines out of “Cyberlife” stores in order to set them free. Marcus has somehow managed to develop his own self-awareness and is no longer bound by the rules of humans. He also appears to be able to deactivate other androids by simply touching their heads.
As Marcus destroys the door of the store and begins freeing the androids, the police show up. Hesitating for a second results in Marcus and his partner North’s mission being compromised, but by quickly ducking to the side, the player is able to change the story and keep them from being spotted. Elsewhere, the choices are more moral in nature — should Marcus torch a human building, or walk away without destroying anything? Should he kill a deviant android or let him live? It appears that a war could begin not just between androids and humans, but also between fellow androids.
“My name is Marcus,” he says. “I am one of them. This is our story.”
Marcus won’t be the only playable character in Detroit. Android Kara, who was originally seen in a tech demo, as well as Detroit‘s 2015 trailer, will also feature prominently.
Detroit: Become Human doesn’t yet have a release date, but it will arrive exclusively for PlayStation 4. It will be Quantic Dream’s first exclusive for the system, though the PlayStation 3 game Heavy Rain has already been ported.
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