Unique, compelling game is unlikely to win many converts

Over the last decade Quantic Dream has established a unique gaming niche genre by working against players’ expectations.

While many games offer their audiences power trips and skill-based challenges, Quantic Dream’s releases are more like interactive movies. Players know what to expect in a game from the French studio; lengthy narratives that can split depending on the choices one makes, lots of quick-time events and tasks that range from the mundane to potentially life threatening for the characters involved.

Detroit: Become Human, Quantic Dream’s latest offering, is the best game the studio’s made. It’s not likely to win many converts and is far from perfect, but the developer’s idiosyncrasies work for, rather than against it.

The year is 2038 and advancements in robotics have given rise to androids who serve humans. This has lead to a massive rise in unemployment, sparking resentment. The androids are treated like slaves. Most accept this life without question, but some have started to become self aware. These deviants are starting to pose threats to their human overlords.

The story is told through a trio of androids in Detroit, which is where the company that manufactures them, Cyberlife, is based. There’s Markus (Jesse Williams), an assistant to an ageing artist, Kara (Valorie Curry), a domestic servant who cares for the daughter of an abusive father and drug addict, and Connor (Bryan Dechart), an advanced prototype who Cyberlife created to deal with the deviant menace.

The narrative gets some real heft by the fact that the protagonists are vulnerable. Players will find their choices (and sometimes their reaction speed) impact on the plot’s developments.

Become Human does get heavyhanded at times. This material has been addressed before and handled better by films like Blade Runner, Ex Machina and the recent Westworld series.

In spite of its shortcomings, Detroit: Become Human manages to hold together.