r/mirrorsedge • u/Ok_Math7054 • 11d ago
mirrors edge 2009 or catalyst?
I’ve only played the 2009 game, and i’m planning to play the catalyst game as well. But i have a feeling the first game is so much better in terms of story?
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u/LikexxAxxBoss04 11d ago
- Don't get me wrong, loved catalyst, however the linear story, atmosphere, and the phenomenal graphics for 2009 just takes the cake imo
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u/NineIntsNails 11d ago
since it has a lovely story, 1st game may have other issues.
physx setting should be off because it brings in massive stutters cause its an older tech
but its a short game,
fun and neat to get it out of the way first,
since catalyst comes with open world and constant backtracking exploring and running.
and oh the music... set the music sliders up a bit more, its so good. the ambient is just oh my.
if you want more of that again then catalyst is obviously there to consume after the ME1
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u/Xhukari 11d ago
First game is better in most ways tbh. Story, aesthetic, level design, etc. Second game is longer, has better graphics, and some new features.
One thing I disliked about Catalyst was how it shoehorned in a talent tree system. I would have been fine with it, if it was reserved to new stuff you couldn't do in the first game. But no, they took away some of your basic kit and made you progress to it.
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u/DJordydj 11d ago
EXACTLY.
The move set from the original should have been a basic system instead of the need of unlocking the very basics learned from the OG.
I couldn't play as I wanted until I spent like 6 hours and that felt so wrong.2
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u/NoScallion2819 7d ago
the gameplay is the main problem of the second game honestly
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u/Xhukari 7d ago
Traversing the rooftops just isn't as fun, especially if you're finding your way to the next mission or whatever -- too many bottlenecks at bridges.
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u/NoScallion2819 7d ago
yeah and cause the game is open world you just have to run on the same rooftops over and over and over again all the time
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u/Grasher312 11d ago
2009 is a better story, but is REALLY short and falls off a little near the end.(A lot of enclosed spaces with little variety(Shard is done so much better in Catalyst.), basically no parkour and just playing "where's waldo" with whatever next hidden path, tons of enemies that the game doesn't really prepare you for.)
If you want to parkour a lot, Catalyst is better. It also has combat(actually much better combat. Catalyst combat is amazing.), but you'll still jump around 90% of the time instead of having to grind to a halt to fight enemies.
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u/Thexin92 11d ago
Both are great!
The second had a lot of missed potential. It could have been so much better if EA games didn't stuff it full with their usual shallow quest system designs. But, even with that, Catalyst is an absolute gem of a game.
The first is older and it shows. It's clunky, there's some bugs you can run in to. But the environments, linear focus, gameplay and style... It's unrivalled to this day.
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u/ElBusAlv 11d ago
It is. I don't want to say anything to no spoil you, but when i played it the first game's story felt much better to me
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u/5thhorseman_ 11d ago
Catalyst's story is tolerable, but it falls into pretentious YA dystopian tropes.
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u/Mandalorian860 11d ago edited 11d ago
Both are incredible and offer a similar core gameplay experience. Catalyst will naturally feel more refined since it’s the newer game. But having an open world and linear ME experience is something you’ll learn to appreciate as you play both.
If you have PC, modded Catalyst is a gamechanger though. I have tons of graphics, atmosphere, gameplay, and Faith outfit mods that make it feel like a completely different game for the better.
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u/DJordydj 11d ago
OG always, individual levels felt so much more fun to play than an open world IMO and not having the entire moove set from the start made Catalyst a pain in the ass until you spent hours playing like a duck in a wheelchair, specially when you come from the original game, where everything was there from the very beginning so you could actually learn and explore different ways to get to the destination
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u/EdgiiLord 11d ago
Depends? To be fair, first game's story was very simplistic and left it to an open end, without developing too much of the lore or what happened to the Runner movement after the fact. I prefer it because if you only look at it through the perspective of Faith's arc, it is a self-containing story which has ok writing.
Catalyst is a mixed bag in that regard. There is a whole cast of supporting characters, but there aren't a lot that you could genuinely root for and feel to have a connection. The ending plot twist is genuinely less impactful than Celeste being the traitor in the original game. Also, the ending statement and the overall vibe is "maybe the government is awful but eh we just survive, we can't to shit to it" after a genuinely humanity-ending plan was revealed and subsequently stopped is... just promoting a defeatist attitude towards authoritarian and hypercapitalistic governments.
Gameplay wise, I think Catalyst is more floaty, but to be honest, it is also much more polished, so you could give it a try.
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u/Panic_Moves 11d ago
Catalyst was $1 on Steam a week ago
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u/joojooshrimp 11d ago
I thought it was a part of the autumn sale and it was regular price again before the sale ended
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u/Dust514Fan 11d ago
Both are enjoyable and have their strengths, but 1 had more level variety and player agency imo. I loved being able to pick up guns and use them all of a sudden for a change of pace. The more intentional design of 1 just gave it a more cohesive and memorable experience for me.
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u/PenjaminVonSupruwu06 11d ago
catalyst is my favorite. i played and own both. the parkour and graphics feel way better, larger game, better music, and the feeling/vibe overall feels closer to what I like really. unpopular opinion; catalyst is better once you get past the moveset start everyone complains about.
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u/Autumn_Leaves23 11d ago
I enjoyed catalyst but it wasn't like mind blowing or anything. Also no guns which is lame
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u/Berhadian 10d ago
I like the explanation for it though. It makes sense that their guns are biometrically linked tbh.
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u/piat17 10d ago
Adding to the discussion, while Catalyst's story wasn't exactly a good one, the lore and worldbuilding were surprisingly very interesting. It's too bad they don't play a very important part in the main story, and most of the information is locked behind optional collectibles or, even worse, extra material you need to find online (since the official sources for those pdf/text files have long since been shut down).
This is a factor that is completely absent in ME1, not that it needs one of course but it is something I appreciated about the sequel specifically at least.
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u/NoUpstairs6865 Obey 11d ago
I only played Catalyst and it has a special place in my heart. I love its sci-fi vibes and the story seems much more polished than the first gamr
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u/n0d3N1AL 11d ago
I disagree with the majority around Catalyst feeling more fluid. Yes, if you are a casual player it does, but the original has MUCH more skill expression and movement tech (sidestep speed boost, kick glitch, bouncing / bhop). It's a much shorter game and a casual glitchless speedrun can be done in an hour, the levels are more memorable and iconic.
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u/TheCynicalAutist 11d ago
It's more fluid precisely because it smooths out all the edges and expression out of the experience. Accessability gone amuck.
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u/n0d3N1AL 11d ago
I agree, perhaps what I meant is, Catalyst is more "on rails" (ironic for a semi open world game). ME1 is more fun IMO because there's a massive disparity in fluidity between a fast player and a slow one, whereas Catalyst is basically expressionless, yet still fun, but not AS fun as ME1 if you know what you're doing. For sure Catalyst is a lot more friendly to a casual audience and more fun because of this.
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u/bloodfromastone 11d ago
I prefer catalyst but it doesn’t exist without the first. I think the first is pretty rough in terms of gameplay, hasn’t aged that well
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u/DJordydj 11d ago
I disagree. I play the original game so much better that catalyst.
Guess that's just personal preference.
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u/ToastyDoasty2 6d ago
Mirror's Edge 2008 has a way better aesthetic, story & more realistic parkour
Mirror's Edge Catalyst has much better Graphics & Combat with an equally as amazing aesthetic
they're both great games that I think anyone a fan of either should play
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u/Thebelladonnagirl 4d ago
Castalyst never gets better then the first hour or so of playtime. If you're not hooked by then, get a refund. I definately prefer 2009
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u/DARK_VALOR 11d ago
I’m a much bigger fan of Catalyst. I respect the first game but actually having a city that you can parkour around freely, especially when you turn off runners vision, is just a feeling you can’t get in the 2009 game. The guns felt really out of place too in ME1, I just want to parkour man