New Beyond: Two Souls Actors Revealed

Beyond: Two Souls, a new IP from the developers of Heavy Rain, was one of the more interesting reveals at this year's E3. We already know it will be a supernatural thriller and that it will feature Juno star Ellen Page, but now we have a little more information about the title thanks to this behind the scenes video on the motion capture technology being used for the game, revealed at San Diego Comic Con.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=71m1hnIImNo

Alongside Page, the game will feature performances from A Different World's Kadeem Hardison, and Eric Winter, who appeared in 2009 rom-com The Ugly Truth.

I admit I was impressed when David Cage, Beyond's director, revealed that he had enlisted Page as the star for his next project, although perhaps I shouldn't have been surprised considering Cage got rock star god David Bowie to perform for his first game, Omikron. Yet while it's tempting to think that the inclusion of movie stars will be a huge help in raising the standards of videogame acting, it's important to remember that good performances are drawn out from good directors. If the performances previously seen in Cage's earlier projects such as Farenheit and Heavy Rain are anything to go by, he isn't exactly the Martin Scorcese of the videogame world.

The video shows that Page and her co-stars seem to be doing a great job, and the subtleties in facial expression and movement that the technology can pick up make the project an exciting step forward even if the performances aren't up to scratch in the finished product. The unanswered question on everyone's minds, though, is: what is Beyond going to be like as a game? Will it be another QTE-focussed affair like Heavy Rain? Will it be more of the point-and-click-meets-dance-mat madness of Farenheit? Or will it be something entirely different?

Perhaps the more important question to ask is, will Cage be able to resist the urge to include a gratuitous shower/striptease scene this time around?