Slightly lost in the shuffle yesterday at Sony’s Paris Games Week presentation was the reveal trailer for Flavourworks’ new PlayLink title Erica.
Watching the presentation, I was surprised to see Erica given such a prominent spot (it was the second trailer shown during the main stage presentation). Coming so soon on the heels of the release of Supermassive’s new PlayLink title Hidden Agenda, Erica initially looked like more of the same. It was only after going back to watch the trailer again that I realized that the game footage is comprised of live action video clips, and not rendered graphics. It is an interesting to note that the video game graphics have reached the point that in casual observation, I did not notice that the video displayed was cut from real footage. I had to blow the video up to fullscreen, and even then, I had to squint to decide. Maybe I’m just getting old.
According to a new post on the PlayStation Blog, Erica is an “interactive live action drama”, with players making decisions for the titular protagonist, guiding her through a murder mystery. Using PlayLink’s functionality, players must work as a group to decide who to trust and how to react in conversations. Players can also use their touch screens to take other small actions that interact directly with the environment, such as flipping the pages of a book.
Take a look at the trailer below. I can't be the only one unable to discern fantasy from reality.
