Reading for Robots

Quantic Dream's sci-fi drama title Detroit: Become Human is getting set to make a comeback, but not quite in the form you might have expected. As reported by Famitsu, the 2018 cinematic adventure is being adapted into a manga series, with the first volume of Detroit: Become Human Tokyo Stories hitting the streets of Japan tomorrow.

Choosing to take its own localized narrative over that of the video game, Detroit: Become Human Tokyo Stories will tell the tale of an android idol, who models, performs, and entertains her fans in the far-flung future of 2038. Much like the video game, however, the manga will confro??nt the typical ??themes of robotic sentience, the dangers of advanced A.I., and the prejudice of man against those different from themselves. The story is written by Kazami Sawatari with the art daubed by Moto Sumida.

//twi?tter.com/sawatari_kazami/status/1549590228934963201?s=20&t=CbiFSUq8L1hu3ltcYh97uQ

The new manga is not the first non-gaming adaptation of the Quantic Dream title. In fact, it's not the first time the franchise has focused on Japan for its chin-stroking pontification. Back in 2018, Sony Japan released a short movie, Tokyo: Become Human, to help promote the game's launch within the territory. The new manga genuinely sounds pretty interesting, with themes suited to Japan's love of next-generation technology. Unfortunately, there are currently no plans ??for an English localization, but perhaps we will see a fan translation down the line.

Detroit: Become Human is available now on PC and PS4.

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Help us make the right (or wrong?) choices

Welcome back! Last week on stream, we played through all of Heavy Rain, which was... an experience. I don't really know how I feel about some of the writing or characters, but I can say that the genre and graphics were really cool. This was also one of the first games I've played that had a variety of endings based on our choices, so I was pretty intrigued when chat told me about Detroit: Become Human.

I really like this genre so far, especially when there's been a detective twist, so I'm looking forward to seeing how it plays out comp?ared to previous adventure games! Swing on by to discover who Detroit is and why they become human.

Drop by Destructoid’s Twitch channel every Friday starting at 9:00 p.m. Eastern.

Miss last week’s stream? Catch the video-on-demand for Heavy Rain.

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Tap X repeatedly to acknowledge

Quantic Dream has announced that its melodramatic android adventure Detroit: Become Human has passed five million total sales. The milestone was reached exactly one month after the cinematic sci-fi release made the leap to the Steam platf??orm.

"Launching Detroit: Become Human on Steam has been a delightful experience for us," sa?id Quantic Dream co-CEO Guillaume de Fondaumiere in a press statement. "The response we’re seeing has been incredibly positive, in particular in Asian markets. We are also thrilled by the response garnered by the concomitant release of our Community Play extension for streamers and viewers on Twitch, which elevated a fundamentally single-player game into a social experience."

The "Community Play" referenced in the above statement is a Twitch extension that allows stream viewers to collectively decide upon the nerve-racking decisions made by Detroit's in-game cast of characters. This function essentially turns Detroit streams into an en ma?sse "Choose Your Own Adventure" movie for the home audience.

Originally launching on PS4 in May 2018, Detroit would eventually see release on PC via the Epic Games Store in December 2019 - alongside its brethren titles Heavy Rain and Beyond: Two Souls. The three titles then made the move to the Steam platform in June of this year, furtherin?g opening up?? audiences to its curious narrative and QTE-heavy action sequences. The PC ports feature 60 FPS gameplay and support for 4K displays.

Detroit: Become Human is available now on PS4 and PC.

Detroit: Become Human has sold over 5m copies [GamesIndustry.biz]

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In all their diaper-changing, table-laying, guitar-playing glory

Quantic Dream's Epic Game Store exclusivity deal is coming to an end. As such, cinematic pseudo-trilogy Heavy Rain, Beyond: Two Souls, and Detroit: Become Human will all be available to purchase on PC via Steam from June 18.

Originally released back in 2010, Heavy Rain is a murder-mystery thriller wherein the player controls a number of characters whose lives become intertwined by the common bond that unites them all: an at-large serial murderer known as The Origami Killer, who is lea?ving a?? trail of bodies around Philadelphia.

2013's Beyond: Two Souls is a psychic thriller starring Ellen Page and Willem Dafoe. The former plays Jodie, a young woman with powerful and dangerous kinetic abilities. ??The player guides Jodie through numerous sta?ges of her life as she attempts to carve out a semblance of normality for herself, chased down by shady governmental types who wish to harness her unasked-for powers.

Finally, 2018's Detroit: Become Human is a sci-fi anthology set in a near-future where androids have become commonplace with??in society. Again, players step into the shoes of multiple characters, learning of their lives and loved ones, while dealing with the politics and prejudice of living as an "inhuman" within a human world.

All three titles feature 4K resolution and 60 frames-per-second gameplay. The Steam store pages are live now, and a ??demo is available for each title if you want to get a test of Quantic Dream's quirky blend of point-and-click meets QTE gameplay.

Heavy Rain, Beyond: Two Souls, and Detroit: Become Human launch on Steam June 18. They are also available on Epic Games Store and PS4.

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ANDROID

For today's contest, we're giving away PC copies of Detroit: Become Human!

Sometimes, I feel like I don't really need to say much. I like to do dramatic? intros t?o these posts, but I don't think anyone can out-drama David Cage and the folks over at Quantic Dream. So I'm not even gonna try!

We've got some PC copies of Detroit: Become Human to give away so you ??can l?ive the drama of...becoming human...in Detroit. Huzzah! Read on for details, fellow androids.

Ok, so as previously stated there's lots of drama, because humans went ahead and made androids to do stuff for them. Like wash their cars and make them cotton candy and stuff. But of course the androids are like, nah, we don't wanna wash your car. So? a bunch of stuff happens! And since it's a Quantic Dream game, you can be sure that tons of emotions will show up. It's inevitable, really. Here are some game f??eatures.

PLAY YOUR PART IN A GRIPPING NARRATIVE -- Enter a world wh??ere moral dilemmas and difficult decisions can turn android slaves into world-changing revolutionaries. Discover what it means to be human from the perspective of an outsider -- and see the wo??rld through the eyes of a machine.

THEIR LIVES, YOUR CHOICES -- Shape an ambitious branching narrative, where your decisions not only determine the fate of the three main cha??racters, but that of the entire city of Detroit. How you control Kara, Connor and Markus can mean ??life or death - and if one of them pays the ultimate price, the story still continues...

COUNTLESS PATHS, COUNTLESS ENDINGS -- Every decision you make, no matter how minute, affects the outcome of the story. No playthrough will be exactly the same: replay again and again to ?discover a totally different conclusion.

FULLY OPTIMIZED FOR PC -- Previously only available on PlayStation 4, Detroit: Become Human is brought to PC with stunning graphics, 4K resolution, 60 fps framerate and full integration of both mouse/keyboard and gamepad controls for the most complete Detroit: Become Human experience to date.

Will man ever learn to love machine?

Comment below answering this dire query to enter to win a copy of the game. How will man and machine come together to live in perfect harmony? Can they? Will th??ey? What does this future of man-on-machine ??love look like? These are the questions that keep me up at night.

We have five PC keys available, redeemable through the Epic Games Store. Winners will be drawn Wednesday, January 15. Make sure to comment using a Dtoid account with your current email address on file. Don't have an account? Sign up here to get your machine-lovin' on!

Detroit: Become Human is available now through the Epic Games Store. Hit up our sister site, PC Invasion, for more chances to win a copy!

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Real human being

It's neat to see pro?minent PlayStation games find their footing on PC.

Detroit: Become Human managed to pull in players who were curious about Quantic Dream's brand of storytelling but not enough to go through with Heavy Rain or Beyond: Two Souls, and soon, the studio's android-starring adventure will grow its base even more. The long-time-coming PC port of Detroit is follo?wing ?its predecessors with a December 12, 2019 release on the Epic Games Store. It'll be $40.

How is Detroit? Here's a quick word from Chris, who found the sci-fi game flawed, but coherent:

"Detroit: Become Human, like most Quantic Dream games, is filled with muddled symbolism and a spark of hope amidst its most interesting universe?? yet," he wrote in his review of last year's PS4 version. "It doesn't have anything particularly new to say, but it deliv??ers in terms of drama, to the point where I started a second playthrough shortly after my first seven-hour-ish run."

The game al??so looks fantastic, a feat that shou??ld be even more pronounced on PC.

I don't know how I've made it this long, but it's happened, just now, years later than it should have: the name Detroit: Become Human suddenly looks wonky as hell to me. I'm aware that it's been a strange title this whole time, but the true gravity of its strangeness was lost on me until right this moment when I said the words "Become Human" out loud for the first time (????). Brains are weird.

Detroit: Become Human [Epic Games Store]

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Androids don't play sports

For one reason or another, Sony has decided to swap one of the July PS Plus games for another. Anyone looking forward to trying out PES 2019 will be sad to know that Quantic Dream's Detroit: Become Human will be replacing it. Not only is David Cage's hamfisted racism allegory coming to the service, but it will be in the form of the "Digital Deluxe" version that contains Heavy Rain as a bonus. This is technically the second time Heavy Rain will be free, which says more about its quality than I could.

I'm not sure what caused the swap (maybe its imminent PC release is the reason), but at least a relatively high profile game is repla??cing it. I have nothing against indie titles being given out for free, but I do feel that bigger budget titles should compliment the smaller ones each month. With PS3 and Vita games no longer on offer, there's not really much reason why both games should be lesser known ones.

Updated July 2, 2019: Enjoy some classic arcade racing in Horizon Chase Turbo. [PlayStation Blog]

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Roll out all those memes again

French video game developer Quantic Dream has announced demos and dates for the PC ports of their most recent releases: Heavy Rain, Beyond: Two Souls and Detroit: Become Human, all of which will be made available e?xclusively on the Epic Games Store.

"Bringing our last three interactive dramas to the PC platform will enable new audiences to experience what Quantic Dream games are all about," said the comp??any's co-CEO Guillaume de Fondaumiere in a press release. "Through these demos, gamers will have the opportunity to look into the hard work and dedication we have put into the PC versions of our beloved titles. For those who have never played a Quantic Dream title, this will be a great opportunity to experience the unique nature of our games."

Noir mystery Heavy Rain will launch June 24, with a demo available May 24. Psychic tale Beyond: Two Souls will follow July 27, with a demo on June 22, while Robo-political drama Detroit: Become Human will be released sometime this Fall. The former titles will cost around $20, while Detroit is expected to sell for around $40.

Heavy Rain, Beyond: Two Souls and Detroit: Become Human are all available now on PS4 as individual releases or compiled as the Quantic Dream Collection.

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Press Triangle to celebrate

Studio Quantic Dream has proudly announced that their latest title, Detroit: Become Human, has passed the two million sales mark since?? its initial?? release back in May of this year.

This statistic makes Detroit the fastest-selling title in David Cage's gaming catalogue, beating out previous releases Fahrenheit, Heavy Rain and Beyond: Two Souls. While some criticism has been lobbied toward Detroit for?? its eye-rolling cliches and thematic tropes, praise has a??lso been given to its performers, especially actor Brian Dechart for his portrayal of android detective, Connor.

If you want to check out the interactive flick that is Detroit, then it is currently available as a part of the Quantic Dream Collection - along with Heavy Rain and Beyond: Two Souls - for around $40. Detroit: Become Human is available now on PS4.

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Interactive movies unite for low price

If you get a kick out of the cinematic adventures of David Cage's studio?? Quantic Dream, then a compilation of their last three releases has been made available to purchase today, in both physical and digital format.

The Quantic Dream Collection is comprised of three titles; 2010 murder-mystery Heavy Rain, 2013's psychic thriller Beyond: Two Souls and, from this year, the "What if robots... HAD HUMAN FEELINGS?" sci-fi title Detroit: Become Human. Missing from the collection is PS2/Xbox release Fahrenheit (or The Indigo Prophecy).

The set costs around $40, which isn't too bad considering Detroit is only about six months old. So if you fancy an adventure through some well-worn genre conventio?ns and?? awkwardly animated digital sex scenes, then this compilation should satisfy.

Are you gonna pick this set up?:
Cross - Yes
Circle - No
Square - Put Down Dinner Plate Hard
Triangle - "We, The People..."

Quantic Dream Collection is available now on PS4.

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Sorta meta-narrative (non campaign) spoilery

As I've mentioned in the past, Detroit: Become Human has a sort of meta-narrative at play beyond the story of the three main characters. A robot named Chloe will guide you through the game's menus, comment on your choices and the events of the campaign,?? and provide you with a poll where you can compare your answers with the rest of the community.

This is your second spoiler warning -- eventually you have a choice at the end of the game, in the spirit of the narrative itself, to set Chloe free or keep her as your robot assistant. Most people, myself included, did the former, but I guess people wanted her back -- so Quantic Dream is adding the option t??o get a "new Chloe" in a patch in the near future. What?

Morality conundrum aside, this is a thing you can do soon in Detroit. I liked the finality of the original concept -- if people ??really wanted her back they could just start a new file.

Detroit [Twitter]

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What if you already are?

Sony seems to have a thing for storybook adventure games. They hosted Until Dawn in 2015, and have been steadily supporting Quantic Dream for the past eight years with PlayStation exclusivity for Heavy Rain and Beyond: Two Souls.

Like everything Quantic Dream has ever made, that latter pair was met with a polarizing response, and Detroit: Become Human is poised to be more of the same.

Detroit: Become Human (PS4)
Developer: Quantic Dream
Publisher: Sony
Released: May 25, 2018
MSRP: $59.99

Detroit explores one of my favorite philosophical conundrums -- if you mold an artificial lifeform into the various parameters most people would consider human, does it have a soul? It's one step away from "do animals go to heaven," but I find the question fascinating, especially when it's backed up by decades of wondrous literature and recent contributions, such as the Channel 4 UK series HUM∀NS.

Yet, a lot of what Detroit offers is surface level exploration of this concept. David Cage, the game's director, is not a subtle man. ??Throughout the entire adventure the idea that androids are second class citizens smacks you across the face like a rolled up newspaper. In the first 10 seconds a presumed human is shouting at your player character "why didn't they send a real human?" belittling your stature as law enforcement, a not at all hidden authoritarian dig that isn't the last. You should also brace yourself for a few quotes directly from t-shirt slogans ?or historical movements.

I really wish Quantic Dream didn't always have to shove in a detective angle (Connor literally kneeling down, looking at blood, then tasting it to initiate a specimen protocol elicited an audible chuckle as I imagined the intro to CSI -- there's even an "I'm t?oo old for this" Harvey Bullock-esque partner and a no-nonsense Captain!), but it's handled better here compared to their previous efforts. Connor's calm demeanor and android origin is an interesting way to frame the investi??gations, and subsequently allows for the largest array of choices.

Detroit is actually the story of three people: Connor, the aforementioned cop, Kara, a housekeeper model android, and Markus, another robot who is a caregiver. You can sniff out the theme almost immediately: service. All three are put in a lesser position than their superiors, and are constantly dogged throughout. The catalyst behind the meta-narrative involves the sci-fi trope of the "android glitch," (called deviance) which causes man's creation to become sentient. Free will, facilitated by you, the player, is the crux of Detroit's entire soul.

Given what Detroit is ??trying to accomplish, I'd say I bought in halfway by the time the credits rolled. The setting is not only believable but captivating, and the gentle use of blue hues were soothing, but authoritative in their attempt to carve out an identity. The game nails it in the smaller moments, such as the childlike innocence of a girl calling a manufactured robot companio??n "a friend," before it has a chance to learn human behavior such as jealousy and loss and truly become free.

These sort of things make Detroit Quantic Dream's strongest world to date. Watching someone throw trash at a street-cleaning android while walking is something that takes seconds to witness (and you may not even experience it), but gets its point across more than the major heavy-handed moments; of which there are many (yep, there's even a "they took our jobs" movement). There's a decent amount of world-building too, conveyed through watching ancillary activities like television or just looking around at the environment. Androids also convey emotions to the player through on-screen text, which allows for rapid-fire intense situations that feel unique to Detroit. The mood is nearly always unsettling.

In terms of its three narratives Kara's story is the weakest, curbed by its flimsy opening. That's through no fault of actor Valorie Curry; but the script. Tackling domestic and substance abuse just isn't something Quantic Dream has the finesse to take on, especially when it's coupled by a cartoonish representation of their offenders. Oh, there's also a girl named Alice who reads and reflects portions of Alice in Wonderland. Like I said, not so subtle.

Markus on the other hand gets to take care of an artist straight out of Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous (he's not complainin'). His tale, while occasionally as melodramatic as the rest, is a little more heartwarmi??ng as he's constantly told how much potential he has by his owner, played to aplomb by famed film and voice actor Lance Henriksen. When he's pushed to his limit you feel for him more, as his baseline and his backstory is less of a caricature compared to Connor or Kara respectively.

Detroit is meant to be replayed, but like many adventure games the threads mostly lead to the same outcome, with a few exceptions for particularly riveting scenes, especially near the end. By examining an entire setting you'll uncover "beneficial" unlocks, like more potential dialogue options that could sway a situation in your favor. Quantic Dream can get away with occasional moments of wood?en acting and uncanny valley visuals because it's a story that focuses on entities who aren't technically human?, but even then it can grate. The more open environments can also feel like a tease, as smoke and mirror "no androids allowed" signs frequently curb exploration and keep you on a more beaten pointed path. I also encountered one glitch -- an NPC wouldn't let me pass and trapped me in a room. After a quick checkpoint cycle I was back in and only lost 30 seconds of progress.

Conversely, with the android motif it can also justify more gamey elements like a "chance of success" meter because these lifeforms have certain advantages that others don't, providing a loose justification for a built-in Batman HUD. Plus, during certain key moments, Detroit does sufficiently entice players ??to try scenarios again to see how different they can become, especially the ones that?? rapidly swap points of view and playable characters.

You'll accomplish various tasks in the narrative through walking and talking, interacting (which includes an Arkham style "reconstruction" system using your? android vision), and most importantly: choosing dialogue and courses of action. Without spoiling any particular events you might have the option to talk you way out of a jam or force your way out of it, sometimes with the use of items or insight you've acquired previously.

As an adventure game Detroit is more than competent, though it does awkwardly force in some relics of the past like analog stick rolling to interact with objects or motion-centric controller swinging. Having to navigate a deadzoned controller wobble to turn on a flashlight is a headache (I counted five times where I needed to pause the game to re-orient or reset my controller), and because you were no doubt wondering -- yes, Detroit does feature sparing QTEs, some of which use the aforementioned wonky motion (remember Sixaxis?). It balances these grating mechanics with clever DualShock 4 Touchpad swiping with in-universe tablets and such. The annoyances that Detroit has feel old fashioned, but are??n't a? complete dealbreaker.

Detroit: Become Human, like most Quantic Dream games, is filled with muddled symbolism and a spark of hope amidst its most interesting universe yet. It doesn't have anything ??particular new to say, but it delivers in terms of drama, to the p??oint where I started a second playthrough shortly after my first seven hour-ish run. It's flawed, but coherent, which is an upgrade.

_{[This review is based on a retail build of the game provided by the publisher.]}

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There's a meta-narrative at play you could miss

There isn't a lot I can say about Detroit: Become Human before it launches, but there is one thing tha??????????????????????????t you'll immediately see after booting up the game that's worth talking about. Without spoiling anything, the main menu operates as a sort of meta-narrative, occasionally commenting on your choices as well as offering up questions of its own.

Most notably you can take a ??short survey pertaining to your own views on artificial lifeforms, which in turn showcases answer percentages from players. The game saves frequently so you can back out into this menu after every chapter if you felt like it, and ??the only downside is waiting roughly a minute or so for the next portion to reload.

If you plan on picking up Detroit thi??s weekend remember to quit back to the main menu at least once!

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Quantic Dream's most branching story ever

Quantic Dream's next branching narrative title, Detroit: Become Human, launches this Friday (May 25). To celebrate, Sony has uploaded the launch trailer for the game. We get a look at each playable character in the game and get a quick summary of what their motivations are. Despite not explaining all too much, it does give us a nice look at the graphical engine and it certainly looks great. I hear the game is a real treat on PS4 Pro, though even base PS4's provide? a full HD output.

Detroit: Become Human – Launch Trailer | PS4 [YouTube]

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Tokyo: Become Human sounds a lot better, honestly

Sony Japan has uploaded a short film to promote Quantic Dream's upcoming Detroit: Become Human. Set in Tokyo and aptly titled Tokyo: Become Human, the film appears to cover the same kind of dilemmas y?ou'll face in the main game. I didn't realize Quantic Dream's games had big appeal in Japan, but apparently Sony is doing its damnedest to promote this title.

I can't actually tell what is happening, though, as the thing is entirely in Japanese without subtitles. Even with the language barrier, I'm in awe at the production values for this. A short film of this caliber gets me way more excited for Detroit than the short demo on PSN ever could.

Now I just hope a fan translates the thing, because I'm interested in seeing what the hell?? is going on.

Tokyo: Become Human 『Detroit: Become Human Spin off movie』[ResetEra]

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