Shifting between both characters is crucial in Beyond: Two Souls. Without doing this, you won’t be able to advance in the game. In this feature, we take a look at both the pros and cons when playing as the two main characters in the game: Jodie and Aiden.
Jodie: The Good
Great Communication Skills
Jodie is a deranged, lonely girl. Who can blame her? That said, even with all her emotional distresses, you can use her to talk to other characters. This has a tendency to open new options for you. More specifically, it allows you to make decisions. Maximizing these options has a huge impact on the outcome of each chapter. With Jodie, you can be truthful, lie or evade answers. Although there’s no wrong way to advance in this game, Jodie tends to lean towards the safer route.
Fight Like a Girl
You wouldn’t want to piss her off. Jodie can hold her own and defend herself, sometimes without the help of her inner-entity, Aiden. In most cases, this includes physical altercations with “normal” beings, such as punks on the streets or drunks at a bar. She can dodge, evade or offensively strike foes that threaten her. You are not depending on environments in these situations. Instead, use her kung-fu tactics and lay the smack down.
Crouching Jodie, Hidden Dragon
When you play through the game as Jodie, you’ll stumble across CIA training. This teaches her combat skills and espionage tactics. With her, you have the ability to take a stealthy approach; you can hide behind walls, peak around corners and assassinate enemies silently without using a weapon. We recommend using this tactic often so you don’t have to deal with multiple enemies at once when the opportunity is available.
Scary Movie, Seriously
Both characters can interact with different objects within the environment. Interactive objects are marked as a white circle when playing as Jodie. With Jodie, you can mess with a bunch of stuff. For example, you can play with a toy or look in a mirror. Although this is usually for entertainment purposes, you may find out more information in the chapter by interacting with things. Not only that, but you may also trigger additional scenes, even ones that make you jump out of your seat.
Jodie: The Bad
She’s Human
Jodie is human. Certain threats can injure or prevent her from navigating through passageways. For instance, a fire may block her path; there’s no way around it without the help of Aiden or searching for another route. Additionally, if she sustains damage from falling or an attack, she’ll move slower and need attention to her wounds.
Limited Strength
Jodie is a tough gal, but that doesn’t mean she’s powerful like The Hulk. Many heavy objects can only be maneuvered by Aiden; some are far too heavy or too hot for Jodie. Since several of the chapters include wrecked areas, you’ll call Aiden for assistance more often than not. If there seems to be a dead end, switch to Aiden instead.
Obstacles & Movement
When playing as Jodie, not only are hazardous surroundings a threat, but also simple objects like a log. This is unfortunate, because several scenarios are fast-paced; pressing the wrong button can easily knock you off your feet. This can create a problem, especially when trying to escape enemies. Frequently, Jodie’s movement can be difficult to judge or hard to see.
Fight Baddies
We’ve covered how well Jodie can defend herself in combat, but unlike Aiden, she needs to deal with foes that block her path if they reach her. Combat is fast-paced and keeps your hands busy on the controller. These quick-time events are not always easy; one wrong direction and you’ll sustain injury. Although it’s fun to knock out your opponents, we’d rather have Aiden quickly dismiss these threats, making it easier to get around quietly.
Aiden: The Good
Use the Force
Staring into a mirror in the bathroom sounds fun, but how much cooler would it be to move objects with supernatural power? That’s where Aiden comes into play. You can rattle books on the shelf, throw a table at enemies and even smash through certain walls. Depending on the event, this could either scare people off or distract them. Remember, any objects highlighted in blue can be interacted with – you never know how it might help Jodie.
Give Me Strength
It’s been noted already, but Aiden is much more powerful than Jodie. His strength can get her out of sticky situations. For instance, say you’re trapped in a building and need to escape, but the window isn’t breakable from Jodie’s own hands. Simply switch to Aiden and create a new path for her.
Fighting Spirit
Jodie isn’t capable of fighting ghosts, demons or spirits, but Aiden is a whole other matter. Throughout the game, you’ll encounter evil entities that can physically threaten and snatch Jodie. When this occurs, switch to Aiden immediately. Once you’re in control of Aiden, you can brush off and/or destroy the entities by using his interactive orb sequence. Let’s just say it’s nice to have a companion watch your back.
Take Over & Possess
Perhaps you’d rather use a more sneaky technique to get through a level, instead of going in aggressively. Not every enemy, animal or person has this option, but you can use Aiden to possess people and take control of them (they’re highlighted in red). With them, you can access new areas, get a look around or even shoot their comrades. The beauty of this trick is to keep Jodie’s cover from being blown – enemies will be confused and not have a clue.
Accessing Bonuses
With Aiden, you have the opportunity to collect bonuses that are usually well hidden in each chapter. This is for collection buffs only, but many are pretty neat. You can view trailers, the making of the game and they also include some bizarre scenes from additional characters. If you find a bonus, it’ll be highlighted in blue from Aiden’s perspective. They are usually invisible, so to speak, but you’ll need to trigger the orbs to access them.
Aiden: The Bad
Hard to See
Although it’s neat to roam around as an entity, you’ll find it difficult to see in Aiden’s view. Blue orbs are easy enough to spot, but if it’s a dark room, you’ll find yourself tapping L1 aggressively to find something to mess with.
So Far Away
A purple-connecting beam is also displayed when you play as Aiden. This is the link between both characters. The problem is, Aiden has extremely limited boundaries; going too far hurts Jodie and prevents you from traveling further. You will need to constantly switch between characters to get a closer look, though it’s much easier with two players.
Breaking Bad
It doesn’t take much to anger Aiden. He has a tendency to take the aggressive route and turn violent. Sometimes this is unavoidable. This could be both good and bad for both characters, but it usually distresses Jodie. Although wreaking havoc is fun, it can trigger additional tasks she’ll need to complete.
Sitting Duck
As you play as Aiden, you’re goal is to help and protect Jodie. Unfortunately, this may create an issue: Jodie is extremely vulnerable in this state. If you take too long with Aiden, Jodie will have to defend herself when physical enemies close in on her. Be quick and listen to what Jodie says to remain safe.
Beyond: Two Souls is currently available for PlayStation 3.
