Quantic Dream announced in March that its previously PS4-exclusive games Heavy Rain, Beyond: Two Souls, and Detroit: Become Human would finally make their way to PC, via the Epic Games Store, later this year. Heavy Rain arrived in June, followed by Beyond: Two Souls in July, and today the studio revealed that Detroit: Become Human will close the triangle on December 12.
Detroit: Become Human is set in a near future where androids "speak, move and behave like human beings," but exist only to serve. That naturally leads to all sorts of moral and ethical quandaries—do androids dream of electric sheep, and all that sort of thing—which players will grapple with from the perspective of three different androids, named Kara, Connor, and Markus. The decisions they make will affect not just their own fates, but that of the entire city of Detroit.
Themes of sentience, ownership, and the moral minefields laid by the rise of AI are nothing new in fiction (you have seen Blade Runner, right?) and I have to wonder whether Quantic Dream will have anything fresh or interesting to offer in its take on the topic. As Andy Kelly said in April, its games traditionally boast "lavish production values, QTEs, wild tonal inconsistency, overwrought drama, gratuitous shower scenes, and SWAT teams," which isn't the sort feature set that screams "thoughtful and nuanced." But, he added, "I think it's great that these games are coming to PC. As riddled with flaws as they are, they're still undeniably unique experiences."
Detroit: Become Human is available for pre-purchase on the Epic Games Store for $40/£30. Quantic Dream said in May that a demo would be available prior to release, but it hasn't turned up yet.
