Beyond: Two Souls is a cinematic action-adventure game starring Ellen Page and Willem Dafoe.
Great Characters
Great Graphics/Art
Great Story
Click a title to learn more about each topic.
Story & Themes
Beyond: Two Souls is about a young woman who seems to have strange psychic powers—which are actually the result of a spirit who is bonded to her. The game is played in non-chronological order, the chapters jumping back and forth between different episodes in Jodie’s life over a 15-year period. In some chapters she is a child and in others a young woman.
In the earliest scenes (chronologically), you learn that Jodie is a foster child with strange powers her foster parents don’t understand. She can “control” a spirit named Aiden, who has been attached to her since birth. I say “control” because she can tell him to do things, but Aiden doesn’t necessarily always obey. The player usually controls Jodie, but can also switch over to control Aiden to accomplish things that Jodie couldn’t do alone, such as disabling alarms. In some cases, Aiden can possess people and control them.
Jodie’s foster parents give her over to the care of the Department of Paranormal Activity. She is kept under their care as they study the spirits that are attracted to her, until she helps them shut down a portal to the “Infraworld,” where the spirits come from, and is recruited by the CIA.
In the CIA she bonds with a man named Ryan, whom she tries to date. Depending on previous situations the player has experienced, their date may go well or badly. Jodie is later sent to Somalia to assassinate a warlord; upon completing the job she finds out that he was actually a democratically elected leader who wanted to bring peace to the country. Jodie is upset that the CIA, and Ryan, lied to her and used her for her gifts.
Jodie runs away from the CIA and goes on a cross-country journey, learning more about her spirit-channeling abilities every step of the way—as well as who her real mother is. Back in the hands of the DPA, Jodie gets sent to shut down another condenser that opens a door to the Infraworld. After this final mission she is allowed to leave the CIA and resume her own life—or so she thinks. Instead the CIA attempts to recapture her, and her former mentor threatens to merge the human world and the Infraworld in an effort to stop death.
Jodie fights her way to the condenser and shuts it off. The player has the option to choose between letting Jodie stay Beyond, or bringing her back to life. If the player chooses life, Jodie will be separated from Aiden and become depressed for a long time, before finally choosing who she wants to spend the rest of her life with. This will change depending on who survives till the end of the game.
Beyond: Two Souls deals with themes of loss and grief. Both Jodie and other characters experience the death of loved ones; how each of them deals with that has consequences for the story.
Coming of age is another theme in this game. Jodie must come to terms with the fact that she is different from other people her age, and she is often bullied and feels isolated. She goes through all the emotional ups and downs that other teens go through, but in the end she must grow up much faster than her peers and take responsibility for her future.
Save Points
The game saves at the beginning of each chapter and also during the game so you can essentially turn it off at any time. However, there is no option to go back and redo a single scene, so you will need to return to the beginning of the chapter if things don’t go as planned.
Heads Up!
Violence The player doesn’t get a lot of opportunities to enact violence, but there is still a lot of violence in the game. Jodie must occasionally fight for her life, attacking enemies with found objects. There is some blood, but no gore. There is hand-to-hand combat as well as third-person shooting, though most of the game consists of evading threats without violence. There is a scene where Jodie’s friend Ryan is tortured, with slight blood. When playing as Aiden, Jodie’s invisible spirit companion, the player can terrorize people by throwing objects. Aiden will sometimes defend Jodie—in one case, Aiden chokes a child who is bullying Jodie. Players can possess enemies and make them kill themselves. In another scene, three men attempt to rape Jodie but are thwarted.
Scary Imagery When Jodie is possessed her eyes roll back in her head, and she can get a nosebleed. In some scary scenes there are blood splatters on the floor or walls, and bodies. There are also a few jump scares and scenes of possession that are disturbing; some result in characters killing themselves. The spirits appear as swirling black clouds that drag Jodie around.
Sex & Nudity Jodie goes on a date with Ryan, and they kiss on the bed. Depending on what the player has done in previous scenes, Jodie will sleep with Ryan. The scene cuts from making out to Jodie waking up in bed in her underwear. Ryan is sleeping shirtless, but mostly covered by a blanket, next to her.
A teenager receives a thong for her birthday and talks about how much her future boyfriend will like it. There is a shower scene in which steam obscures the character’s body, and another where you can see the side of Jodie’s breast. In a scene where a woman gives birth, she is not wearing pants but nothing is visible. In a couple of sequences, Jodie is lounging or sleeping in her underwear. Men are also shirtless in scenes of sleeping or swimming.
Strong Language Adult profanity is used at various times throughout the game.
Substance Use When Jodie is a teenager she can choose to drink beer or smoke marijuana at a party. Players are offered the choice to accept or decline, and if they accept the camera wobbles slightly as she gets intoxicated.
Conversation Starters
- The game puts the player in situations where sexual violence is a threat. How do you feel being put in situations like that? How do you feel about the way the game allows you to fight back?
- Is the story more powerful because it isn’t told in chronological order, or would you have preferred it to be told chronologically?
- How do you feel about the use of film actors Ellen Page and Willem Dafoe in game roles?
- Jodie is put through a lot of horrid situations. Do you identify with her, or do you want to protect her?
- When you play as Aiden, is it fun to cause mischief? Does the game encourage you?
- How do you know when you’ve made the right choice in this game? Is there a right choice?
3 / 5
2 / 5
