Quantic Dream’s 2018 game Detroit: Become Human was a great tech showcase for Sony’s PlayStation 4. The narrative-focused game is set in a future where androids can pass as human and are beginning to achieve sentience. The game was a hit and now we’re hearing (via Giant Freakin Robot) that some kind of live-action project is in development at Sony.
The game is ultimately a heavy-handed metaphor for the civil rights movement, but the premise squeaks by due to its impressive capacity to respond to the player’s choices. You follow three characters through the story: Connor, an android investigating other rebellious androids; Kara, a domestic android on the run with a young girl; and Markus, who is basically robot Jesus. Their stories intertwine and each can end very differently depending on how you play.
It’s a fun game, especially if you go out of your way to make the most dramatic and violent decisions at every moment possible. However, as the core appeal of the game is your ability to influence its story, I’m not sure how well it’d work as a straight movie or TV show. Perhaps the best route would be for Sony to take inspiration from Netflix’s Black Mirror: Bandersnatch, which itself borrowed elements from games like Detroit: Become Human.
Whatever the case, if this is an adaptation of the game, I hope the majority of the focus is on Connor, who’s by far the most interesting character in the game. He teams up with a human detective played by an impressively grumpy Clancy Brown to work through some bizarre crimes and their odd-couple partnership makes for most of the best moments.
With Sony apparently eager to exploit its popular video game IPs via the company’s PlayStation Productions studio, I’m betting we’ll hear more about Detroit: Become Human sooner rather than later. Other projects include, Uncharted in February 2022, a film based on samurai adventure Ghost of Tsushima, and HBO’s The Last of Us TV show.
In the meantime, if you’re curious about Detroit: Become Human and have a PlayStation 5, it’s included in the “PlayStation Plus Collection.”
