SINGAPORE — PlayStation 3 owners were blessed with the arrival of The Last of Us in June. Now, game developer Quantic Dream — which gave us the 2010 hit Heavy Rain — has come up with another masterpiece in Beyond: Two Souls.

In this psychological action thriller, you control Jodie Holmes — played by Oscar nominee Ellen Page — a girl who was born attached to a supernatural being called Aiden who lets her see what no one else can see.

Unable to handle her superpowers, Jodie’s parents decide to send her to a Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) research facility.

There she meets Dr Nathan Dawkins — played by another Oscar nominee, Willem Dafoe — who is tasked with analysing Jodie’s powers and who, in the process, becomes her father figure. Once she is older, she is moulded into a killing machine, but soon gets disillusioned with life in the CIA and escapes. It is then up to you to help her evade the cops while trying to find out more about her past.

Just like Heavy Rain, Beyond plays out more like an interactive movie rather than the run-of-the-mill action video games churned out by other developers.

The plot takes you through 15 years of Jodie’s life — from age eight to 23 — but events do not play out chronologically. You will switch between Jodie’s emotional struggles as a child, her missions with the CIA and her attempts to escape the authorities. As a result, you get an engaging storyline that provides an excellent mix of action and emotion, leaving you hooked from the time you pick up the controller.

Quantic Dream spent a lot of money on enhancing the graphics and the investment has paid off quite spectacularly. The game was made using a brand new graphics engine and the characters look exactly like the actors who play them in real life. Details in the environment, including how vehicles drive in the rain and how animals react to getting hit, are also so accurate that they left me questioning the need for next-gen consoles.

The combat and action mechanics also play a huge role in making Beyond one of the best games of the year. All you have to do is move the right stick in the direction you want to attack or defend and the game will execute a variety of moves that are not only realistic but great to watch.

But switching to Aiden makes things a lot more interesting. He is able to cause mayhem by flipping over cars and even possess enemies to aid Jodie in her missions. On top of his attacking abilities, he can heal Jodie and form a shield around her if she needs to jump out of a train or crash through a police barricade.

With great graphics, solid gameplay and an engaging plot, Beyond is definitely a rival for Grand Theft Auto V and The Last of Us for the Game of the Year Award. If you need to buy one last game for the PlayStation 3 before heralding the arrival of the PlayStation 4 on our shores, it has to be Beyond: Two Souls.

Verdict: 5/5

Platform: PlayStation 3 (S$69.90)

Rating: M18