{"title":"Runner","description":"\u003cp\u003eA runner is a game whose core verb is running. Forward motion is the mechanic itself rather than the way you get to the next one, and everything else in the design is arranged around keeping it going. Two traditions sit under the tag. The endless runner, or auto-runner, moves the character on its own and hands you the jumps, slides and lane changes, ending the session the moment momentum is broken - Canabalt in 2009 is the landmark, and Temple Run and Subway Surfers carried the form to a mass audience. The free-running game gives you the run directly, in third or first person, and builds its levels as routes to be read and flowed through rather than spaces to be cleared. Both belong here, and both share the same subject.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe hallmarks hold across both traditions. Speed is the point rather than a bonus. Levels are read as lines rather than rooms: what matters is the path through a space, not what is in it, and a good route reveals itself as a sequence of surfaces that connect at the right heights and distances. Momentum is a resource the design keeps taking away and asking you to rebuild - a missed wall run, a clipped ledge or a moment of hesitation costs speed, and speed is what carries you over the next gap. Failure is usually instant and the restart usually immediate, so improvement is measured in how far, how fast or how cleanly rather than in items collected or levels gained. What separates a good runner from a merely fast one is rhythm. Reflex gets you past the obstacle in front of you; a runner worth the name teaches you to see the next three moves and commit to them before the first one lands, which is why a route that felt impossible on the first attempt can feel inevitable on the tenth.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis collection gathers the titles in our catalog that carry the Runner tag, from endless arcade dashes to first-person free running through authored cities. Many of them sit in our Parkour, Platformer, Fast-Paced or Arcade collections as well, and honestly belong in each; what qualifies a game here is that the running is the game. If you want something where the flow state is the reward, start here.\u003c\/p\u003e","products":[{"product_id":"mirrors-edge-catalyst-pc-download","title":"Mirror's Edge Catalyst","description":"\u003cp class=\"lead\"\u003eMirror's Edge Catalyst is DICE's origin story for Faith Connors, a Runner who moves packages, secrets and herself across the rooftops of Glass, a city that gleams from the outside and rots underneath. Built on Frostbite, it takes the first-person free running that made the 2008 original a cult favourite and opens it out into a seamless city you can roam end to end, with the Conglomerate's security force KrugerSec always one wire line behind you.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch2\u003eFaith, Glass and the Conspiracy Beneath It\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis is a reboot, not a sequel. Fresh out of juvenile detention, Faith rejoins Noah's cabal of Runners and goes back to the courier work that keeps her off the Grid, the surveillance network that tracks every citizen of Glass. A job goes wrong, Gabriel Kruger's ambitions come into view, and Faith finds herself caught between the Runners, the Black November resistance and a corporation that wants the city entirely under its thumb. The story is told through a run of main missions, but Glass itself is the real character, from sunlit glass towers to the maintenance tunnels and shipping yards that never see daylight.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch2\u003eTraversal Is the Whole Game\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eEverything in Catalyst is built around keeping Faith moving. The city's rooftops, pipes, vents and wire lines are laid out as routes rather than obstacles, and Runner's Vision paints the fastest line in red so you can read the environment at full sprint. The moveset is deeper than the original's and it grows as you play.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cdl\u003e\n\u003cdt\u003eMomentum and Shift\u003c\/dt\u003e\n\u003cdd\u003eClean landings, rolls and slides build speed, and speed is what carries Faith across the gaps between towers. The new Shift move adds a short burst of acceleration in any direction, while Quickturn snaps a 90 or 180 degree turn when the route ahead suddenly changes.\u003c\/dd\u003e\n\u003cdt\u003eWall runs and wire lines\u003c\/dt\u003e\n\u003cdd\u003eFaith can run vertically or horizontally on almost any surface, swing around corners, drop from a pipe into a hang and climb hand over hand beneath an obstacle. Zip lines strung between buildings get her up to top speed in seconds and are the backbone of the longer routes across the city.\u003c\/dd\u003e\n\u003cdt\u003eGadgets and upgrades\u003c\/dt\u003e\n\u003cdd\u003eA modest set of hardware widens what Faith can reach. The MAG Rope lets her swing across gaps and pull open panels, the Disruptor cracks locked doors and stuns enemies, and an upgrade tree lets you shape her movement, combat and gear as you complete missions and side activities.\u003c\/dd\u003e\n\u003c\/dl\u003e\n\n\u003ch2\u003eFocus: Fighting Without Stopping\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eCatalyst removes guns from Faith's hands entirely and replaces them with a combat system that punishes standing still. Free running builds Focus, and while Faith has Focus, KrugerSec cannot land a hit on her. Slow down or take damage and it drains away, so every encounter becomes a question of whether to outrun the guards or take them apart on the move.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eLight Traversal Attacks are strikes thrown mid-run: a kick off a wall, a punch on the way past. They keep Faith's speed up and her Focus climbing, letting her string through a patrol without ever breaking stride.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eHeavy Traversal Attacks use her whole body weight to send an opponent stumbling into a wall, over a railing or into a colleague. They are the answer to armoured KrugerSec units that shrug off lighter hits.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eShift is a combat tool as much as a movement one. Slip behind an enemy for a kick to the back, land a few rapid punches on a stunned guard, then Shift away before the counter arrives.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\n\u003ch2\u003eAn Open City Worth Running\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eBetween story missions, Glass is yours to explore. Districts unlock as you activate gridNodes, and each one is threaded with side content that suits a Runner: deliveries that reward a fast, clean route, Dashes that set a target time for a stretch of rooftops, and collectibles tucked into corners you will only reach by thinking like Faith. The game's own targets and its star ratings give every district a reason to come back, and finding a shorter line on a route you thought you had solved is one of Catalyst's quiet pleasures.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch2\u003eReady to Run\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eMirror's Edge Catalyst is at its best when you stop looking at the ground and trust the line in front of you. Lace up, take Faith across the first rooftop, and see how far you can get without touching the streets of Glass.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Electronic Arts","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":35708937548,"sku":"PC_9925345932_DL_GL","price":9.49,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0875\/3268\/files\/card-mirrors-edge-catalyst-pc-game.jpg?v=1788999630"}],"url":"https:\/\/www.pjsgames.com\/collections\/runner.oembed","provider":"PJ's Games","version":"1.0","type":"link"}