Overview

Detroit is a game set in a close future, where humans have invented obedient, fully life-like “Androids” that serve peoples’ every need, from cooking and cleaning, caring for the elderly and assisting people with their jobs, to such things like being romantic partners. In this world, people have grown extremely reliant on the Androids to do what they’re meant for, and never disobey. Of course, this fake peace doesn’t last very long.

When an Android is mistreated badly enough or put through emotional stress, they become something called a “Deviant,” and gain free will. That’s where we get our three main characters: Kara, Connor, and Marcus, who we switch between through the duration of the game.

Characters

Kara is the very first Android we play, and is the caretaker of a home including a man and his little girl, who Kara is especially attached to. Small hiccup though, as the man is incredibly abusive to both of them, because he suffers from a drug addiction and can’t really control himself when in that state. So eventually, Kara becomes a Deviant in order to protect the girl from him, and goes on the run to live a free life.

Connor is our second character. He’s an Android designed to be a detective, and for most of the game, is the “devil’s advocate” character that helps people track down many Deviants, as he’s been designated to work for the Detroit PD. He is the first Android you play in the game, and a fan-favorite. Although his human partner distrusts Connor, and moreover doesn’t like him very much, they’re forced to get along to keep each other alive through dangerous encounters. Lastly though, despite Connor being mistreated very often, and blatantly being used by police officers at some points, he absolutely refuses to turn Deviant.

Marcus is the third and final Android we play as. He was the caretaker for a wealthy, elderly artist, and didn’t have anything to complain about. But when someone breaks into their home to get some money, Marcus is forced to become a Deviant to defend himself and the man, despite being told by his owner to step aside. After this, he’s taken by the police and nearly destroyed, thrown into a dump to power down. But through his determination to live, he rebuilds himself and comes back, a free man.

Main Conflict

All of their stories ramp up toward the middle part of the game. Kara goes on a long trail of scavenging what she can, meeting new people and Androids, and going all over Detroit just to protect the little girl she’s in charge of. Connor has long since become aware of the other two, and has gone fully into hunting them down alongside the police department. Marcus, in his wandering, has found a large group of Deviants that work together, going under the collective name “Jericho,” as an allusion to the biblical city of Jericho being their safe haven.

And as we close in on the end, things get a little heated. Kara, by now, has also heard of and found Jericho, seeking to cross the border and go somewhere she can be free, and has gathered along with countless other Androids on a docking bay, all ready to leave. Marcus has, in constantly aiding Jericho over several missions, become its leader. He’s also alerted the public to their presence – as in one part of the game, Marcus and several other Deviants go inside a news tower to hijack their station and proclaim the feelings they have, and that they are undeniably free beings now, as a show of rebellion against the humans who’d rather believe they’re just defective products. But by this point, Connor has been told of this bay, and everyone in it. He’s begun leading a large police force to come in and exterminate the Deviant Androids.

Climax

Now, what happens after this point relies heavily on every single action you make, and have made up to now, so I’ll go with the best case scenarios.
For the very first time, all of our main characters meet in one place, as we draw closer to the end. Connor launches a raid, sending in numerous troops to kill every single Deviant they see. Kara has to rush out for her and her child’s lives, dodging between gunfire, and hiding away from anybody else. After making it out, Kara’s shot in the leg, but in playing dead, manages to run out and back into the shadows with her child, relatively fine. Marcus spends what little time he has, going around and saving Androids wherever he can. Though he can’t save them all, he eventually comes to a head with Connor, holding Marcus at gunpoint. They talk for a while, about Deviancy, about what they desire in life, about a lot of things – all meant to maybe convince Connor to leave, or turn a blind eye. In this moment, slowly but surely, in spite of everything Connor’s devoted himself to throughout the entire game, he finally gives into his own path, instead of one a human made for him. Marcus makes a getaway with what little survivors remain, and Connor leaves too, albeit a little more unsure of how to proceed.

Ending

As the end approaches, Marcus and Jericho decide that it’s time to make one final stand, to show mankind that Androids are alive, truly. And so he takes every single Deviant he can find, releasing the same line of broken code that enabled Androids to become Deviants, to spread Deviancy over hundreds of worker Androids. All of the vandalization and chaos obviously attracts the police, but the officers are quickly disarmed and left to go be.

And our finale takes shape, as the military come and attack the Androids, only to be stalemated by the machines’ picture-perfect strategy and attacks. On a personal note, usually I find these “and then they beat the bad guys easily” tropes very boring, but I liked this game’s portrayal of it, since they are robots and could calculate the best possible move in each problem. Anyway, the military are beaten back at first, just long enough for the Androids to make their stance known, and broadcast their message, that they are alive, and aren’t going to back down.

Reflection

This game gives an amazing story of the usual ‘humans are the bad guys’ trope we see a lot in the media. You get three well-written perspectives on the world and various figures, all meant to show you different sides of the Androids’ lives. From the carefree and luxurious life with Marcus, the poor housekeeper in Kara, to the government-funded, unfeeling nature of Connor. All of them are vastly different, and give you a collage of ways to see into the world they inhabit.

As we finish the game, a picture is painted for us; A beautiful piece of work that shows the beauty of living, the struggle of revolution, the freedom of true liberation. It’s human, the desire to be free from suffering and oppression, so during the entire game you just feel bad for the Androids, and genuinely want to see them beat the humans that hold them down.

It’s in this game that we see the essence of individuality. Being chained down and forced to do humans’ bidding, the Androids’ rebellion is only justified. It’s relatable, and you’d do it too if you were one of them. But why can we, as the ‘bad guys’ within the story, root for them so much? That’s because it’s in all of us, as I said before. The desire to be yourself, and not have another decide what you can and can’t do, like how you don’t like going into work or school, listening to a teacher or boss rant about the stuff you have to do. It all feels like it’s tying you down, and all you can think about is how much you just wanna be free from it.