Detroit: Become Human will show off Amazon Alexa skills in upcoming demo

Sony has announced that it’s celebrating upcoming PlayStation 4 exclusive, Detroit: Become Human, going gold by releasing a demo of the very first scene in the game. More interesting than the demo, however, is the reveal that it will have its very own Alexa skill.

Named CyberLife, the skill will give players guidance and advice to help them make their first decisions in this choice-filled game world. Called Hostage, the demo will have players take up the role of an android called Connor, a hostage negotiator sent into a fraught situation where lives are on the line.

Using the CyberLife skill, players will be able to ask Alexa questions relating to details in the crime scene and the backgrounds of characters to guide them through the decision making process. Players will even be able to ask Alexa to find out which decisions had which impacts and find out how they might be able to alter the course of the game by doing one thing differently. 

"Alexa, please help me choose"

This isn't the first time a game has created its own Alexa skill – Destiny 2 did so very recently by allowing players to interact with their AI companion Ghost through their own devices. This skill is also very in-keeping with the story of Detroit: Become Human.

Set in a dystopian future, Detroit: Become Human is a game which follows the story of three androids who have started to experience human emotions in a world that sees them as nothing more than machines built to obey. The fate of these androids and the characters around them will be entirely in your hands, with all of your decisions and actions opening up a branching story that will be individual to you. 

We don’t think Alexa is about to start offloading its feelings when you come home after a long day, but it is the first step towards fully-fledged androids, and a good example of how they might know more than you already. To use the Alexa skill you simply have to have access to any Alexa-enabled device and ask it to download the CyberLife skill by saying “Alexa, enable CyberLife.”

The demo will be available for download on the PlayStation Store on Tuesday, April 24 at 12:01 am ET/ 5:01 am BST. Once excited fans get through this demo, they’ll have to wait until the game’s May 25 release date before they can play again. 

Emma Boyle

Emma Boyle is TechRadar’s ex-Gaming Editor, and is now a content developer and freelance journalist. She has written for magazines and websites including T3, Stuff and The Independent. Emma currently works as a Content Developer in Edinburgh.