Child of Eden is a rhythmic, visually expressive shooter from Q? Entertainment that serves as a spiritual successor to Q? Entertainment's classic shooter title Rez .
The story follows a hero who ventures into a virtual reality to combat technological enemies. The narrative centers around a woman named Lumi, who became the first person born in space on the International Space Station and had her memories recorded and archived after her death. Two hundred years later, these memories are recreated within the confines of Eden, the internet in the future. Lumi's essence is threatened by "viruses" and entities within Eden, prompting the player to save both Lumi and Eden.
The gameplay builds upon familiar territory for Q? Entertainment's fans, with players targeting and shooting enemies in rails-style stages. The game takes advantage of modern systems' power and is particularly well-suited for motion control, such as using the Kinect to target foes by swiping over them or launching attacks by thrusting at the screen. The left hand controls a purple homing laser used to defend against enemy attacks, and raising both hands launches the powerful "Euphoria."
The game features five stages, leaderboards, unlockables such as visual and sound filters, and art and video galleries to enhance replay value. Stage ratings are based on Purification rates and star-based ratings, with each playthrough ranked from one to five stars.