- "Now, when I take my hand away you're going to answer me one question. If you don't, I will kill you."
- ―Ben Mitchell
Ben Mitchell, nicknamed "Mitch", is a character in The Getaway series who acts as a secondary protagonist and a major character in The Getaway: Black Monday.
Mitch is a member of the Metropolitan Police Force and SO19 armed police officer based in London. He was suspended from duty in 2003 due to an incident involving an armed kid. Mitch was cleared at a hearing, however, and allowed to continue his service in the force. Mitch's new boss, Munroe, is suspicious of him at first, but also respects him and believes he's capable of doing a good job. Most of his new colleagues are also suspicious of Mitch when he returns.
Character Description[]
Who's Who[]
Quiet yet dangerous, Mitch has been accused of being trigger-happy. As an operative in the Organised Crime Squad of the Metropolitan Police, Mitch's sudden mood swings and foreboding silences may unnerve his colleagues, but his commanding officer, Inspector Munroe, respects and trusts his methods of operation. Athletic, powerful and focused on the job in hand, Mitch's army training has prepared him for policing the city's streets. To Mitch, an order is an order, but sometimes his own judgement takes control.
Early Life[]
Ben Mitchell was born on November 24, 1973, in London, England. He joined the army at a young age and received military training. At some point, Mitch left the army and turned to the Metropolitan Police in order to fight against organized crime. He specialised in becoming an SO19 firearms unit, due to his previous experience with guns in the army. Mitch was good at his job, but had an aggressive and rough attitude rounding about him. As such, he had no sympathy for criminals and had no problem in taking a suspect down if they presented themselves as a possible threat. Despite this, Mitch was well respected at his job and thus eventually earned himself the title of Sergeant.
2001[]
- "Collins. I brought him in three years ago."
- ―Mitch on Jimmer Collins
In 2001, Mitch was involved in an incident which led to the arrest of Jimmer Collins, a well-known gangster in the Collins crew. It is unknown exactly what happened, but seen as Mitch is a firearms officer, it is most likely that they tracked Jimmer down and went in with guns in order to arrest him. Jimmer was arrested by Mitch personally and was sentenced to three years in prison for some form of illegal activity.
2003[]
By 2003, Mitch was a well-respected Sergeant in SO19. He was good at his job and tackled firearm threats when necessary. This year was not a good one for him, however. One day, he responded to a call and ended up chasing down a kid armed with a gun. After chasing him alone across a bridge, Mitch ordered the kid to surrender. When the kid refused and prepared to run off, Mitch opened fire with a single shot and killed the suspect with a shot to the back. Because of this, Mitch was suspended from duty and forced to attend a hearing in court, in which journalist Jackie Philips was present. After a difficult time, he was eventually cleared, but his story was well known amongst other officers. Because of this, Mitch earned a reputation of being trigger-happy, and knew some officers would give him a hard time for it as a result.
2004[]
After being cleared of his shooting the previous year, Mitch joined a new SO19 team based at a police station in Holborn. His new boss, Munroe, was cautious of Mitch but trusted him to do a good job. Most of his new colleagues however were unhappy about Mitch joining the team.
One day, Mitch assists on a raid on some flats which were believed to be in use by members of the Collins crew for dealing drugs. Mitch joins the raid and assists his team along with his new colleagues, Paul Evans, Jack Harvey and Stoppard. Munroe is also present, and gives instructions to the team through the radio. Mitch helps clean up the estate and arrests and killed several members of the Collins.
Afterwards, Mitch returns to the station with the team. Evans and Stoppard are suspicious of Mitch and made comments about his presence. Harvey however is more open and offers Mitch to sit with him. Evans, however, joined them and had a go at Mitch, causing a brief confrontation between the two, which Munroe has to stop. Munroe informs them about a shooting at a boxing gym in Shoreditch and that the Collins crew were involved. Mitch drives the team over to the gym and then leads the assault. Mitch storms into the gym and takes out several members of the Collins and other gangsters inside, later revealed to be members of the Thieves in Law who were Russian gangsters. Mitch cleans up the area and chases after the current leader of the Collins, Jimmer Collins. Jimmer however, escapes by jumping over an alley and flees the area. Mitch then joins up with Munroe and investigate the crime scene.
Afterwards, Munroe gets a call from Finch, the surveillance specialist of the team who reveals that a man they have been watching, Levi Stratov, has just arrived at his scrapyard. Munroe reveals to Mitch that they have been watching Levi for a while before Mitch's return, believing Levi would lead them to something big. Mitch leaves the gym and drives over to the scrapyard along with Stoppard. When they arrive, they take out Levi's men who are revealed to be part of the Thieves in Law. Mitch battles his way through the scrapyard and eventually confronts Levi and arrests him. Mitch then brings Levi in to be interrogated.
Mitch leads the interview on Levi, who refuses to say anything. Munroe comes in and confronts Levi over the disappearance of British journalist Jackie Philips, who has been missing for a week. Levi claims to not know anything and refuses to give up any information. They allow Levi to make a phone call and he manages to arrange his release. Munroe then orders Mitch and Harvey to follow him and find out where he was heading. Mitch drives a disguised police car and tails Levi through the streets of London. Levi leads them to a construction site in Finsbury, which Finch was on watch. Mitch and Harvey speak with Finch who reveals they heard strange activity coming from the third floor. Mitch concludes that it was Jackie who was making the noise as she is being tortured inside by Nadya Prushnatova, a member of the Thieves in Law. Mitch decides to go in when backup arrives and leads the raid on the derelict building. Mitch makes his way through multiple floors and takes out members of the gang inside.
After making it to the third floor, Mitch finds Jackie tied up. Nadya is already gone, however. Mitch then escorts Jackie out of the building but it slowly begins to collapse, as the gang wants to ensure they never get out of the building. After a brief shootout with more gangsters, Mitch manages to escort Jackie safely outside and into police custody. On his way out however, Mitch runs into Levi and a confrontation erupts between the two. Levi is either killed or arrested by Mitch depending on the player's choice. Afterwards, the crime scene is secured and Mitch escorts Jackie back to the police station.
Munroe then orders Mitch to escort Jackie to a safe house, believing it would be safer for Jackie. Mitch drives Jackie over the safe house in a disguised police car, but suddenly, they are attacked by members of the Thieves in Law and Jackie is taken once again. Mitch manages to survive the ambush and chases after the kidnappers. Mitch rescues Jackie and takes her to the safe house, where Jackie reveals all she knew about the gang. Jackie tells the police that the Thieves in Law are making a cash exchange with another gang, revealed to be the Yardies, at the London underground. Mitch drives Evans and Munroe to the scene of the exchange to stop the deal. The deal however goes bad and Mitch and Evans are ordered to stop the suspect from fleeing. Mitch and Evans take out members of the Thieves in Law and the Yardies. They then catch up with the suspect on one of the tube station trains. The suspect is revealed to be Lewis Tyler who was working for Jamahl, the leader of the Yardies. Evans takes Tyler back to the station only to be ambushed by the Yardies. Mitch then drives over to Evans and saves him before chasing after Tyler. Mitch drives Tyler back to the station and he is taken into custody.
Afterwards, Munroe gets a call from Jackie, who reveals that her snitch came through and she now knows who is the Thieves in Law ringleader. Jackie immediately tells Munroe that they are closing in on her, and hears noises outside the apartment. As the line goes dead, Mitch fears for Jackie's safety and tells Munroe they have to leave at once. Mitch drives over to the safe house along with Munroe. When they arrive, they discover the police officers assigned to protect Jackie have been brutally killed, and Jackie is no longer there. Mitch and Munroe enter the apartment but Munroe is shot by a lone gunman inside, who flees the area. An injured Munroe orders Mitch to chase after him and Mitch does so. As Mitch leaves the apartment, an explosion caused by a bomb inside erupts and kills Munroe. Mitch chases after the youth across the rooftops and takes out members of the Thieves in Law. The youth flees to a nearby hotel and then commits suicide in front of Mitch.
Evans arrives and reveals the tragic news to Mitch about Munroe's death. An enraged Mitch points his gun at Evans after claiming that he can be better than this. Evans, finally having come to respect Mitch, tells him to calm down as he surely can be better than this. He informs Mitch that Jackie left a note and the two return to the station. Back at the station, Mitch learns that the ringleader is Viktor Skobel, and finds out through Finch that an arms deal is going down between Viktor's gang and the Yardies. They didn't know the location of the deal, however. Not yet, still.
Mitch confronts Tyler and presses him against the wall with a hand around his neck. Mitch threatens Tyler, revealing his troubled past and promising to kill him one day if he didn't give up the information. Fearing for his life, Tyler gives up the location as a factory in Borough. Mitch, who is now the leader of the SO19 team after Munroe's death, gathers his team together along with other armed officers and drives over to the factory to stop the arms deal.
Fate[]
At the factory, a boxer named Eddie O'Connor has also found his way to the scene of the arms deal. Hellbent on revenge for the death of his coach, Danny West, whom Viktor has murdered, Eddie has tracked Viktor down to the factory and confronts Viktor as he is in process of making the deal with Jamahl. Nadya, however, stops Eddie from attacking Viktor. Jackie is also present and witnesses Eddie's arrival. Viktor orders Yuri to kill Eddie, but Mitch and his team storm into the factory. Jackie shouts Mitch's name in fear. Viktor flees from the scene with Nadya and Jackie in tow.
In the resulting carnage, a forklift hits the side of the platform that Jackie is, causing her to fall over the side and hang on for her life. As the player, it is up to Eddie whether or not Jackie lives or dies. Mitch stands below engaging the Yardies as Eddie makes this decision.
Save Jackie[]
- "Mitch: I know you. Eddie O'Connor?
Eddie: Yeah, that's right!" - ―Mitch and Eddie on their way to confront Viktor
If the player decides to save Jackie, Eddie runs over to Jackie and pulls her up to safety. Mitch witnesses Eddie save Jackie. Afterwards, Mitch and his team clear up the scene but Viktor manages to escape with Eddie in hot pursuit. Mitch presumably learns from Jackie that Eddie saved her and Jackie is taken into police protection. Mitch quickly chases after Viktor and Eddie by himself and tracks them down to Viktor's mansion. After Eddie kills Nadya, Mitch tells Eddie to stop, but Eddie ignores Mitch and chases after Viktor. Mitch continues to follow the two and ends up getting on a police boat where he chases after Viktor's boat.
Mitch confronts Eddie on the pier outside the pumphouse after Viktor's boat crashes during a struggle. As Eddie saved Jackie earlier, Eddie convinces Mitch that he is not the one he is looking for. Mitch realizes this and the two go after Viktor. After Viktor's death, Mitch takes Eddie's gun and lets him go, taking the blame for the shootout. Mitch then heads downstairs and is reunited with Evans, Harvey and Stoppard who arrived on scene. If Sam has survived the outcome of the game as well, Mitch puts a towel round her and leaves her by an ambulance. Mitch and his team then begin patrolling the area and clean up the scene, having survived the game's finale alongside Jackie.
Left Jackie[]
- "Mitch: You let an innocent woman die! I saw you!
Eddie: I didn't kill her, she fell!
Mitch: You let her fall.
Eddie: Well that ain't murder!
Mitch: We've all got different ideas about what's murder." - ―Mitch confronting Eddie on Jackie's death
If the player decides to leave Jackie, Eddie runs past Jackie and does not pulls her up to safety. Because of this, the platform gives way and Jackie is crushed to death. Mitch not only witnesses Jackie die, but sees Eddie fleeing as well. Afterwards, Mitch and his team clear up the scene but Viktor manages to escape with Eddie in hot pursuit. Mitch is enraged for Jackie's death and vows to stop Eddie. Mitch chases after Eddie and Viktor and tracks them to Viktor's mansion. After Eddie kills Nadya, Mitch tells Eddie to stop, but Eddie ignores Mitch and runs off. Mitch continues to hunt Eddie and ends up getting on a police boat where he chases after Viktor's boat along the River Thames.
Mitch then confronts Eddie on the pier outside the pumphouse after Viktor's boat crashes during a struggle. As Eddie left Jackie, leading to her death, he cannot convince Mitch that he is innocent, and Mitch proceeds to arrest Eddie. If Sam is there, then Eddie will resist and try to shoot Mitch, only for Sam to intervene and scream at Eddie not to, distracting Mitch. Eddie hits Mitch during the distraction and runs off: Sam tries to follow, but Mitch forces her at gunpoint to stay there. If Sam is not there, then Eddie will look at the boat and hit Mitch as he follows his line of sight before running off. Mitch then gets to his feet and chases after Eddie. Afterwards, the two of them engage in a shootout.
Eddie asks why Mitch is starting on him, to which Mitch replies that he let Jackie, an innocent woman, die. Eddie claims she fell but Mitch insists he let her fall. Eddie argues it wasn't murder but Mitch insists he did murder her as everyone has different ideas about what murder is. As this conflict of ideas comes to a head, Eddie has no choice but to kill Mitch in order to get to Viktor. After an intense shootout, Eddie kills Mitch by the entrance to the pumphouse. Eddie opens the doors and looks over his shoulder, apparently upset that Mitch is dead. After Eddie kills Viktor, Evans, Harvey and Stoppard arrive on scene and Eddie hears them coming. The officers find Mitch dead outside and enter the pumphouse to arrest whoever is inside. Eddie climbs up a nearby ladder and manages to escape. In the finale, Evans, Harvey and Stoppard patrol the area and Mitch is nowhere to be seen, having not survived the game's finale alongside Jackie.
Relationship with Jackie Philips[]
- "Jackie: You're the quiet one, aren't you? Quite the moody action man.
Mitch: Put your seat belt on." - ―Mitch and Jackie before driving to the safe house
It is clear from dialogue and interaction that both Mitch and Jackie have feeling for each other. After Mitch saves her for the first time, Jackie is very thankful. When the two of them enter Mitch's car, Jackie asks if she can call him Ben, to which he replies just Sergeant Mitchell. Jackie comments he is a quiet and moody action man. Mitch ignores Jackie's flirting remarks and drives her to the safe house. Once there, Jackie realizes it was Mitch who shot the kid in the back a year ago and reveals she was at his hearing. It's clear Mitch is still haunted by the event.
After Jackie calls Munroe and tells him that the Russians are closing in, Mitch doesn't hesitate in going over to rescue Jackie, as he fears for her safety. Finally, after they arrive at the arms deal, Mitch is desperate to save Jackie: she also cries out his name when she spots him.
Mitch's feelings towards Jackie ultimately affect the outcome of the game. If Eddie saves Jackie, Mitch is very grateful and agrees to help him, and even lets him go after Viktor's death. If Eddie leaves Jackie however, Mitch is heartbroken by her death and vows to stop Eddie, considering what he did was murder. If Mitch and Jackie both survive the outcome of the game, it is very possible they started a romantic relationship.
Personality[]
- "Rough around the edges? I suppose you can be a bit rough 'round the edges. When you get some squaddies who are so fucking sharp 'round the edges, they hurt too many people. Maybe next time, they'll get one of their team mates in the back. I mean, it don't count when it's just some kid or-"
- ―Evans taunting Mitch on his behaviour, before Mitch loses his temper
Mitchell is a nigh-silent man of a few or more words, so silent that it unnerves his colleagues, primarily the talkative Evans. Professional and straightforward, but broody and temperamental, Mitchell is so focused on getting the job done by any means, even if it means harming people beneath him, such as the teenager he killed. Mitchell prefers to get the job done with surprising brutality, having mercilessly beaten up a Yardie for information, and with sheer consistency, having questioned a police informant with location and the time of an impending drug deal. Even still, his temper has been much of his weakness, nearly getting into a brawl with Evans, and threatening to shoot him out of rage of Munroe's death. Suprisingly, this is mostly because of his innate drive to protect London from it's crime supremo, which he holds little to no mercy towards.
However, even Jackie Philips has surmised that Mitchell is not entirely heartless, having respected his boss Munroe, and having cared for her in on occassion. Mitchell proves that he will dispense absolute justice in the name of the law, but will not allow innocents to get harmed in the way, even if he could not guarantee its success.
On one occassion, he has fought alongside Eddie O'Connor (player-chosen) out of a mutual agreement to bring down the Thieves in Law (if Eddie saved Jackie), even wanting to bring down Viktor Skobel. While it might have seemed to be hypocritical of Mitchell, he has, at least, proven to be merciful, and is willing to stand with criminals or people who shares his goals.
Gameplay[]
Mitch carries a pistol and a sub-machine gun. He cannot pick up or use any other gun, but he can loot ammunition from dead gangsters. Both of his guns are equipped with flashlights, which will automatically activate when a dark area is entered; they can also be fitted with silencers found in select missions or obtained from an in-game cheat code. Mitch also carries 5 gas grenades per level and can throw them to knock out enemies. As a police officer, Mitch can also arrest his enemies and is advised to do so.
Murders Committed by Ben Mitchell[]
- Teenager - Killed in "Tuesday" during a flashback to 2003 for being in possession of a gun and running from the police. After the teenager refused to surrender, Mitch shot him in the back.
Optional:[]
- Levi Stratov - Killed in "Finding Miss Philips" for being a criminal involved with the Thieves in Law. If not killed, he is arrested.
Mission Appearances[]
- Tuesday (playable)
- Shoreditch Boys (playable)
- The Latvian Cowboy (playable)
- Finding Miss Philips (playable)
- Hot Property (playable)
- Under Ground Activity (playable)
- The Jamaican (playable)
- Desperate Measures (playable)
- Monday (flashforward sequence)
- The Wake of the Shoreditch Massacre
- This Geezer, Hector (flashforward sequence)
- Your Man with the Tattoo
- The Vor
- Beginning of the End
- The Fall of an Icon (fate determinant)
Quotes[]
- "Stop or I'll shoot! [...] Drop the gun! Put it down!"
- "It's new stuff. Nick's brother stepped in."
- "Where was he when his coach needed him?"
- "Yeah? I know. You have the right not say anything. Anything you do say may be taken down and used in evidence against you. It may harm your defence if-"
- "It can be arranged."
- "Yeah? I understand. I got a bad memory too, I can't remember some things! Some parts of my life are a complete blackout!"
- "Alright, we should have know about this last week. [...] I don't care. Just tell what we need to know now."
- "We know she's in there, right? Then I have no choice."
- "Hostage, top floor, get her and get the fuck out."
- "...a body. Looks like an old man or, what's left of him."
- "This place is like a fucking maze!"
- "This way, Miss Phillips."
- "Sergeant Mitchell. [...] It's my job."
- "We can't work with this. We need names, faces, activities."
- "I'm better than this!"
- "Viktor Skobel. Owns the SG franchise, the Skobel Group. [...] Amongst other things."
- "Not yet."
- "To you I'm just another faceless cop. Now, when I take my hand away you're going to answer me one question. If you don't, I will kill you. Nah, not now, now'd be stupid. But I will kill you. Are we clear?!"
- "Uh? I didn't understand that. I'll give you one more chance to answer. IN ENGLISH!"
- "Well, get in there, then!"
- "Don't move, drop the gun! Don't do it! Put the gun down!"
- "Don't move, stay where you are! That's it. Don't do anything stupid."
- "Stay where you are. The other boat's coming for you."
Successful Kills[]
- "The target's down."
- "Got him! He's down."
Arresting Suspects[]
- "You're under arrest."
- "That's it. On your knees."
- "Get down! You're under arrest."
- "Get down. Keep still."
- "Got him. I've got the target."
- "The target is secured."
Injured[]
- "I'm injured."
- "I need to rest."
- "Don't know how much more I can take."
- "I won't make it."
Attacking Civilians/SO19[]
- "They'll call me in."
- "They won't let it pass next time!"
Escort Character Injured[]
- "You're struggling, I need to keep you moving."
- "Hang in there."
Interactive Advert[]
- "You don't want to push me."
- "I'll hurt you if I have to."
- "Someone pulled some strings for you...fuck knows why."
Trivia[]
- The opening line of The Getaway: Black Monday was spoken by Mitch.
- In the original trailer Mitch was shown wearing a helmet.
- Mitch is one of two characters to use a two handed grip on a pistol (the other being Nadya during the arms deal).
- Mitch cannot swap his weapons for new ones, unlike Eddie, but he can change between them
- Despite what the manual claims, Mitch cannot take enemies as human shields, (The X button is only used to take cover/roll in Black Monday and Circle is used for grabbing, which will always arrest the target as Mitch.) this may have been cut late in development after the manual was printed.
- Mitch is the only protagonist that can get a game over for "Causing Too Much Crime" if there's too much Civilian Deaths and damage by the player's hand during one of his missions.
- Mitch also shares his name with a character from the BBC drama series, EastEnders, who is also named Ben Mitchell, it's possible that he was even named after the EastEnders character
- Mitch is the only protagonist who is unable to blind-fire around corners.
- Mitch has a nearly completely unused alternative model, where he isn't wearing his armor (similar to other SO19 members in certain cutscenes), Mitchell does wear this during the "Chase" Mini-game and can in other modes with Gameshark.