Concept art of a rift by François Baranger
A rift is a tear in the fabric of reality, connecting the physical world - the world of the living - with the Infraworld. This permits entities to pass from the Infraworld into the world of the living, and living beings can pass through into the Infraworld, though at a great cost.
Rifts play a major role in the plot of Beyond: Two Souls:
- In "The Condenser," an accident at the ADA Condenser Facility opens a rift and allows entities to slaughter the facility personnel. Nathan Dawkins brings Jodie Holmes to the facility so that she can shut down the condenser before the entities attack the rest of the DPA complex.
- In "Navajo," Jodie and Shimasani work together to perform a ritual that will open a rift and allow them to banish the bloodthirsty Yé'iitsoh.
- In "Dragon's Hideout," General Wang Ziyang builds a condenser at a military base in Kazirstan that will allow him to open rifts and use entities for military purposes.
- In "Black Sun," Nathan opens a rift in hopes of merging the Infraworld with the physical world and allowing him to reunite with his wife and daughter.
- In the Epilogue, Jodie experiences a premonition of a much larger rift being opened in an unknown city. If she is dead, Zoey has these visions instead, with the implication that Jodie is giving them to her in order to prepare her.