You are led to think by Quantic Dream that Heavy Rain is not a video game. The company has long had dreams of becoming a feature film studio; in fact, its most recent game, Fahrenheit, , passed for a film. David Cage, the filmmaker, even entered the game by taking a seat in the director's chair in the center of a "movie studio." Perhaps conceited, but you have to respect the team's conviction.
Heavy Rain is a interactive movie, by Quantic Dream that goes beyond what Fahrenheit began. Most players will understand, of course, that Quantic Dream hasn't done anything particularly novel. Though it has a touch more Hollywood flare, this PlayStation 3 exclusive is more of a game than it would have you think, reminding you of classic point-and-click adventure games.Nevertheless, Heavy Rain deserves praise for its accomplishments. A video game that calls itself a psychological thriller is not something you see very frequently, and the team has done a great job of introducing an underappreciated storytelling genre to the medium. Heavy Rain does a lot of intriguing things, but excellent does not always equate to interesting.
Continue reading as we review Heavy Rain to see whether Quantic Dream's goal was successful.
(PlayStation 3) Heavy RainArchitect: Quantic DreamSony Computer Entertainment is the publisher.Release date: February 23, 2010MSRP: $59.99
The narrative of Heavy Rain is told from the viewpoints of four protagonists who are connected in their quest to find the Origami Killer, a serial child killer who drowns young boys and covers their corpses with an origami figure. Ethan Mars, an architect, is the primary protagonist. He lost one kid in a car accident and might lose another to the murderer. Madison Paige, an insomniac photographer, FBI agent Norman Jayden, and private investigator Scott Shelby are all drawn into the search for Ethan's kid. Each character explores the Origami Killer case in their own unique way, and according on the decisions the player takes throughout the game, each one may have an own backstory.
The beginning of \i>Heavy Rain is quite boring. While Fahrenheit captivated players right away with its opening of a vicious murder and a frantic cleanup mission, Heavy Rain starts with what is maybe the most boring and uninteresting game opener I have ever seen. After waking up, the players get out of bed, wash their teeth, shake the SIXAXIS, and do many other ordinary tasks. Sadly, this will turn into a recurring theme that appears throughout the whole game. Throughout the narrative of Heavy Rain, players will engage in exciting activities like applying lipstick, shaving, and carefully tending to wounds. You have a pretty dull existence if that seems exciting. Right now, let me tell you, it's not exciting.
Thankfully, however, there are some of the most dramatic and sometimes horrifying gaming sequences ever found in it to make up for the game's numerous dull parts. The action scenes in the game are all quick-time events, yet they nevertheless manage to captivate gamers. Imagine it as Guitar Hero, with an epic pursuit or combat scenario in lieu of the music. These action sequences are really well-written, fast-paced, and usually leave me feeling apprehensive. They have given me some of the most thrilling experiences I've ever had.
These scenarios are great, of course, until you realize that your contribution seldom matters. If Heavy Rain excels at anything, it's creating the impression of urgency and the sense that the game depends on your decisions. Unfortunately, the great majority of these are only sensations and delusions. It is false to suggest that any one of your four characters may pass away at any time. There are several portions that, try as you may to fail them, you will almost always pass. For example, in order to preserve his kid, Ethan has to go through many "trials." They pose a threat to life, so you may think Ethan is in danger throughout the first play. He's not. In several of these parts, he cannot fail. In fact, the majority of the time the game will play itself if you just place your controller on the ground. To that extent, Quantic Dream has undoubtedly produced a cinematic experience.
However, it is as near to a "movie experience" as Heavy Rain gets. You see, reviewers would dissect Heavy Rain to pieces if it were a true film. Like the game, the story begins terribly slowly, picks up steam in the middle, and then devolves into the most ridiculous plot twists and deus ex machina-fest you could ever expect to discover. It's difficult to explain why the tale is so awful without giving away any plot details, but let me just state that Quantic Dream went too beyond in their attempt to be creative with the narrative's fixed aspects.
The primary ending of the game, which every player will encounter, employs a particular method that is both ridiculously obvious and completely perplexing. The game's last chapter is so riddled with narrative flaws, ignored story points, and misguided efforts to shock for the purpose of startling that any rational player would be rightfully incensed at the conceited and blatantly bad ending. It might become worse depending on the decisions players take throughout the game. Characters may allude to topics in the conclusion that they never really encountered during your own playthrough, which appears to suggest that Quantic Dream neglected to wrap up certain story threads. When you consider that certain storyline twists and turns are never resolved, instead being dropped as soon as they become awkward, it becomes simple to accept this.
We haven't even discussed the characters yet. Irrespective of their voice acting, the Heavy Rain ensemble lacks depth and is difficult to sympathize with. For instance, it seems as if a kid planned the exchanges in their hurried and forced romance between Ethan and Madison. The only really intriguing character is Jayden, who is a pretty conflicted and engaging protagonist due to his addiction to the made-up substance Triptocaine, particularly in the parts when players must strive to resist his addictive cravings.
Over the course of a few hours, \i>Heavy Rain also exposes us to around five distinct psychopaths, in a somewhat frantic effort to identify as many Origami Killer candidates as possible. The game is full with ridiculously extravagant characters, ranging from surgeons who want to operate on individuals while they are still conscious to nightclub owners who like making ladies undress at the point of pistol. Many of them are so ridiculous that the whole thing becomes ridiculous. The game's difficulty lies in its abundance of absurd scenarios and implausible characters. It may not have been so horrible if it had been restricted to just one or two blatantly insane comic book villains, but it seems like every other chapter introduces a new insane psychopath who is prepared to hold up a sign that reads, "I MIGHT BE THE KILLER OMG."
It's unfortunate since \i>Heavy Rain does a lot of things well conceptually. Narratively, the parts about Ethan's struggles are excellent, and it is commendable that Quantic Dream even tried to tell the tale of a serial murderer in a video game. The game does a great job at creating suspenseful situations, interesting options, and the impression that everything you do will have an impact on how the game ends. While it is true that many of these selections aren't really choices at all, this does not lessen the instances in which choices do have lasting effects. A player will need to consider their options carefully if they want to keep every character alive for as long as possible since they can die before the game's final chapters.
If anything, just to show the possibilities of games in this style, Heavy Rain should be played. A game such as Heavy Rain might be really incredible if it were written and voiced by better performers. Although this specific game is excellent in many aspects and really groundbreaking, it falls short of its own expectations, maybe because the developer didn't think it was smart enough to strive more. Despite the terrible storyline of the game, I couldn't stop scratching my head about the identity of the Origami Killer. Even while the gameplay isn't as life-or-death as it is smoke and mirrors, it nevertheless made me nervous and gave me a rush of fast-paced adrenaline that I won't soon forget. \i>Heavy Rain merits recognition for the unforgettable experience and the genuine efforts to be fascinating. The ridiculousness of the finale doesn't detract from the enjoyment I had, but neither does it make up for the tedious and annoying parts when I had to move the right analog stick very carefully in order for my character to apply mascara without sticking herself in the eye.
Quantic Dream similarly eschewed functionality in favor of design, using styled white windows that may be difficult to distinguish amongst all of its QTE button prompts. The game will shake all of the button prompts at crucial periods to give the user the impression that they are under pressure. Still, there's a pulsating message to let players know when they need to hit a button quickly. Because all of the symbols are shaking during strong QTE sequences, it might be difficult to determine at away whether the game wants you to hold a button down or press it quickly. Even if it's annoying, maybe this is what the creators intended.
Nor does the camera improve the situation. Certain button prompts are obscured by other items or remain concealed off-camera. They are supposed to be in dynamic locations, but the camera doesn't pick it up, and sometimes it's difficult to interact with an object since the player can't see the cues to do so.
In addition to QTEs, Heavy Rain requires players to execute particular actions by depressing certain buttons while simultaneously hitting other buttons. This begins rather simple at first. Hold X, then hold it as you hit Triangle. Hold both X and Triangle while you push R1. But as the game progresses, it's possible to find yourself playing Twister with your fingers as you try to hold onto the buttons to reach new ones. Although it seems like it would be unpleasant and painful, it's really very difficult and gratifying.
One thing the game does have going for it is its excellent visuals. The surroundings are diverse and amazing in their everydayness, and the individuals are extraordinarily developed. The persistent impacts of the rain produce a dull environment that is kind of alluring in its desolation. The wonderful graphics are, however, somewhat ruined by clumsy and stiff animations, as well as a propensity for the game to tremble at strange times and miss frames while switching between the infrequent camera position. As we've previously established, the voice acting is often terrible, but at least the music somewhat makes up for it. One of the best parts of the game is its music, which is macabre and exquisite.
Although Heavy Rain aspires to be compared to films, it is very lucky to be a videogame, a format in which a subpar story is more easily overlooked. Not only does Heavy Rain fall short, but it is almost shamefully bad when compared to movies. Hell, Heavy Rain falls short of expectations in comparison to some of the top gaming tales. Because the game doesn't tell the kind of story that gamers are used to, less demanding players might be led to believe that it tells a fantastic story, but make no mistake: its naive conclusions and incredibly weak characters would make Heavy Rain laugh out of any serious film festival.
Heavy Rain is a wonderful game because of its ambition and the very thrilling moments it offers. Its creators were sadly not up to the challenge, yet it had the resources to be something really great. Owners of PS3s should undoubtedly play it, and many will praise it as a classic; but, the several plodding chapters and the subpar writing will irritate anybody with a decent sense of narrative and a desire to avoid wasting time. The most crucial aspect is that it should be enjoyable for everyone. All that's missing is the sweet aftertaste that goes along with the enjoyment.In the end, Heavy Rain is an experiment that succeeded and failed at the same time. It might have been a complete hit if the creators hadn't tried to be so clever and had been more concerned with giving the story a logical narrative rather than an unexpected one. For the most part, Heavy Rain is a decent game.Heavy Rain is very fortunate not to be the film that it so desperately wants to be.
Grade: 7.0 — Excellent(7s are good games with a sizable fan base. The experience is enjoyable even if it may not have much replay value, could be too brief, or have some obvious flaws.)