One of the most important video games ever made, and a highly emotional suspense thriller.
Saying Heavy Rain is an interactive movie seems a bit unrealistic, because truthfully it`s not. Although it borrows heavily from film narrative, it stands alone fitting somewhere neatly between what you would consider your average game and a movie. It begins with you being introduced with Ethan, a man who will essentially become the main protagonist in the game (there are three other characters you will take control of) but his story becomes the driving force. Unlike what you would expect, it does not start of with a killing, or a huge set piece designed to grab the gamers attention with blood splatter enemies and cover mechanic gunfights, but rather with you spending time with your children. It`s moments like this that game offers you to invest in the playable characters, to become familiar with them, and it does a fantastic job of humanizing these digitally created people. Allowing the gamer to listen in from time to time on their most inner thoughts, adds to the feeling that these characters were not put here for no reason, but they serve a purpose to the overall story.
This is where the game becomes a classic, it`s storyline, it had to or the game would not have worked. Quantic Dream really delivered, creating perhaps one of the greatest stories told in video gaming. It sounds simple, a killer is kidnapping and drowning children, he goes by the name The Origami Killer, because of the pieces of origami he leaves behind. He seems impossible to trace, there seems to be no evidence, this is where you as the player come in. It`s your job to figure out the mystery surrounding the killer, before he kills one more victim. The developers were smart in keeping the story simple, because it`s obvious they spent a lot of time creating characters. In some sense, the game is more so a character study of these four different characters whose lives get interwoven with a serial killer rather than figure out who the killer is. A brave move on Quantic Dream`s part, having confidence that the characters are likable enough to want to keep playing. Another great achievement is in the pacing of the story, near perfect in every sense of the word, with cliffhanger moments that promise you will not turn of your console being you have to find the next clue. It`s because of the pacing that the game never gets dull, you never want to stop playing, no matter insignificant the clue may be to you, you treasure it and beg for more.
The graphics are impressive, rather stunning. Once again more attention was spent on the character models, making sure they move and look as lifelike as possible, and at some points the realism will send chills down your spine. The environments while not as spectacular as the models, offer great detail, and help to set the overall miserable, dreary atmosphere. The sound is haunting, and it alone will drag you to the edge of your seat rivaling that of any of the best suspense music out there.
The gameplay, surprisingly the least important part of Heavy Rain, ends up being some of the most addictive gameplay in ages. With a unique control scheme that like the title itself strays far away from what average gamers are familiar with. For example you walk with the trigger buttons. Anyone who is familiar with quick time elements from other games will get the controls in no time, but they are the best they have ever been. As scenarios advance as does the difficulty leaving you quickly pressing multiple buttons on your dualshock, as having you jolting your controller in all directions thanks to the sixaxis. Where many thought that game would be dull, they will be pleasantly surprised as too how well the game flows, I never put down my controller, and I never felt as if the game was cheating me. The narrative in the game changes based on how you play it. It does not leave the everything up to morals, or right and wrong, but instead how you would react in the situation if it were really happening to you.
I have only given perfect scores twice so far in this current generation of consoles, but perhaps my score means less here than ever before. Heavy Rain manages to be an experience more so than a game, and although the developers have set everything into place its up to you as a player on what you experience. Sony should be praised for this as much as Quantic Dream, because no other publisher would consider putting forth the effort and money that they did. An idea this radical, on something that`s not a flamboyant RPG, cover based shooter, or military warfare game, and praying that gamers will get the point behind what the game is trying to achieve is something that the industry is truly lacking. It`s been said before that for every one person who hates this breath of fresh air for gaming, a dozen will love it. As not only a gamer, but as an admire of the culture that surrounds gaming as a whole, this has been the highlight of the past ten or so years of gaming. I could say it over and over, a total masterpiece of gaming, and a unmatched experience. For those who complain that gaming has lost its creativity, look no further than Heavy Rain.