Heavy Rain

Heavy Rain is a difficult game to discuss. Partly, because Heavy Rain doesn't really act like a standard video game. Most reviews seem to be evenly split between those who think Heavy Rain's unique approach to storytelling qualifies it as one of the most innovative, imaginative games of all time and those who see Heavy Rain as little more than a typical B-movie masquerading as interactive entertainment. The game's basically the evolution of what Indigo Prophecy did a few years ago. It's an adventure game that works to immerse you in its story than to stump you with somewhat complicated puzzles. That gameplay element is still there, as the game often sticks you as one of its four main characters in some limited environment, and lets you walk around, examining and interacting with objects in the world. Sometimes things are simple, like taking a shower or making dinner and other times the situations are more extreme and you have to act quick.

Progressing in this game doesn't revolve around open exploration, but interacting with everyday objects via quick-time events. All you've got to do is follow the arrows on the screen. The tutorial level demonstrates this perfectly; you hold a control stick to get Ethan out of bed, shave and brush his teeth, etc. All you've got to do is get close enough to the object, and follow the prompt that appears. You can even hold a button to look through the characters' thoughts, which uncover more options and hints as to what you should do. By the time you've manipulated everything, you should have uncovered the next plot point. Even when you're not in control, the commands still show up during the cutscenes; rather than attacking an enemy, you'll have to follow a prompt to shoot or dodge. It takes a while to get used to the movement mechanics. Pressing a shoulder button lets the characters walk in whatever direction they're facing, and the analog stick can be used to turn their heads and move accordingly. It can be awkward, especially when you're in a cramped space and you're trying to focus on a single object. Even if you do get a handle on it, the characters move in a slow, almost drunken state. It's not horrendously bad, but it feels clunky compared to the quick-time events. You might pass up the item completely, forcing you to stumble around and try again. You might be facing the right direction, the game will occasionally ignore your inputs and force you to restart the animation sequence. It's annoying, especially when you've got to hold down multiple buttons at just the right time to work. These miscues rarely happen, but they are jarringly out of place in an otherwise well done experience.

I've spent a lot of time just talking about how the game works, though the most important factor to the experience working is the story and while it's not great, but not bad. The game's worth playing just to see this kind of story pan out in a game. It plays out like an eight hour suspense/mystery movie, and the fact that it doesn't completely fall apart under all that weight is something of an accomplishment. A few of the twists in the story seem a bit too forced, and certain twists later on make you feel like a lot of what you're doing was wasted and that you were lied to. But to the game's credit there are occasional moments that manage to strike emotional chords that most games are incapable of touching. Also I'm not sure the story was as dynamic as advertised. From what I can see from my experiences, the main plot seems pretty set in stone, with only the extraneous details being highly variable. The ending is basically thrown together as a result...but it still manages to be pretty good.

I guess the game's technical presentation is worth bringing up. Heavy Rain is a beautiful game, no doubt about it. Thematically, everything in the game is dark and the environments are a reflection of this which helps set the mood of each scene, but it can also make the game feel a bit bland at times. Unfortunately, the animations can be very, very stiff at times. Small clipping issues and the occasional texture hiccup can be pretty hard to ignore. The voice acting has its problems, although it's only really an issue because so much of the game is talking. A lot of the actors aren't bad, some even occasionally great, but almost all of them are clearly Europeans imitating American accents, some a lot worse than others. The musical score for this game is incredible. The music invokes emotions such as fear, anxiety, happiness, sadness, and tension. Ultimately, Heavy Rain is, despite its shortcomings, a game worth experiencing at least once.