Heavy Rain
When it rains, it pours, in the city where the Origami killer dispatches his latest victims. The concept is unique and original, the more it rains, the less time the victim has to live in his open top prison. You play as four protagonists, their stories intertwine as they unknowingly help each other to find the killer.
Heavy Rain focuses on a father who is trying to save his son, willing to do anything. This sets the overall tone of the game, dark, melancholy, with a constant fear of the unknowing. The start is slow, it plays out vital plot points and introduces you to the button layout. The walking is sluggish and coupled with the camera angles can sometimes end up pointing you in the wrong direction. This doesn’t affect the compelling story, once you get through the first half an hour the game really starts to get interesting. The first fight shows you the dynamics of the game play, from the slow button presses of moving characters, to the rapid succession of buttons and the quick reactions needed in a battle. With each button press (if you’re quick enough) you dodge punches, kicks, objects thrown at you and then retaliate with your own attacks.
The game play isn’t for everyone, it mainly focuses on narrative and moral choices you make, which affect the outcome of the characters lives and whether the killer is found or not. In every quick time event there is a possibility you’re character can die, this doesn’t result in game over, it affects the end outcome of the story drastically. I found the characters to be extremely likeable and edged closer to the screen ready to react as fast as I could to save them. The conversations have different choices, do you follow the tasks instructed by the killer to save the protagonists son, or do you ignore them and face the consequences later? As the F.B.I agent do you think first or use his psychology profiling methods to calm the situation? It doesn’t have any replayability, if you play it again you are going to have the same results, because its based on what you think is morally right. Its linear in where you can go, this is needed to keep your character on track to progress the story.
The graphics are stunning, they use motion capture for the actors faces, as well as movement, this makes it extremely realistic. You can see every rain particles impact, every emotional reaction be it grimacing in pain or smiling empathetically. The voice acting is top class, and the lip syncing is close to perfect.
