Over the past year, Heavy Rain has been promoted as the videogame to change all videogames: one that proves games can trade the gun-toting, monster-slaughtering muscle men for a story about love, death, family, compassion, and all those things that move us in real life. The game has been billed as a work of "interactive drama," something akin to a "choose-your-own adventure" movie-a largely scripted story with all the panache that makes film so engaging, yet allowing for player agency during key (and not-so-key) choices. This idea has a lot of promise. Unfortunately, Heavy Rain falls short of it on almost all accounts.
"Many video games catch not only great commercial attention but remarkable critical attention as well. We have seen games like Heavy Rain, The Last of Us Part II, and even entries in the Metal Gear series described as fantastic interactive experiences, even heralded in the same way as Hollywood's greatest films.
I would suggest that not only is this an unfair comparison but also a harmful one. Video games, by their very nature, are an intricately different medium and should be weighed against one another rather than another form of media," Phillip writes for GF365.
I think Hollywood films will becoming increasingly more like video games in the future, especially as the world embraces the "new normal" from the pandemic. It makes sense, as games like Spider-Man: Miles Morales showcase just how realistically we're reaching in graphical capabilities, as well as showcase extreme action sequences in spectacular ways. And as time goes by, it'll get easier and cheaper to produce such "art", as well as create new star "actors" that never age, never die, never complain, never gets involved in scandals, etc. Technology is amazing and we're only just getting a taste of what it'll eventually be.
No. For the money spent, a quality game provides far more entertainment value than a quality movie. Especially when looking at what is going on in the world, and how a studio can attempt to pilfer from consumers by charging 30 dollars for Mulan via streaming. Ridiculous. There is no comparison....games all day.
What exactly is the David Cage experience, and is it of value? We examine two classics, Fahrenheit and Heavy Rain, to find the answer.
Quantic Dream has announced a new video series to celebrate the 10-year anniversary of Heavy Rain. Check out the first part here.
Have you played Detroit? While it’s my personal favorite, I fully understand many preferring Heavy Rain more. I’m glad you enjoyed Heavy Rain too.
Glad you enjoyed the game! Yes, Detroit is a masterpiece of a game, and their best work to date “in my opinion”
Wow, 10 years...and yet, still one of the best/most emotional/thrilling gaming experiences I’ve ever had.
So grateful to Sony for believing in Quantic Dream’s vision for this game, and giving them a chance. I’ll never forget David Cage saying “We want to challenge the player, but not with the controller, but mentally, with their decisions of “How far would you go to save someone you love” Well, they broke my emotional gamer heart lol.
My teenage son refuses to play this game, because I’ve told him in little detail the emotional impact it had on me all those years ago. Maybe one day he will.
Still have my origami crane they teach you how to make when you're installing for the first time.
it's been 10 years? wow, that was so fast, I feel like this console gen went fast as well although it hasn't. I really look forward to the PS5 this holiday season though.
Hey, I didn't agree with the score either... But it is what it is and if someone doesn't like the game you can't force them to like it. They have to be honest about how they feel about the game. Can't do anything about that.
It's a review folks. They're based on opinions. Some of which periodically fall contrary to your own.
Maybe I'm in the minority here, but I understood why the mundane tasks (teeth brushing, showering, shaving, etc) were included. Not so much filler, as the reviewer implies, but instead as an added level of immersion surrounding the 4 protagonists. Think about it this way - we are seeing the world through their eyes, and are responsible for everything they do; be it something as harrowing as Ethan's trials, or something as boring as cooking dinner. Does the latter do anything to enhance the story? No, but it *does* make the characters seem more human. When was the last time someone went a whole day - much less the duration of an entire criminal investigation, without a shave or a shower? Why should an interactive drama be any different?