Ve3tro Review: Heavy Rain

Ve3tro writes: "Your smallest decisions can change everything-or at least, that's what the back of the box reads. It continues; […] How far would you go to stop a killer? Play all four roles in this psychological thriller where every action you take has consequences. How this story unfolds is entirely up to you.

Heavy Rain will be a flagship title for the Playstation 3 for quite a while as Quantic Dream have created a game that can only be summed up with words like 'bold', 'innovative', and 'immersive'.

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In the conclusion of the story, my ending wasn't a good one. In fact… I found it extremely dissatisfying, which again reiterates my main qualm with the experience; why give the player choice? Had I not had the opportunity to royally ruin the story, I wouldn't have such a mixed reaction upon finishing the game.

Perhaps I'll be the first to 'Heavy Rain' on the parade, but I had expected this game to shatter whatever expectations I had expected prior to picking up the title. It did not.

Heavy Rain was a nice excursion and it is a game I will recommend due to the concept and beauty of the game, however at the end of the day I would rate it no higher than a 7."

[Dragunov]

This guy states how he a had a bad ending and somewhat ruined the sory for him, what a douche, at least try some other endinges before write a review.

[Yast3r]

You missed the point clearly.

The fact that because you are given choice, (or the illusion of choice), you end up ruining the game. In other words you've got to get inside the minds of the characters to ultimately get the best ending. You've got to BE the characters.

The problem is that YOU ARE NOT! You are not Ethan, Jayden, Shelby or Marissa.

At one point you realize, if you want to have the ultimate ending then you must turn the game into--well, not so much a game as you can no longer think for yourself. You will simply plot along through the game, doing everything for the characters.

At that point it becomes a tedious and boring movie.

This is an excellecnt article about that very thing: http://www.destructoid.com/...

From that article:

"If we apply his line of thinking to "interactive movies" such as Heavy Rain, however, Ebert is totally on the money.

The characters of Heavy Rain are not blank slates, or characters whose identities we fill in through our own decisions -- they aren't like Gordon Freeman or Commander Shepard. They're characters with existing histories and personalities. By granting us control over these characters, the player is forced into an awkward position of half-agency: their desires intermingle with our own, forcing us to either relinquish our own sense of control and relevance, or actively participate in a story populated by characters who make ridiculous and self-defeating decisions.

As courageous as Heavy Rain is, and as suspenseful as some of its later QTEs are (three cheers for potentially permanent protagonist death! A fourth cheer for alliteration!), the player's ability to manipulate the behavior of its characters actively and irreversibly harm the story. You can shake your fist at Ebert for as long as you want, but it won't change the fact that he made a good point -- and that Heavy Rain proves it true."

Spot on! ...spot on.

[Yast3r]

Did you read the entire review? Such severe glitches surely would put a massive target on most other game. This seems to get a redemption pass from every reviewer out there based on the concept alone.

However as many have stated, including in the review, the concept is flawed due to the player having ultimate control.

From the review; "I merely floated through the game for a large chunk of the experience, essentially making it a 7-hour movie that is interrupted with mini games where I wash my hands and use the toilet."

Absolutely true.

WARNING SPOILER ABOUT A GAME SCENE:

An example would be when Ethan is crying after cutting off his finger, been electrocuted and crawled on glass. He's an emotional wreck, and he states himself he does not want to have sex. Being with Madison would be the last thing on his mind--he wants to get outside and go rescue his boy who is drowning in a pit of water.

However, the player more than likely wants to see the sex scene. So instead of trying to find his kid who is drowning in a pit, an emotionally damaged, and barely alive-Ethan has sex with a woman with manly arms.

Bizarre.

[McLuvn]

7 out of 10 just for not being an FPS.
Anything else is extra.

[Ve3tro]

There has been other titles in the past which are higher rated, better than Heavy Rain and arn't FPS's.