Should I Try Heavy Rain?

[Forsaken Lover]

So I remember a lot of people hating on the game when it came out and then a lot of other people saying the first group of people were wrong. I myself never paid attention to the whole thing but for reasons I have no idea, the urge to give it a shot just came over me. I know it's apparently a very plot-heavy game and that is kinda what I like in my games, even if I'm mostly a fan of RPGs. I also know nothing of this game's plot since I paid no attention to it when it was new and talked about a lot.

What did people here think of it?

P.S.
I apologize that I have no votes for the Ciddies. I just don't know people well enough on here. I know like, Wolf Kanno and NeoCracker and ToriJ and that's it.

[NeoCracker]

Daw, I feel special being mentioned by name. <3

Anyway, there are quite a few problems with the writing, but at the same time there are a lot of great aspects too it. The game has a lot of genuinely unnerving scenes.

It also has the QTE sex scene... yeah. It was awkward.

But as long as you don't mind the QTE based gameplay, it's quite a bit of fun.

[Psychotic]

I watched Pewdiepie's Let's Play of it and I really enjoyed that. I do tend to do this for plot-heavy games. Obviously it's not the same as playing it yourself, but when a game favours plot and intricate writing over gameplay I don't think it's so different, as you still get the benefit of seeing the story unfold and learning about the characters.

[Sephiroth]

Try Beyond: Two Souls.

[Levian]

It's not a game for everyone, but I enjoyed it a lot, and I'm glad that there exists game companies that dare make something so different from mainstream. I'm a sucker for murder mysteries and serial killers as well, so it was right up my alley.

The gameplay itself is mostly just quick time events and making choices, so you'd have to be playing it for the story.

[maybee]

It's not a game for everyone, but I enjoyed it a lot

The gameplay itself is mostly just quick time events and making choices, so you'd have to be playing it for the story.


This basically.


If you loved those Goosebumps stories where you got to choose what occurs next by choosing a certain page, then you'll love this game.

[Mirage]

Yeah as people have said, it might be your kind of thing if you just want to see a story unfold, and are fine with letting the gameplay take the back seat. Or rather, the seat behind the back seat.

Personally, I played the demo and didn't really like it so I didn't end up getting it and it never really felt very important to me after that.

[Formalhaut]

I loved Heavy Rain. I've played it several times, getting the multiple endings you can get in it. It's not perfect by any means however. I agree, there is the odd time where the writing isn't quite to standard, and I think they could have done more to make your smaller actions and decisions affect the plot and the game.

Having said that, the game gets downright creepy after awhile and is quite haunting. At least for me, I felt quite involved with some of the main characters, Ethan in particular. Furthermore, there's a real twist in the game that genuinely surprised me.

[Bolivar]

Yes you should absolutely try it. The graphics and art design is off the charts in a way that just mesmerizes you as you interact with its world. Despite being QTEs, the action scenes are more intense than any action game I've played. If you want to see a game that really pulls off player choice, branching plot lines, and multiple endings, this is the one. Characters can and will die, lending an aura of high stakes that other video game stories just won't have. You might find some things here and there that are mildly annoying but they do not take away from an otherwise unforgettable experience.

It will always have a special place in my heart because it was based in Philly and they put things like 30th Street Station and the Broad Street Subway in it.

[Scotty_ffgamer]

Heavy Rain is pretty great. I was someone who tried the demo and really didn't care for it, but I really loved the full game when I finally played it.

[Slothy]

If you want to see a game that really pulls off player choice, branching plot lines, and multiple endings, this is the one.

I did like the game, and I do recommend it as quite an interesting and engrossing experience, but I will say that I feel that since the game came out, Season 1 of The Walking Dead did all of this stuff better (haven't played season 2 yet). Still heartily recommend the game, just be sure to play The Walking Dead afterwards if it interests you.

[Forsaken Lover]

Discussing "game over" scenarios, he said, "It's like creating an artificial loop saying, 'You didn't play the game the way I wanted you to play, so now you're punished and you're going to come back and play it again until you do what I want you to do.'"

He continued, "In an action game, I can get that - why not? It's all about skills. But in a story-driven experience it doesn't make any sense."

That's a quote from the maker of HR, David Cage. It's actually a very intriguing point-of-view. In the quote he was talking about Beyond: Two Souls and not this game but it seems the same general philosophy applies.

I think i might give this game a shot. Some people say Beyond is better, some say Beyond is worse, but in any event I bet it's a lot more expensive than HR is. As such, I'll get the cheaper game first and see if I enjoy "his style." If I do, I'll be willing to fork out a bit more money for BTS.

[Skyblade]

Discussing "game over" scenarios, he said, "It's like creating an artificial loop saying, 'You didn't play the game the way I wanted you to play, so now you're punished and you're going to come back and play it again until you do what I want you to do.'"

He continued, "In an action game, I can get that - why not? It's all about skills. But in a story-driven experience it doesn't make any sense."

That's a quote from the maker of HR, David Cage. It's actually a very intriguing point-of-view. In the quote he was talking about Beyond: Two Souls and not this game but it seems the same general philosophy applies.

I think i might give this game a shot. Some people say Beyond is better, some say Beyond is worse, but in any event I bet it's a lot more expensive than HR is. As such, I'll get the cheaper game first and see if I enjoy "his style." If I do, I'll be willing to fork out a bit more money for BTS.

It is an interesting concept, but Beyond Two Souls avoids the "game over" screen in the exact wrong way. ProJared, one of my favorite reviewers, pointed out that if you just set the controller down and let the game play out, failing every quick time event and making no decisions, nothing different happens. The game plays out the same way. You can't game over because nothing you do matters.

[Vyk]

Have you played Indigo Prophecy / Farenheit? I do believe a lot of things changed when they went to make Heavy Rain, but still a lot of the themes and mechanics are super similar at the least

[Forsaken Lover]

All I know about IP I know from Chip Cheezum's LP of MGS2 where he said the ending of that game was "still better" than IP's because in IP you fight the Internet and it turns out someone was a bunch of 1's and 0's or something.

Then again, I adore MGS2's ending so maybe I'd enjoy Indigo Prophecy more than Chip did.

[fat_moogle]

I say yes! Love Heavy Rain. Like Levian said it's not for everyone, but I enjoyed it a lot. I was gripped from beginning to end. Maybe you should try the demo that's on PS Store.

[Formalhaut]

Have you played Indigo Prophecy / Farenheit? I do believe a lot of things changed when they went to make Heavy Rain, but still a lot of the themes and mechanics are super similar at the least

I always think of Farenheit as pretty analogous to Heavy Rain, with a similar concept, if still pretty different in it's own right. For example, Farenheit's story is pretty good until it falls off a cliff into strangeville into it's final third. Also, it has what you would say more of a 'game over' style, compared to Heavy Rain.

Heavy Rain is better, hands down. But I did like Farenheit, weird story notwithstanding.

Talking about Heavy Rain, I wish you could die more often. Sounds odd, but even if you fail several tests that Ethan has to go through, he still won't die. Basically, all your characters are death proof for at least the first quarter of the game, even if you fail seemingly dangerous tasks. The stakes get far higher towards the end though.

[Madame Adequate]

SHHHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAUUUUUUUUUUNNNNNNN

[Formalhaut]

SHHHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAUUUUUUUUUUNNNNNNN

Jason? JAAAAAAASOOOOON!

[Scotty_ffgamer]

SHHHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAUUUUUUUUUUNNNNNNN

Jason? JAAAAAAASOOOOON!

dP30WYgYiUI

[Forsaken Lover]

W6OFAc9fL3E

That song is amazing. It really is a shame the composer of this game passed away....

It's also a shame the "Original Soundtrack" does what far too many game OSTs do and leaves out A TON of music. I looked it up on iTunes and it's missing a lot. I found a Gamerip with all the music in case I want it but I feel kinda like I should still buy the OST just in memory of this composer. It's not like it's really expensive or anything.

[Vyk]

Considering how dynamic the gameplay is, it wouldn't surprise me if they did that due to dynamic music. I never really noticed while my girlfriend was playing it. But it really wouldn't surprise me if the game utilizes dynamic music, which would be hard to put on a soundtrack, because then which version is the real / canon version?

But that's just me surmising for this one instance. I've had to deal with games I love having limited soundtrack releases too. Then having to scour for all the worthwhile tracks that were neglected

[Lone Wolf Leonhart]

I would definitely recommend any game Quantic Dream puts out. I love getting immersed in these heavy story driven worlds.

[blackmage_nuke]

I did not like Heavy rain. There were too many unanswerd questions (not the good kind like inception) and plot inconsistencies by the end

I found purposely failing to be hilarious though

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X-L-G1q_0L8

And I cant find a video of it but not knocking out the guy and just going through Madisons whole strip tease. Then when you do knock him out she acts like it was a complete victory even though she's almost completely naked.

It was ok but over time it did not stick in my memory as good game.

[Forsaken Lover]

Well it's a good thing I played the demo. I learned a very valuable piece of information - namely that I can't even beat the demo right now, let alone the main game. The problem is I have a cheapo third party controller I got off ebay and it's wired. Now I have troutty eyesight so I don't need a wireless controller because I always play close to my TV. HOWEVER it seems like HR requires a wireless controller in order to register you are waving the remote up and down.

So....sigh, I'll have to fork out like $20 or something for that.

Kinda worried about these QT Es too on account of the aforementioned bad eyesight but it seems like there's even an Easy difficulty setting so I am going to say "I only play video games occasionally" even though I play them all the time.

[Mirage]

Sounds like your third party controller doesn't support the motion sensorts that the official controllers have. If it did, it'd have worked even if it was wired.

[Forsaken Lover]

Yeah I guess so. It's why I was thinking about trying to get an "official" controller.

But they're like....$40...I don't want to waste that much money.... I get all my stuff off ebay and I have no idea how to tell if what I'm looking at has the motion stuff.

Like this is what I was looking at getting
http://www.ebay.com/itm/331204310783

[Mirage]

Those are third party and don't seem to have motion sensors either. If there's one thing I've learned from ebay is that every single miniscule feature a product might have will listed as one of the "awesome super special things You get" by buying that product, and motion sensors aren't listed for that thing. I'd put my money on second hand official DS3 controllers if I were you, rather than brand new unofficial ones.

[Forsaken Lover]

Yeah, that is probably the safest bet. i dunno why I didn't think of looking for a used DS3 controller earlier.

Thanks.

I was also contemplating trying the PS Move for the game since some of it sosunds more intuitive... Like you make a knocking motion with your hand/the Move when you want to knock on a door. But that will cost even more money than a new DS3 so maybe I'll wait and try that later.

[Slothy]

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Red-Sixaxis-Dualshock-Wireless-Bluetooth-Game-Controller-For-Sony-PS3-Playstatio-/151087030119?pt=US_Video_Game_Controllers&hash=item232d7d1f67

That one seems to list motion controls. And it's only $20.

EDIT: http://www.ebay.com/itm/sony-playstation-3-black-dualshock-3-sixaxis-wireless-controller-/131204061596?pt=US_Video_Game_Controllers&hash=item1e8c5f199c

And a Sony one. Might just be a sixaxis so no vibration, but it's hard to tell without getting a full view of the top.

[Forsaken Lover]

Eh I'm not interested in vibration anyway.

I found another third party controller that lists motion controls
http://www.ebay.com/itm/231231476576

I dunno, it all depends on what happens Tuesday when I get my money. i have to buy a friend a birthday present (getting her a Force FX lightsaber and that ain't cheap) and then there are bills. If I can swing a used Sony controller and Heavy Rain Director's Cut then I'll do it. If not, I might try one of the off-brnad controllers. I checked that seller out in my link and he seems to have good reviews for teh controller so I 'unno. Gotta keep in mind the "you get what you paid for" slogan or motto or whatever.

[Forsaken Lover]

Argh...I just had it spoiled to me who the killer is... I kinda already did have it spoiled to me but I tried to convince myself maybe it was wrong. The HR Wiki entry for Shelby lists him as the main antagonist of the game. I figured "maybe they just meant he was opposing Ethan." The trailer I saw did make it seem like Ethan was on the run or something... But then i stumbled upon a video defending Heavy Rain and I was just browsing it when the guy casually blurts out that he's the killer.

....sigh... I'm frankly astounded the identity of the killer was as unspoken about as this though. About a solid week of researching HR and people have been really good about not saying it. Oh well.... Still gonna play the game. It's just like the ending to anything else - knowing it doesn't change the fact i know nothing of the beginning and middle. I want to know that beginning and middle and how it gets to the end.

[Formalhaut]

Why were you looking at the HR Wiki in the first place?

[Forsaken Lover]

I wanted to know the names of the characters and who voiced them. i was talking about the voice-acting elsewhere and that I thought the detective had a really good VA from what I saw in a clip on YT. So I wanted to know the name of the detective and who voiced him.

That detective is Shelby and well...it's in the first damned line of his article.

[Formalhaut]

I wanted to know the names of the characters and who voiced them. i was talking about the voice-acting elsewhere and that I thought the detective had a really good VA from what I saw in a clip on YT. So I wanted to know the name of the detective and who voiced him.

That detective is Shelby and well...it's in the first damned line of his article.

Ack, fair enough! I hate being spoiled in games.

[Forsaken Lover]

So this is something I've only talked about in brief once or twice in the past but I'm legally blind. I can only see out of one eye and even then, not that well. As such I am kinda worried about the QTEs in this game. Are they really hard? There is an "Easy" difficulty i saw in the Demo but I'm just wondering how the more action oriented QTES work?

Like do they pop up in weird places or the same place? Think the Leon/Krauser knife fight in RE4 - the button prompts always appeared in the same spot on the screen so as long as I kept my eye on that part of the screen, I was okay. But if in HR they appear in the upper left of the screen and then the bottom right and then the middle, it might prove to be a problem... And since I doubt HR has a Checkpoint System like RE4, it'll be even more irritating.

[blackmage_nuke]

THey appear all over the screen whereever theyre relevant, so if theres a water bottle and you can pick it up there'll be a little triangle on it as you walk by. If theres a guy coming at you from the left there'll be an x or something on the left side of the screen.

[fat_moogle]

It's a shame that you've had such a major part of the game spoilt for you. Still worth a play but I'm glad I didn't have it spoilt else I don't think I would have enjoyed the game as much.

[Jiro]

Heavy Rain was excellent. It's not perfect but it is creative. I really enjoyed the fact that the story adapted quite extensively to your successes and failures.