Title: Heavy Rain
Year: 2010
Genre: Psychological Thriller
Type: Video Game
Platforms: PS3
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Synopsis
YOUR SMALLEST DECISIONS CAN CHANGE EVERYTHING
The Origami Killer has taken a new victim. In a terrorized city, the hunt for a child will lead four unconnected people to ask the same question: 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.
Plot Analysis
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Personal Thoughts
Expanding on the fundamentals and principles set in 2005's acclaimed Fahrenheit (also known as Indigo Prophecy), Quantic Dream now delivers a game similar to its predecessor (functionality wise) but with the emphasis more on the psychological, with a serial killer style storyline, much in the vain of something you'd go to the movies to see.
One of Heavy Rain's promotional catch phrases is "In Heavy Rain you don’t watch the story – you play it." this statement, pans out to be very true. The best way to describe Heavy Rain is that it feels like a playable story, or an interactive cutscene, one where every decision made, either good or bad, has repercussions. (sometimes, serious repercussions). In this game, full on controllability is sacrificed for mood, ambience, and great story telling.
The game provides four playable characters, all in which can be killed off at some point in the game, if you're not careful, making the gaming experience emotional and even downright stressful at times. I proceeded through this game cautiously. I constantly found myself thinking about not making a decision that would get one of the characters permanently killed. And allowing a character to die will affect the ending you get. (It's been said that the game has something like 22 possible endings)
Heavy Rain may not be for everyone (I've read a few negative reviews), but it was definitely for me. I absolutely loved it, and wish more games like it existed out there in the video game world today. Imagine a playable, "choose your own adventure" style movie, with multiple endings. One where every decision, every choice, supposedly affects what ending you get. That's Heavy Rain in a nutshell. Everything that I typically look for in a movie from this genre (psychological thriller), this video game had.
It kept me interested, it kept me focused, and it kept me nervous over the thought of not knowing what to expect next. The game surpassed any expectations I had entering into it (I didn't really know what to expect to be honest), which is why I am making it my next recommendation. (second video game recommendation, 11th recommendation overall) If you play video games and you missed this one, give it a play through. You may find yourself playing through it more than once!
Review
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What I liked:
- The fact that there's four playable characters, all in which can be killed off.
- The mood, setting, atmosphere (the rain and music makes it feel like a movie)
- The plot
- The ending (or should I say, multiple endings)
- The music (title theme)
- The fact that there's four playable characters, all in which can be killed off.
- The mood, setting, atmosphere (the rain and music makes it feel like a movie)
- The plot
- The ending (or should I say, multiple endings)
- The music (title theme)
What I didn't like:
- The controls can take some getting use to, and can feel a bit odd at times.
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My Ratings
How good was it:
How scary was it:
How much did I enjoy it:
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Silent Hill 2 Extras:
Silent Hill 2 Extras:
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If you like this video game, you should also check out:
Alan Wake
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The Mothman
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