Heavy Rain (PS3) Demo Impressions

I’ve been following Heavy Rain since it was just a tech demo shown on the floor at E3 2006.  Then, it was merely a showcase of the PS3’s graphical and physical power, but developer Quantic Dream took it a step further and molded it into the game it is now.  Heavy Rain is an experiment in videogame film noir and centers around several playable characters- Ethan Mars the architect, retired detective turned PI Scott Shelby, photojournalist Madison Page, and FBI profiler Norman Jayden.

Plot details have been intentionally vague at this point, but what we do know is that it revolves around ‘The Origami Killer’ and developer Quantic Dream has said the game is about unconditional love and choice.  The demo in which I played gives you two different scenarios to play through: one being a scene with private dick Scott Shelby and the other being FBI agent Norman Jayden.  Shelby’s scene is basically his attempt to question a prostitute named Lauren who has lost her son.  Everything in this game is basically about timed button pressing sequences.  On the surface it would appear that it’s like a really long, drawn out God of War boss fight, but really there is alot more control. From removing your inhaler from your pocket (Shelby is asthmatic) to leaning on a bed frame while talking to Lauren, it’s all done through contextual button pressing.  To walk in the game, you have to hold down R2.  It’s reminiscent of the old tank style controls of Resident Evil but after familiarizing myself with it, I had no problem.  I can see this being an issue for some though and it will likely turn people off completely.  The fixed camera can get a little wonky at times but is usually fixed by switching angles with R1.

Shelby’s scene shows off more of the interactive dialogue and what the combat is going to be like in Heavy Rain.  After playing through Mass Effect 1 and 2, the conversational flow and options are certainly not as advanced.  But they’re better than most games.  The fight at the end of Shelby’s scene involving some asshole john was actually really cool and is definitely like a really REALLY long God of War boss ending sequence.  From swishing the sticks up and to the left, to mashing the buttons (and in some cases holding them down) it got pretty intense fast.  And to those not familiar with a Playstation controller, this could end up extremely confusing at first.

Norman Jayden’s scene opens with him driving to a crime scene.  We can see that he’s clearly struggling with some sort of addiction, although I’m sure we’ll get more information when the retail copy is out.  This section of the demo detailed the investigative aspect of the game and it is certainly a slick-looking one.  Norman has a pair of futuristic shades that he puts on to examine the crime scene.  Tapping R1 will do a pulse scan of a 10 meter radius.  If there’s a clue, an icon will pop up and you can investigate it.  There are also options to tap into your inner thought process as well, holding L2 will bring up a list of things that your character is thinking about which you can access at your discretion.

The button pressing can get really complex at times, things as simple as walking up a muddy hill in the rain can require you eventually holding down nearly all the buttons simultaneously.  There’s functionality to it though and it doesn’t seem unnecessary and didn’t frustrate me personally.  The game looks outstanding on the graphical front.  It really showcases the power of the Playstation 3; from the downpour of rain, which is constantly beating down on you, to the fantastic way the environments are lit, and of course the immaculately detailed characters.  I was a little disappointed that its native output is 720p and not 1080p, but obviously I can overlook that.  Uncharted runs at 720p and looks gorgeous, so no big deal.

The voice acting on the other hand…not so great.  A game like this absolutely needs the voice work to be top notch, especially with games like Uncharted out there destroying the competition on this front.  It sounds stilted and you can definitely tell that none of the actors were even near each other when they recorded their dialogue.  Quantic Dream should’ve paid more attention to how Naughty Dog (Uncharted) did things with their actors because I feel like I’m losing something in the translation when it sounds so canned like this.  Some of the cheese that’s in the lines can be ignored because this is a take on film noir after all.  Even with that major gripe, I cannot wait to get my hands on a retail copy of this game.  Heavy Rain looks to break new ground by creating something that is truly a marriage between a game and cinema.  I’ve never seen something like this work, and it looks like (spotty voice acting aside) this could be the game that does it.  Hopefully this is the game that opens the door to all of those film buffs out there that don’t play games.  Check out the video of the Scott Shelby scene below!

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