Hey there guys!
Today i'm reviewing something that has become one of my favorite games:
Yes that's right! Quantic Dream's very own Heavy Rain! Now I have written about what I can without spoiler alerts so I've had to be vague in places, but I believe this information I'm giving you will get you wanting to play the game!
Let's begin:
Heavy Rain is a cinematic psychological thriller from game developer Quantic Dream exclusively for the PlayStation 3. Dealing with a range of adult themes, the game revolves around a sophisticated plot and strong narrative threads that explore a complex moral proposition. You assume the role of multiple characters with very different backgrounds, motivations, and skills in a world where each player decision affects what will follow.
The game focuses on four different characters; Ethan Mars, a father and main protagonist; Scott Shelby, a private eye; Norman Jayden, an FBI agent and finally Madison Paige, a photojournalist. They are very different characters and do not know each other at the game's point, but are all connected in the sense that they all have interest in the game's main antagonist, the Origami Killer.
CHARACTERS:
Ethan Mars:
Ethan Mars is one of the three main protagonists in Heavy Rain and is overall the central character of the game, and is also one of the four playable characters (the other three being Scott Shelby, Norman Jayden and Madison Paige). Up until 2009, Ethan lived an idyllic and happy life as a successful architect alongside his loving wife Grace Mars and his two sons, Jason and Shaun Mars. However, Ethan's life took the first of two tragic turns when his son Jason was killed. Heavy Rain, set two years later in 2011, focuses on Ethan during the kidnapping of his second son, Shaun Mars.
It is Shaun Mars's disappearance that causes Ethan's life to take a darker turn, and causes him to be sent into more worry. Fortunately, the kidnapper of Shaun has not killed Shaun and is holding him captive. He is given Ethan a phone that has a hangman with various blank lines. These underlines are actually unknown letters; by completing Trials sent from the killer, Ethan will get a set number of letters. This is what shapes the game's central question, "How far are you prepared to go to save your son?" These trials become increasingly difficult and morally taxing, and Ethan logically reasons against all five of them in his thoughts.
Scott Shelby:
A former police lieutenant, Scott is now a private detective and retired cop. Over the course of the game, his primary goal is to find evidence about Origami Killer. Scott's partner throughout the game is Lauren Winter.
Shelby suffers from asthma as illustrated throughout the game (though is dexterous enough to cope with an armed robber at a convenience store and survive a shoot-out with several men). Depending on the player's choices, Scott has the potential to a kindle a relationship with Lauren Winter. It is also revealed when Lauren offers him a cigarette, Scott tells her, "No thanks, I quit," informing the player that he used to be a smoker.
Scott's persona consists of being quiet, organized, vigilant, and highly introverted, hardly ever talking about himself to others. Being someone who listens to others, methodical in work, straight-eyed, determined, and able to cope under pressure makes Scott Shelby an effective private investigator, allowing him to assess human behavior and perceive clues other people may miss.
His previous employment before becoming a P.I. was that of a police lieutenant for the local police force. As shown when Shelby is brought in for questioning, it seems that he once knew Carter Blake whilst working as a cop, and that they appear to have a friendly relationship because of it.
Norman Jayden:
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Norman specializes in conducting forensic investigations with an experimental device called ARI (Added Reality Interface). ARI's main hardware component is a pair of sunglasses, which acts as a type of transparent display. When looking at a crime scene through ARI's interface, relevant data and analysis is superimposed on the image of the crime scene above the relevant clues. Norman uses ARI to highlight relevant clues within a specified 'pulse' radius. Norman also wears ARI's other hardware component, a glove, which allows him to interact with the virtual data displayed through the glasses. By simultaneously using these two items, ARI catalogues all the data and cross-references it with relevant databases, analyses it, and geo-locates it where applicable. ARI also has a recording feature that works as a video camera. When being worn, it records what the wearer of the sunglasses sees and stores it in it's databases for future reference. Norman constantly reviews his clues and data that he has collected via ARI.
With the local cops resentful of both his methods and his very presence, he struggles to piece together the evidence before it becomes too late for the next victim of the Origami Killer.
Norman is addicted to Triptocaine, known as Tripto, a blue substance in a vial. Triptocaine is drug Norman uses which was given to him from the distributors of his ARI glasses to combat the glasses' side effects, and it is currently unknown (and never entirely explained in the narration or otherwise) whether he is using it to counter-balance side-effects of overusing the ARI, or for some other purpose. Additionally, the true source of the symptoms (nosebleeds, paleness of complexion, internal pain, dizziness, bloodshot eyes, tremors, ect.) Norman experiences are left rather ambiguous. Whether these symptoms are caused by the ARI or triptocaine, speculation is left up to individuals. Throughout the game, the player has the choice of whether to be complicit in Norman's addiction or steer him away from it in various circumstances as he tries to solve the case of the Origami Killer. However, twice in the game Jayden will take Triptocaine without the player's decision.
Madison Paige:
Madison is a young journalist living alone in the city. Suffering from crippling insomnia and nightmares, she often finds herself checking into local motels for the night-- the only place she can relax and sleep in.
It's stated during the game that she was born on May 3rd 1984, making her 27 years old during the events of the game which is set in October 2011. She does explain to Ethan, however, that she grew up with several brothers and would always be the one to tend to their injuries whenever they got into trouble. She also states she has had insomnia since she was a little girl. If Madison goes to the warehouse alone in "The Old Warehouse" chapter, she may tell the Origami Killer (who she knew at the time to have had a troubled past with their parents) that there is nothing harder than not being loved by one's parents, suggesting she may have had a bad relationship with her father or mother.
The Origami Killer:
Prior to Shaun's abduction, eight criminal cases are suspected to have been committed by the Origami Killer between the years 2009 and 2011. All victims were young boys between 9-13 years of age, each killed in the same fashion: by being drowned in rainwater.
Each body is found on some type of wasteland, always adjacent to train tracks, between 3-5 days after they are abducted, six hours post-mortem, showing that the person who orchestrated these events did not kill his victims right after abduction. Instead, the killer waits until a set of certain criteria has been filled. Every victim was kidnapped within a public place at the time of abduction and with little or no defensive wounds on their body, implying that the victims knew or trusted the person that took them.
Like many serial killers, the Origami Killer has a certain trademark which he leaves upon his victims. All victims were found with an origami figure in the right hand, the origin of the killer's title, and an orchid on his chest. The victims also have their faces completely covered in mud, which FBI profiler, Norman Jayden suspects is evident that the killer himself has no personal hostility towards the victims. He also interprets the orchid and origami figure to be gifts.
Game-play:
So... I've been playing this game for like a week nonstop trying to get all the endings possible from the game, now i was lucky to get the super nice ending on the first play through so it made up for the 12 hours of pain, heartbreak and sadness, most people would have stopped there but not me.... I seem to like the emotional pain that comes from psychological thrillers, I must get that from my mum, well here i am so far, I've been playing this game as the Playstation Move edition, with it's normal controller interface so you have to do the movements with the sticks which is actually a really interesting idea and I've been enjoying it, you have to move the sticks in the corresponding directions to do things like pick up cups or view case files, it's quite engaging rather then having constant button pressing, I'd suggest the Move version to people who enjoy the idea of deeper gameplay.
Now the graphics are amazing and the rain really helps with building the atmosphere, after a short time you forget that it's a game, you feel for the characters and the story-line, which is rich and very well written thanks to David Cage, who is an actual genius, he creates this living, breathing world that teems with tiny details that can help to make the game a success or a failure, some games forget that sometimes, they pass over small details for climatic endings, not Heavy Rain... the team behind the game should just take a few minutes... that's right guys, just take some time to bask in the glory of your game!
Out of all the games that i have ever played, Heavy Rain takes the crown on everything from story-line to soundtrack, I would recommend this to anyone who wants to see what gaming is all about! sometimes it's not about nonstop action or witty one liners, Heavy Rain plays more like an interactive Noir film, and that's what gaming should be, an amazingly in-depth experience, with compelling characters and a story-line that hits you right in the feels...
I hope you have enjoyed the review guys! I will be reviewing more in-depth via game-play videos over on the YouTube page when i have a new computer, as always thank you for reading guys and i'll see you next time!
Alex xx
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