 |
Hot Stories
 |
 |
 |
 |
Heavy Rain Review
Troy Benedict, Senior Writer
March 2, 2010
I feel like I'm doing a disservice to Heavy Rain when I call it a "video game," as if I'm lumping the genius-minded individual in with a group of dull-witted primitives simply based a general association. Heavy Rain is so much more than the mainstream concept of a video game, but at the same time, labeling it something like an "experience" sounds like self-serving marketing-speak. Heavy Rain is an awesome experience, but it also is, indeed, a video game.
Let me take a quick moment, here at the beginning, to inform you, the reader, that this review will be spoiler free. There are so many awesome and brilliantly amazing things that I experienced in Heavy Rain. Things that have never been done so well in previous games! I want to tell about ALL of them, but in doing so might reveal game-ruining spoilers, and because I worked so hard to purposely avoid any discussion of Heavy Rain to avoid ruining the experience, I want pass along that same level of respect, to assure you that I will not reveal any spoilers throughout this review. Are we good? Let's continue!
Heavy Rain is much more than a video game because it tackles extremely dark and grim topics like child abduction and murder, loss of loved ones, divorce, depression, suicide, and drug addiction; and handles them in a superbly unique and mature manner. Other games have attempted to tackle dark topics like these in their storyline, like Max Payne, but the execution of the actual gameplay is your traditional video game—you play the protagonist, who has superhuman-like abilities, can heal wounds with a box of bandages or pills, and you battle wave after endless wave of evil henchmen until you reach the goal of the level. Rinse and repeat for several levels until you win. That's not to knock Max Payne, as the games in the series have been quite fun and enjoyable. I'm merely using Max Payne as a comparison between a dark, but fun video game that is a bit over-the-top in it's execution, and an experience like Heavy Rain that is dark and with a much more serious and deliberate execution.
In Heavy Rain your actions have consequences. Almost everything you do in the game will lead to a different consequence, and in most cases there is no do-over. You're invested in these characters and the things you can do, or don't do, can dramatically change how the game ends. Think of it as a highly evolved choose-your-own-adventure story. Some decisions are blatant, while others are so subtle, that you might not even realize that you're choosing a path until the characters and environment around you react accordingly.
Each character has their own personality, and their own problems. Heavy Rain's developer, Quantic Dream, did a good job of making you feel close and connected to each individual. Like a good movie, I felt an emotional connection towards each character I encountered in the game, whether it was compassion, contempt, disgust, or pity.
