Heavy Rain Reviews & Impressions

[Zeonik Freak]

Wait, is this just for the PAL PS network or can it work here. I got my password/redeem code, but where do i put it in from there?

Edit: So i gotta freaking wait till i get an email reply?

[MrHealthy]

Wait, is this just for the PAL PS network or can it work here. I got my password/redeem code, but where do i put it in from there?

Edit: So i gotta freaking wait till i get an email reply?

I needed to us my Pal PSN account to download it. Neither my Canadian or US accounts would let me.
Didn't have to wait for any emails.

[Dakinggamer87]

I redeemed code on my US account and it worked fine!!

[Ack]

So...worth playing based on the demo? What are the verdicts guys?

[Niode]

The demo takes 10 minutes to complete, if that. It's not really anything to go on. The graphics aren't as revolutionary as they were made out to be. Think how much of a step forward Shenmue was, but it wasn't the 'project berkley' Sega made it out to be. It's got good graphics but they're not totally realistic. It still has that uncanny valley feel to it.

The way conversation arcs are used is nice, but the interface is tedious. The options spin around your characters head, and are often obscured by it. Making text selection slower than it needs to be. The QTEs work well and are responsive and the interface works well for this, but I do long for Shenmue's actual combat system. This could be considered interactive movie at best rather than real action scenes. Shame.

The forensic scenes are handled well, but again. The interface muddles things quite a bit. You can't just select options, they're obscured by this interface of looking with the left stick and performing a specific gesture on the right stick. Think Zack & Wiki but nowhere near as well done. In fact, the most parallel I drew from the control system was to Skate, oddly enough. Where you make gestures on your right stick to do flip tricks, an interesting abstraction for a skating simulation, but completely tedious in this context, I kept putting my bloody glasses away all the time because I wanted to move the camera or do some abstracted action to interact with something. I guess it moves the game away from 'press x to continue' of an interactive movie, but it is merely a diversion from the fact that it is very linear.

I'm puzzled by this game so far. The story intrigues me very much, it comes across as the type of thriller movie schtick that I love, reminds me of Seven or Silence of the Lambs, that kind of thing. However, the game makes such an effort to pull you into it's world and then blam jerks you right out of the immersion thanks to the utterly bizarre gesture system.

I think I'll wait for reviews on this one before I buy it. Disappointing so far.

[MrHealthy]

I think I'll wait for reviews on this one before I buy it. Disappointing so far.

Its got a 89 average on metacritic, with its two lowest scores being 70's.

http://www.metacritic.com/games/platforms/ps3/heavyrain?q=heavy%20rain

[Pulsar_t]

http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/heavy-rain-review

Heavy Rain also won't be for everyone. Not everyone will accept the way it sometimes offers prompts even when they may have no impact on actual events. For all the game's flexibility and manifold outcomes, there are also times that you may wish to do something that is not available, as the illusion of free will and suspension of disbelief strains at the writer's narrative leash. Perhaps most damning, for some, will be the realisation as the game reaches its narrative apex that the bonds of empathy it has fought to establish were somewhat diversionary.

It would be a shame to look past Heavy Rain for these reasons, however, because while it is an intricate game that deserves to be debated for a long time, it is also a simple one to enjoy: a thrilling mystery, cleverly composed, and unlike anything else you will play this year. It may also be the only game you play this year where pulling the trigger makes you really feel something, and I can think of no greater compliment.

9/10

EG makes a compelling case but I'm still skeptical. Not that it matters because I don't have a PS3

Of course if this sells well then developers will have fewer excuses to shy away from taking calculated risks when designing their games.

[girlracer]

I know i am getting it no matter what

[latenitevacancy]

i think it looks pretty neat. i honestly knew nothing about this game at all until recently, but i think i'll at least rent it.

[Niode]

Merged the two Heavy Rain threads. There is no need to have 2 separate threads for the same game.