1. Heavy Rain (PS3)
The term “Interactive Movie” has been used with videogames since the medium’s evolution
from pixels to polygons, often to the point of criticism for overly ambitious titles focusing on
cutscenes and pre-rendered clips rather than substantial gameplay. Occasionally the term
becomes an accurate representation of the game’s underlying goal, such as Don Bluth’s classic
quarter-muncher Dragon’s Lair, and is even used today by developers as a positive buzzword;
such is the case with Quantic Dream, the French team who proudly advertised the phrase with
their multiplatform release Indigo Prophecy (aka Fahrenheit), an interactive drama that put
players right into the thick of a character-driven mystery thriller (and then quickly pulled them
away due to absurd plot twists and scenarios).
With the official 2006 debut of the Playstation 3, Quantic revealed their plans to take the
Interactive Movie moniker further with a video demonstration of their next project, Heavy Rain.
While the eerily life-like characters veered into Uncanny Valley territory, the stunning visuals
and animations were enough to garner interest for the finished product, which has now taken
shape as a PS3 exclusive. Featuring nearly thousands of motion-captured sequences and an
unprecedented level of detail, is Heavy Rain the first title to effectively bridge the gap between
game and film?

2. The game opens with players assuming control of Ethan Mars, one of the four principle
characters, as he literally wakes up to a new day. Using the on-screen analog and button
commands, Ethan indulges in a typical mundane morning, from a hot shower and a shave, to
getting dressed and drinking coffee. Once Ethan’s wife and two sons arrive home, the number of
interacting bits increases dramatically in a short timeframe, almost giving Heavy Rain the
illusion of a Sims-like game, or at least a tech demo for what Playstation Home should have
been.
The sunshine and smiles don’t last long, though; much like Pixar’s film Up, things quickly take a
downer turn, only in Heavy Rain’s case the sadness just keeps on piling along with the stormy
weather. Nearly every scene onward is a consistent downpour, which sets the mood for the real
tale. An unidentified murderer known as the Origami killer is shaking the city to its core with
seemingly random kidnappings that quickly lead to disposed bodies. Each chapter puts players in
the perspectives of Ethan and three other characters, including an asthmatic private eye, an FBI
agent with access to cutting edge technology and a deadly drug habit, and an insomniac
journalist who routinely checks into motels. Each character has a motivated reason to find the
Origiami Killer, and the decisions you make will determine their chances of success, as well as
their ultimate fates.

3. With such an interwoven story told through hours of cutscenes and dialog, the game seems at
first glance to be another negative take on the Interactive Movie cliché. The truth, however, is
that Heavy Rain offers players more control than they could ever imagine. Walking around the
soaked city streets and inspecting the indoor interiors are exclusively done with the right analog
stick via on-screen prompts. These indicated stick commands usually follow a specific action,
such as pushing upward to open cabinet doors or pick up objects, or a quarter-circle motion to
pull out the contents of a character’s pockets. More advanced motions make sufficient use of the
often ignored sixaxis controls of the PS3 controller, which include shaking the controller up and
down to towel off a soaked (and quite nude) character, or to pry open jammed windows and
doors. To give away all of the unique controller commands would be as much a disservice as
revealing the game’s story, but wary players need not worry about memorizing the dozens of
combinations, as the earliest chapters provide substantial training to prepare you for the crucial
life-or-death moments.
Ever the bane of laggard gamers, Heavy Rain is chock full of Quick Time Events that make up
the action sequences, ranging from violent struggles against armed thugs or carefully navigating
through the Origami Killer’s malicious traps. These QTE sequences offer the most danger for the
four characters, but are also more forgiving than most penalizing games (the recent Bayonetta
comes to mind); missing an onscreen command won’t always result in failure, but instead drags
on the encounter, usually through a different path or outcome. Much like an invisible life bar,
Heavy Rain offers a number of opportunities to turn the button-mashing tide around, and
showcases the countless number of sequences that can appear during these events. While it’s
impossible to get a Game Over, too many failed attempts will most likely result in a permanent

4. death for your character, along with a less-than-happy conclusion. This grim outcome coupled
with the length of these close encounters result in some of the tensest sequences experienced yet
on the PS3, and will most certainly force players to familiarize themselves with every single
button combination known to man.
The intensity of Heavy Rain’s action sequences are largely attributed to its intricately detailed
atmosphere and setting. Nearly every single cliché found in mystery thrillers make their way into
the game; the sympathetic prostitute, the law-bending lieutenant, the shadowy killer looming in a
female’s apartment, the dwindling list of possible suspects, the suicidal single mother are just
some of the familiar elements taken from the genre. The most notable inspiration of all is the
Saw franchise, which works as inspiration toward the Origami Killer’s disturbing games, and
really hits home the game’s tagline of “how far are you prepared to go to save someone you
love?” While the actual story is riff with noticeable plot holes that keep it from reaching
Hitchcock levels of reverence, the rampant twist and turns followed by the full player immersion
certainly does not fail to entertain.
The virtual link between player and protagonist is the strongest feature of Heavy Rain. Using the
sixaxis to control every aspect of their daily routines (including several stops to the nearest toilet,
which is bound to cater to fetishists) as well as keeping them alive (including a much needed
dose of inhalant, along with bandaging severe wounds) results in one of the strongest gaming
engagements since being able to name characters after yourself. But the character most likely to
be identified with is tortured parent Ethan Mars, who goes throw a whirlwind of physical and
emotional torment as the story progresses, harkening back to the Silent Hill games of
psychological characterization.

5. A strong production value doesn’t hurt, either, and Heavy Rain’s is truly phenomenal. Featuring
a full digital scan of the actor’s faces, along with thousands of motion captured movements and
animations, the character detail is truly amazing, almost reaching photorealism and rarely falling
into Uncanny Valley. The set pieces are also littered with lived-in details, many of which can be
interacted with, and much of it serving no purpose other than to experience the virtual world by
your own choosing, even if it is a darkly depressing world filled with constant rain (which also
serves to show off the wonderful water effects, as the virtual actors are literally soaked from top
to bottom). Accompanying the slick visuals is a thunderous, fully orchestral music score that can
easily be mistaken for a Hollywood thriller. If you own a home theater, consider yourself
fortunate, as Heavy Rain also features some of the most dynamic surround sound yet this console
generation. Unfortunately, while overall more competent than the average game, the voice acting
occasionally follows suit with the big budget production values, sounding notably monotone
during a character’s inner monologue (which appears as thought bubbles with the push of a
button). Fortunately, the actors come through during pivotal moments, although one emotionally-
charged scene in the Prologue chapter has already fallen into Flash-based parody due to an
underwhelming (and dully repetitive) vocal prompt.
Another distracting hurdle is the controls, specifically the movement. By mapping the R2 button
to walk, Quantic Dream was hoping to allow players to move up and down each area without
being encumbered by the dynamic camera angles. In theory this works, but all too often players
will find themselves moving the virtual actors to the opposite of the intended direction (and even
right into a wall) as a result of the hokey analog steering. An implementation of oldschool “tank”
controls found in the classic Resident Evil games would have better sufficed, and while it doesn’t

6. take much to adjust to Heavy Rain’s control scheme, it becomes especially annoying during
time-based situations that require speedy movement (the lack of a run button doesn’t help things,
either). There are also the occasional audio and graphical glitches that can occur, although a
recent patch has (allegedly) sorted out most issues.
These minor shortcomings do little to detract the overall game’s polish, however. The production
values are second to none, and the inspired amount of interactive sequences is brilliant. The
storyline is also quite lengthy, and offers repeat playthroughs to experience the different
outcomes and endings. In the end however, it’s up to the players to decide how much they want
to invest to the overall stories. Several situations, such as finding your son’s missing teddy bear
or resisting a drug’s addictive lure, to split second decisions that can either save or sever a
secondary character’s life, bear no real impact on the overall story, but also reward aesthetic
lovers with its attention to detail. Parents, especially, may find themselves coddling their children
after Heavy Rain’s emotional rollercoaster. Established gamers may scoff at the game’s
ambitious presentation, but it cannot be denied that every Playstation 3 owner must experience
this Interactive Movie with all haste.
Score:96%