Heavy Rain

Having just finished my first foray into the world of Heavy Rain I am pleased to say that my anticipation has not been in vain. While there are occasional hiccups in the graphics and audio it is not enough to detract from the engaging and albeit somewhat personal attachment you gain with the characters and story.
 
Story:
 
The story of Heavy Rain (in a spoiler free nut shell) revolves around an American city in which over the past two years there has been a series of kidnappings and drowning of young boys. The calling card of the killer is an origami in the victim's hand thus earning the killer the moniker of The Origami Killer.

The primary characters in the game are Ethan Mars, an architect and father whose son is the most recent boy to be taken by the Origami Killer, Madison Paige, an intrepid journalist who stumbles into the trail of the killer, Scott Shelby, a former policeman turned private investigator tasked with finding the killer by the victim's families, and Norman Jayden, an FBI agent dispatched to the city's local police department to clean up the mess and solve the case before it gets any worse.  

While the motives for each character are different there are many paths in which the story arcs diverge and twist together. Seeing how they all interact with each other and watching as the story unfolds is part of what makes the game so engaging. Having only played through once I have only seen one story path first hand, but talking with others there can be a significant amount of variance in the way things may unfold as your choices affect the world around you.

Gameplay:

The gameplay in heavy rain is relatively simple, as you explore each scene you guide the protagonists through the area in search of information, clues, and various other objectives. All interactions are done in one of three ways, button prompts using the face buttons or triggers, motions with the right stick and movement using the SIXAXIS functions of the remote. These can be complex actions that mix together or just a simple button to hear what the characters are thinking, simple in concept yet fast timing sequences will demand some precision.

Control:

The only persistent issue with the control of the game can be the movement. Many have likened it to that of steering a car and that is pretty accurate. You hold R2 on the remote to walk and use the left stick to turn the main characters head (directly influencing the direction they walk). The only problem with this is that it leads to several instances of getting caught on furniture, difficulty in turning around and sometimes just difficulty facing the direction you want to, especially in confined spaces.

The SIXAXIS sensing can be a little spotty, especially in the midst of an intense battle. There are a few moments where a quick jab of the controller left or right would not read even though I felt as though I was doing the motion no different than I had several times before. This can really become an issue during fights or intense sequences where timing is crucial to your survival.

Graphics:

The graphics in this game have been both lauded and highly criticized. Rightfully so if you ask me. Still frames, character profiles, and backgrounds look amazing. In motion though things can sometimes fall a bit flat. Some characters feel like the mouth doesn't move right or the eyes are completely dead while others are sights to behold. There are scenes where you can see the pain and torment in Ethan's face even though he isn't speaking and others where he just looks kind of dopey.

I did also encounter a few areas of texture pop-ins, tearing, clipping, etc. While nothing new to games in a setting touted for realism you can't help but notice it even more. So yes, the graphics are gorgeous and a step in the right direction, but also serve to prove just how far there is to go yet in bridging the .

Sound:

Audio is very hit or miss from a voice acting standpoint. The four main protagonists do a very good job (yes, even once you get pat the accent) in conveying the emotions and thoughts of the characters. The supporting cast can fall thin in many spots though. Lots of French and English accents sliding in as well as some of the poorest voices for children I've ever heard. Aside from some shoddy support roles the music is great and the sound effects are well done and draw you in to the narrative even more.

Intangibles:

I only add this section because it still feels like there was a lot of testing and problems yet to be done/fixed on this game. Some issues I encountered are as follows:

-In the wasteland crime scene (same as one in the demo) I walked past my car and the game went to black and froze. This also happened once when I went to go back to the main menu. I ended up shutting down my system and restarting as a result.

-There was one scene where there was no prompts to be done, no thoughts to think, and I couldn't leave the room. I reloaded my save and a supporting character said a line that she omitted before that kept the game moving.

-During an all dialog scene (no interactions) it loaded up, but with the audio a second behind the visual. This one instance, while only for this one scene (a short one at that), was more jarring and bothersome than any other issue I encountered.

While those are only a few instances out of the entire game, they go a long way towards pulling you out of the experience. Hopefully some will be patched and I truly hope they aren't prominent in other story arcs of the game either.

Overall:

Despite some of the technical issues and bugs that crept their way into my play of Heavy Rain I still found myself on the edge of my seat and actually caring about the fate of the characters. I was drawn in enough to finish the game in two sittings (figure 8-10 hours) and I can't wait to see more. While Heavy Rain is a testament to story telling in video games there are still several little things keeping it from becoming the interactive movie experience we all wish it to be.

Everything taken into consideration it is a game that breaks ground in many ways in visuals and story innovations that is as engaging and well paced as any movie or book I've seen/read in a good while. If you can deal with a few hiccups along the ride, Heavy Rain is well worth diving into.