The game's story centers around the hunt for the Origami Killer, a serial killer who kidnaps young boys. Several days after their abduction, the child's body is found in a remote location, seemingly having been drowned even though there are no sources of water nearby. Each child's body is found clutching an origami animal in one hand, and an orchid placed on his chest, hence the killer's nickname.
Heavy Rain features four main characters through whose eyes the game is experienced. All four characters are unique in their motives and aims surrounding the Origami Killer case.
Ethan Mars is arguably the main character in the game, and is also who the player will spend the majority of the game playing as. Ethan is a very troubled man who suffers from mental illness brought on by the death of his youngest son. Estranged from his wife, Ethan struggles to regain some semblance of a normal life as well as the trust and love of his remaining son, Shaun. As you may have guessed, Shaun goes missing and Ethan receives a letter from the Origami Killer explaining that he must go through five trials if he wishes to save his son. Ethan must overcome his fears and complete these trials if he wishes to see his son alive again.
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| Apparently he has a phobia of shaving... |
Madison Paige is an aspiring photojournalist who has her own problems. Madison suffers from terrible insomnia and vivid nightmares. As a photographer for the media, Madison seeks to cover the Origami Killer story and eventually ends up running her own personal investigation into the killer's whereabouts. It is in pursuit of this story that she crosses paths with Ethan. The two become good friends and Madison helps Ethan with some of his trials when she is not following her own leads.
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| I'd have nightmares too if I had to see news anchor hair and makeup every day. |
Scott Shelby is an ex-police officer turned private detective. As is the trend, Scott is investigating the Origami Killer for the mother of a murdered child. Scott is a man from a different era. A time when nothing could outdo good old fashioned, boots on the ground, investigative work. His outdated methods and questionable behaviors leave him as a relic of the past seeking to prove that he is still capable of getting the job done. It doesn't help things that Scott suffers from serious asthma and is no longer physically capable of doing much of the more strenuous activities investigations sometimes require.
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| Ex-cop in a doughnut shop, imagine that! |
The final main character is Norman Jayden, the complete antithesis of Scott Shelby. Jayden is a FBI agent sent to assist in the apprehension of the Origami Killer. Unlike Shelby, Jayden embraces technology in his search for the killer. In fact, Norman makes common use of ARI (Added Reality Interface), a type of virtual reality computer with an eyeglass and glove interface. ARI allows Norman to organize case files and to catalog evidence digitally. The computer's interface also features the ability to highlight clues which may be easily missed by the naked eye. Jayden, much like the others in Heavy Rain, is haunted by his own demons. Norman's specific demon is an addiction to Triptocaine, a blue drug which causes horrible withdrawal symptoms if not kept in the system.
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| Clearly Google teamed up with Michael Jackson to invent the ARI. |
Heavy Rain's gameplay is different, to say the least. Characters can be moved throughout their environment normally, yet every other action is completed using context-sensitive button presses. Want to pick up an item? Press a button. Want to look at something and turn it? Press another button while you move the control stick. Objects in the environment will present a prompt upon moving into proximity of them explaining what sort of action is required from the player in order to manipulate the object. While this control scheme may seem simple, and it is, it is also genius in that you can focus more on the game's story rather than trying to get controls down. Don't get me wrong, there are some tricky button presses which need to be executed throughout the game. Fights and other action sequences are played by using the same context-sensitive button presses in quick-time events. Luckily these events are pretty fluid in that if you miss a button or two the situation changes slightly and leads into another sequence instead of stopping the action and making you start all over. For example, if you are at the advantage in a fight and miss a button, the enemy might regain advantage over you and you would now go on the defensive. The controls are taught to the player early in the game by doing somewhat innocuous tasks. One instance that cracked me up was the infamous orange juice drinking quick-time event. While they may be humorous, these events effectively teach the controls to players in a non-life threatening situation so that when things get serious players aren't struggling with buttons.
Being an interactive drama, the story is incredibly important in Heavy Rain. After all, it would be a pretty bad game if walking around pushing buttons to drink juice were all there was to look forward to. The story of the Origami Killer is unsurprisingly dark, yet interesting. Each character having his or her own story and conflicts adds even more layers of intrigue to the game. There are a number of twists throughout the game, some of which are predictable, others not so much. The game's story kept my attention throughout the time I was playing and is memorable long after the credits roll, even if the game does only last for around 8 hours. Multiple endings depending on player choices give a good reason for players to come back and experience the story another time.
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| "ANSWER MY QUESTION! Can you, or can you not fold paper into cute little animals!?!?" |
As Heavy Rain is mainly a game that you watch, it was important for the visuals to be interesting and attractive. Quantic Dream did an amazing job with the game's graphics. People and environments look extremely good even three years after the game's release. What really blew me away was the motion capture and facial animation featured in the game. Obviously in a highly emotional movie you don't want your actors to be stone-faced androids. Heavy Rain manages to convey powerful emotions through its character's facial animation, an idea that I wish other companies would latch onto. Below is a video showing off the game's animation. While it is starting to show its age, it is still impressive.
I highly enjoyed playing through Heavy Rain. The game was an experience unlike any other I have had before. Admittedly, this game is not for everyone. A lot of people complain about other game series in that they are like simply watching a movie rather than playing a game. Heavy Rain is much like playing a movie. The story is extremely well written and makes you care about each character in his or her own way. It is difficult to write a review of a game which requires so many details to be kept secret, but hopefully this has made you want to experience the game for yourself!
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