Heavy Rain might have been written off as a movie masquerading as a game but don't let that fool you; the emotional shock value and toll the game leaves on the player is proof of a connection that no movie can provide. Heavy Rain is a series of overlapping stories about four individual characters, all investigating a case involving a serial killer known as the 'Origami Killer'. You'll play as the various characters throughout the game but the most interesting storyline features Ethan Mars and his struggles to rescue his son from the Origami Killer. He undergoes a series of trials that see him kill a man, drink poison and cut off part of his finger; all to display the lengths he is willing to go to to save his son. It's brutal viewing at times but the deep, emotional attachment to Ethan and his struggles is something that few games are able to replicate. With a multitude of branching paths, the end chapter changes and alters according to decisions made by the player throughout. In fact, there are endings where the Origami Killer is never caught and walks off into the night. This is another example of just how engaging the game is; the consequences of your characters' actions are fleshed out and shown on screen, leaving you to either regret or praise your earlier decision making. With a variety of endings, Heavy Rain must have great replay value, right? Actually, the opposite is true. When a story branches and changes so much, in accordance with your own choices, we create a clear, concise timeline of events within our own mind. To go back and rewrite that might alter our perception of various events or create an ending that we feel is less satisfactory. Essentially, once you've played through Heavy Rain once, you'll have created your own story and series of events; why ruin that by going back and rewriting large chunks of it?
I have an addiction to achievements, a craving for new bands and a dream to become Captain America. I once finished second in a Mario Kart 7 tournament so I'm kind of a big deal.
