Sony Japan Studio: 28 Best Games They Helped Create
7. Rain
Co-developed by: Accquarie
Released the same year as Japan Studio's Puppeteer, and similar in its approach by taking a tried-and-true genre formula (in this case, the puzzle/adventure game) and giving it a baffling unique spin.
The pitch is one-of-a-kind, having you play an ill boy, who escapes his confined room and wonders the rain-slicked streets of Paris as an invisible entity. He ends up romantically chasing a ghostly girl, and avoiding creepy creatures.
The stealth puzzle aspect is the main gameplay drive, with the rain pattern the only reveal of your onscreen presence. It is a flavorful spin on the familiar gameplay, even if it leads to frustration at times.
The story itself is a hauntingly and beautiful puzzle game, slow-burn and emotional in its minimalism, even if it lacks the emotional pay-off it naturally builds too.
Like most of Japan Studio's titles of this period, it disappeared without a trace...yet in retrospect, holds a wildly original design and daring sensibility if your willing to try something different.