Quantic Dream have worked wonders to convey emotion that can be felt in the game; there's a scene that is near the start of the game where Ethan is in an overcast and miserable park with his son whose unhappy, after failing to get him to play with his friends he offers to play with him instead, taking him first onto the see-saw, then the merry-go-round and finally the swings; during this time you interact with him by making him bounce on the see-saw, or trying to make him dizzy on the merry-go-round, as you play with him he laughs and he smiles, these laughs cut through the dreary atmosphere like a knife through butter and you get a genuine swell of emotion as you make your son happy, rarely do you connect with an in game character so well as you do those portrayed in this game. It's fair to say that because of this, by the end of the game you'll have done something you feel uncomfortable with one way or another, as mentioned previously there are no second chances in this game, not in one play through at least, what's done stays done and there isn't a chance to go back and change your mind, be it through guilt or regret, people can and do die in the game; choices have to be made one way or another and you'll have to live with your actions throughout the experience.
Graphically Heavy Rain ranges from well above average to truly outstanding; the above average parts are generally found in the player controlled parts, one thing that does become apparent and questionable is the invisible walls that surround some objects. You can be freely walking round a pretty interactive environment and all of a sudden you're character will be turned around, or he/she won't be able to step up a simple stair or even a minor obstacle like a grid in the floor. Some of the main characters also don't seem to have as much detail on them as the minor characters and in some scenes this really does stand out. That being said, each chapter of the game is interspersed with a full screen representation of the dominant character for the section you are about to play and these are truly phenomenal to take in, so life like in there representation that you can liken them to some of the full fledged CGI movies like Final Fantasy. This high standard is also noticeable in the game as you watch the characters experience different emotions, the faces on the characters are very high in detail, the hair on the characters heads for instance is all subject to physics such as the wind or other movements. The pain that shows on Ethan's face is also apparent in many scenes as is the determination to save his son in others. Where the two mix is when the graphics on the game turn to the truly outstanding, you almost sometimes forget you are in control of the action that is being played out in front of you until an icon prompts you to do something. The background action of the game can also be disappointing at times, like with the invisible walls that get thrown up, the incidental characters in the game can seem somewhat oblivious to your presence in the world, walk into someone and it doesn't register with them, they just carry on without so much as a glance in your direction; there is a scene in a nightclub where this is particularly true, Madison Paige walks through the clubs revellers as they are dancing, as the place is having a busy night there are plenty of people dancing around the place but not one of them seems to mind Madison bumping into them as she makes her way round. While one shouldn't expect a different character animation for every single action that could happen it would have added to the overall experience to have the people in the background acknowledge the main characters in some way, normally this wouldn't have been worth a mention but it's the high standards that Heavy Rain has set for itself that point this out.
The Music is equally as impressive as some of the graphics, the score helps convey the movie like qualities of the game to the next degree, there's also incidental music that fits in well with the game and each character gets a theme that echoes in the background as you play through their scenes. The voice acting is a bit hit and miss in places however, as with the graphics for the characters it can vary to some degree. Mostly the main characters are to a very high standard, Norman Jayden seems to be the worst with some very unnatural moments throughout the game, his vocal styling's can change considerably throughout the story and it's a shame considering he's one of the main characters. Some of the dialogue can also seem quite out of place and at a different pace to the scene being played out, occasionally you'll be required to have your character shout out the name of another but it's rare that this denotes the onscreen action, your character should be wild with panic but the monotone voice they project doesn't really reflect this.
Heavy Rain is reasonably well presented, even during the relatively short installation time you can entertain yourself by making an origami crane as is the games signature piece, you even get a piece of paper included within the case with which to do it. From the main menu you have option of replaying all the scenes you've already completed to see if you can make the story go a different way, you'll also have the choice to save your game from this point or not so if you did make a mistake and you really wanted to go back in time to correct your error then you can. It's also worth noting that you can go back and use these chapters to collect any Trophies you think you might have missed out on as well, so if you're a collector of these then you won't need to remember which scenes you need to do differently on a subsequent play through. Heavy Rain's story is tightly knit together, a feat admirable in itself given that there are scenes you just won't play through if you play the game a certain way so a second or even third game will offer you something different. The reveal of the Origami Killer is handled very well and will leave players guessing right up until their face is revealed, you might be convinced you know who it is early in the game but there are still enough seeds of doubt and red herrings sown into the plot that you'll never be completely sure right up until that moment.
All in all Heavy Rain is a game everyone should try, there is something in the game for most people and most people will get something out of it, it's a gaming experience that you won't find in any other title in the current generation of consoles and it's probably going to be some time before you come across a title like it again, Heavy Rain was four years in the making and it certainly shows. That said it's understandable that people might not want to play through the game more than once, especially when they know who the Origami Killer is, but then there is a ton of replay value considering all the different ways the story can go.
There is of course a demo on the PlayStation Store for you to download and play though which will give you more of an idea what to expect from the game if you're not sure on an Interactive Drama experience, but even if you're not convinced you want to buy the game then you should at least rent it and see what it has to offer, it is a showcase for the PlayStation 3 and will no doubt stand the test of time as one of the highlights to the platforms generation.
