I'm usually never on here, but I have to break my silence to let people know how much I hate this game.
I hate this game. I hate the idea that anyone liked this game. I hate hate hate HATED this fucking game.
I hate the so called gameplay and it's assumption that moving a stick or just pressing a button at the right time constitutes a game.
I hate the voice actors and their inability to pronounce the word "Origami"
I hate the plot and the massive FUCK plot hole that it leaves wide open that a third grader would be able to spot.
I hate the controls and the idea that moving with R2 was considered to be a good idea.
I hate Heavy Rain.
I banked on the hopes that Heavy Rain would be a good game. Most critics hold Heavy Rain to a high standard with most of the scores being a 8.5 to 9.5. That is good considering most games I play that is scored that high I consider to be good games. They missed the mark on this one in the worst kind of way.
Heavy Rain stars four main characters that you play. Ethan, Madison, Scott and Jayden all of which are stuck together in this plot to find the Origami killer before he lets Ethan's young son Shaun die. Now, let's get this out of the way. The plot is tired, but the way they tell it is pretty good. Up until the point where you actually find out who the Origami killer is in which case the plot doesn't hold itself up anymore and you begin to hate every aspect of it.
Now, let's tackle the gameplay first. This is not a video game. Fuck you, this is not a video game. This is an interactive movie in every way. Here is why it is NOT a video game. Heavy Rain has you move your character around, but that is pretty much all the control you have over their actions. Anything else is you just reacting to something that is happening to your character and the plot develops around that. This would be, I guess, okay if the plot didn't suck. Yet, this still leaves out the fact that this game is very linear and only requires you to react when you want to or if required. In theory you could not touch the controller at all (except when you need to walk) and the game will play out.
That is fucking retarded. This is why it is an interactive movie and not a video game. In which case movies usually cost $25 and I want a $35 refund.
Someone tried to tell me this was an Adventure game, but NO it is not. An adventure game can have the same elements as Heavy Rain, but you are usually more involved. You have an item list or you solve puzzles or both. In Heavy Rain you do no such thing. You only do what the game allows you to do which seriously limits the gameplay elements and my patience.
Also, whoever thought moving around using R2 needs to be shot between the eyes. That is NOT very fun. They could have just replaced all the motions required for action with the left analog stick rather than have me use both. The idea that I need to use to the left one to move my head is just stupid and unnecessary. It requires more work and leaves for clunky gameplay.
To finish with this point; any emotion of excitement I had with this game wasn't a result of actual gameplay, but rather a emotion I was feeling as if I was watching a movie. There is one scene in the game where Scott comes gunning for an old billionaire. You, of course, press the right buttons to trigger your gun, but that wasn't really gameplay. It felt more like I was just interacting with a movie. It was cool, but not a game.
Now, the plot.
It's stupid.
SPOILER ALERT!
Scott is the Origami killer. The funny thing is that there is not hint that he may be the killer. Instead we are left with a gaping plot hole to explain WHY he is the killer.
First, why would Scott want to investigate himself? He had every reason to cover up his crimes in the end and yet he went through all the trouble to bring someone along with him.
Second, you have control of Scott most of the time when you play him. There is an instance where Scott kills a friend of his to cover his tracks. However, you have complete control of Scott when the murder happens and do not see him do it. However, later on it just decides to let you know that Scott DID kill him.
HOW THE FUCK AND WHEN THE FUCK DID THIS HAPPEN!?
Lastly, in terms of narrative this really sucks. Because we are all in a first person narrative. We are in the minds of the characters and we know everything they are thinking. Therefore if we know everything Scott is thinking then we should figure out that he is the FUCKING KILLER! In fact you press L2 to go into their mind to figure out what they are thinking. Oh wait a second, where is the thought where he goes, "I'm the killer by the way. You just wasted $60. Go jerk off now and cry bitches cause these French developers are making bank off of your hard earned money."
Also, one of your characters Ethan, has blackouts and it is revealed that he may possibly be the Origami killer. However, they don't bother to explain where he is during those blackouts and the possibility fizzles out for a new one involving Scott. Yet, they still don't bother to explain where Ethan is during the blackouts and why he is holding an Origami figure. This is a major plot element and they essentially throw it away.
Also, who the fuck picked these voice actors? The child actors suck...I mean horribly. It seems like someone told them, "Read this before you can watch TV." The adult actors aren't any better. For example, Jayden, is a British man really trying hard to sound American. So when he talks it sounds distant and almost Bostonian, but not quite American. Also, everyone pronounces Origami as Oryigaymi and I'm pretty sure if this game took place in Boston that everyone would pronounce words weird. This, however, seems to be the only word that people can't seem to pronounce right and it's kind of annoying.
The ending kind of fizzles out and becomes something boring and uneventful. After all that work and going through the 10 hour game you get an ending that isn't even worth your time.
So in the end...I wouldn't waste my time with this game.
I hated this so much that I'm sending it to a friend who lives in New Hampshire and overnight package with the game. Just so he can know how bad this game is.
I also just don't want it in my house anymore. I hate it that much.