Heavy Rain

Sorry to hear that Nik.

So this is something I've only talked about in brief once or twice in the past but I'm legally blind. I can only see out of one eye and even then, not that well. As such I am kinda worried about the QT Es in this game. Are they really hard? There is an "Easy" difficulty i saw in the Demo but I'm just wondering how the more action oriented QTES work?

Like do they pop up in weird places or the same place? Think the Leon/Krauser knife fight in RE 4 - the button prompts always appeared in the same spot on the screen so as long as I kept my eye on that part of the screen, I was okay. But if in HR they appear in the upper left of the screen and then the bottom right and then the middle, it might prove to be a problem... And since I doubt HR has a Checkpoint System like RE 4, it'll be even more irritating.

edited 2nd Jun '14 9:54:05 PM by Nikkolas

From what I recall they appear all over the place, mostly depending on something like where the characters hands are? It's been ages since I've seen gameplay.

They tend to appear in a place that indicates what sort of action is being taken; generally on some part of the character's body. This often includes moving with the the animations of the character's model. I'd say definitely play on Easy; it reduces the complexity of the different button presses and might make it easier to read. (e.g. I don't think you have to worry about "is that a straight arrow or a curving arrow?"

A few dialogue decisions are also intentionally difficult to read, to simulate characters' confusion.

Gotcha, thanks for the advice. I ordered my copy of HR Director's Cut and a new PS 3 controller and both should be here by Friday or Saturday.

Really excited for this. Now it's just more of the waiting game I guess. And if I enjoy this enough, I'll probably check out Beyond next month. Maybe even Indigo Prophecy too sometime but...uh...that game apparently takes a nosedive in quality to such an extent that even fans of Cage's gave up. Although, even the haters say the beginnign was REALLY good.

Indigo Prophecy takes a sudden left turn into batshit pants-on-head crazytown. The only real debate people have is, "At which point did it stop making sense?"

Beyond Two Souls has less flexibility in the direction of its story than Heavy Rain, but greater flexibility in how individual chapters of that story play out. You're on stricter rails than Heavy Rain, but the individual cars of the train are little sandboxes.

edited 3rd Jun '14 3:04:27 PM by TobiasDrake

Also, while Heavy Rain is very plot driven at times, Beyond is very very character driven. It also doesn't have a direct arc from day one, but some chapters make up different arcs through the protagonist, Jodie's life. I also liked how it took its character to a LOT of various contexts and showed us her character from there which, I feel, rounded her out pretty well.

It started crazy in the first place. More of the sanity just went away as Lucas was further exposed to the prophecy-related craziness.

IP started out fine. It worked pretty well. Then it went nuts, but... heh heh.

Like... when it got to the point when he kung-fu-KO'd some police officers and then jumped onto their helicopter from traffic and onto a subway train to escape... yeah, that was absolute crazy.

But even before that, with the dimensional bugs...

edited 3rd Jun '14 4:07:16 PM by nomuru2d

Like I said, the only debate people have is WHERE it went nuts.

For me, the point where the plot abandoned all logic in favor of lunacy was when you're introduced to the time traveling robot from the future, which comes right out of left field.

... Wait... that thing was from the future!?

"A few dialogue decisions are also intentionally difficult to read, to simulate characters' confusion."

Like trying to recall what time you took Shaun to the park or what color clothes he was wearing? I mean, fuck, I can't remember anyway but the dialogue choices flying around didn't help.... Also I'm not even sure if I could have known what time we went to the park.

So, better late than never I guess. My ADD struck me pretty hard and by the time HR arrived here I was onto something else. But I'm back again and I'm finally giving it a shot.

I'm not sure what is a good stopping point...right now I'm just after Ethan reported Shaun missing. Shelby is interrogating some store owner but I think I wanna stop for the moment to post my thoughts thus far.

If the fight scene with the asshole trying to rape Lauren is any indication, I'm gonna do very badly at those. I reloaded about three or four times. It looks like the prompts never change, at least on the easy setting, so I guess for future, more important fights I can just memorize what I gotta go. I got a Trophy for that too. Did I not have to help her? What kind of monster would have walked away when you know quite clearly what was gonna happen? Or maybe the trophy is for if I had fucked it up so badly that I got KO'ed and she got raped anyway.

But I'm getting kinda ahead of myself. That was a very effective beginning. A bit cliche perhaps but the transition from the ideal prologue to seeing Ethan as he is now, with Shaun as he is now, was quite well done. It made me feel very sorry for that man.

The stuff with Jayden is way different but I like it. I didn't expect super tech gizmos in this kind of game. I guess plain old detective work is kinda dull though. I stayed behind to look for as many clues as I could if that matters any. I'm not sure how important my choices are in this game but that one asshole asked if I wanted to leave with him and I said no. Also Jayden is a coke head or something? I wasn't sure if I fucked up that part... I just moved out of his "office" and then it moved to a scene of him getting his fix. Also holy shit it was a bit overboard with how weird he looked while he was freaking out. Shaking I get but the "WOAH!!!" drunk animation was a bit much.

Speaking of freaking out, no idea what's going on with Ethan. Guessing that's intentional.

Overall solid presentation and interesting premise so far. Also FANTASTIC music. My main complaint at present is....voice-acting. It's...not all bad but...it could be a lot better. Honestly right now it feels like a problem with direction more than actual acting.

Also how the hell old is Shaun? Riding mechanical horsies and see-saw?

edited 29th Dec '14 2:09:51 AM by Nikkolas

Dammit...I'm trying to play Jayden good. I didn't yell at Blake even as he gave me every reason to. I wanted him to be professional and cool and calm.

But I shot the guy...I was purposefully avoiding the R1 thing the entire time, I wanted to talk him down because that asshole Blake was the one who pushed him over the edge. But I just saw....something...something was happening and my finger hit R1 before I knew what I was doing.

And he was only reaching for a crucifix...goddammit....

I'm guessing you can avoid the car crash but I only messed up on the final part of that sequence and I didn't want to redo it. But man, Ethan sure is resilient. Madison was there to help but he's still trucking along with one or two broken ribs. I thought that was kinda hard to do.

That was a pretty intense bit though, really dug it. it's why I didn't want to redo it.

OKAY FUCK THE TUNNEL PART. I DIDN'T DO ANYTHING WRONG THE PIECE OF SHIT KEPT CHANGING PERSPECTIVE ON ME AND I CAN'T SEE AS IT FUCKING IS. GODDAMMIT. I DID NOT FAIL ONMY OWN FUCK YOU GAME.

I broke the game now or something I bet. Ruined it forever. No good ending. Because of that shitty level. Fuck fuck fuck. And I can't even re-attempt it because autosoave. FUCK.

edited 29th Dec '14 1:34:24 PM by Nikkolas

I believe Ethan's car crash in the first challenge is unavoidable; I think the only difference is whether you crash after just barely making it far enough. Don't sweat the missed challenge; the controls in those sections can be annoying just because of how weirdly-designed the basic moving around controls are. Minor spoiler if you want to know the possible consequence, but you can still get the best endings without TOO much extra difficulty. There is an option to start playing from a specific chapter if you want to, though.

Well I'm trying to like, piece together a message or an address or something, right? Each trial gives you more letters?

I assume if I can get the rest right, I can probably figure out what I'm missing...maybe.... I watched a lot of Wheel of Fortune.

But I just did The Lizard and I'm back on-board with the game so I don't think I'll restart it right now. I was really digging it up until The Butterfly and now I'm once again very intrigued. Weird controls or not, they make certain things so much more powerful. Played dozens of games where I stabbed people or got stabbed myself but chopping off just the end of a finger was way more powerful than any of those. The game excels at immersion, IMO.

Madison should definitely win a Good Samaritan Award though. Random guy turns up all cut to hell and with broken ribs and whatever else and she just fixes him up, no questions asked.

She also helps him escape from the police. God that part was intense. I am so friggin' invested in this story. lol

edited 29th Dec '14 3:06:22 PM by Nikkolas

I had Norman take the....whatever it was. He said he could fight it but even if that was an option, that doesn't work. I come from a family with a very long and colorful history of drug addiction. You don't just get hooked on something and say "well, I'll think about knitting instead." The body doesn't work that way, it's already adapted and quitting cold turkey is liable to kill you if the stuff is powerful enough. Best thing I can do for Norman - and the case - is to indulge his habit.

I'm guessing the stuff at Manford's is a classic rookie trap? I put my fingerprints on goddam everything without thinking about it. I reloaded so many times but finally I just figured I was doomed. The only thing I missed was Manford himself.

I think it's like the interrogation about Shaun's disappearance you mentioned earlier: Most people won't be paying that much attention the first time around so the game brings it up to create tension and to mess with you.

Never thought I'd feel so bad about killing a dope dealer....

Holy Hannibal Lecter, what the fuck, now a crazy surgeon? I won the first fight but I thought I lost so I restarted. Mads goes limp and he's cackling away like a cartoon villain so I figured I done goofed. But she was playing possum, the clever girl.

Overall, this game is making me nostalgic for the easy days of Leon and Krauser's QTE Knife Fight.

Yet I love it all the same. It's just so....immersive and intense.

Dammit, Ethan just learned about Madison's true identity and occupation after they made sweet, sweet love. (although i fucked up taking off her bras... I swear, bras are the bane of my existence, both in reality and video games) I wasn't sure if they should do it but I ended up going with it because, fuck, Ethan needs a little something to motivate him. You can't go on with nothing but slim hopes. You need at leas ta little light in your life. I also had him forgive her because this lady has nearly died twice for him and is a fugitive from the law because she wants to help him. She's obviously not just in it to get a story or to write a book.

But then I went and screwed up her warning him. Couldn't find a damn phone. Ethan still escaped though, rather dramatically. I love teh camera angles in this game.

But no sooner than has Ethan gotten out of a bind than Shelby and Lauren are in a bind of their own. That old bastard. I was worried Shelby would leave her to drown but nope, he saved her. I really like Lauren. She's had my sympathies ever since I first met her. Then Shelby was back...with a vengeance. That whole sequence was awesome. I spared the old bastard because I can already see who Shelby is and why he's doing what he's doing. Well, part of it anyway. Man, those kids, those accents...oi.

I think I'm closing in on the ending though. Jayden had a fight with the killer and got some gas station receipts which I think are vital to getting the good ending, or a good ending. Oh and speaking of the club chapters, Madison is one sexy lady. I'm not too broken up over the fact I screwed up and made her take off one more layer of clothing for Paco.

edited 29th Dec '14 10:02:26 PM by Nikkolas

And that's Heavy Rain. Everyone made it to the warehouse and only one person died. you know the one.

Guess I'll just spoiler the rest.

I teared up a bit for the first time all game when the timer ran out and Ethan thought he was going to die. Then he didn't. It is this that makes me think none of what we saw from Shelby was an act. I truly believe he cared for Lauren and all the rest of it. Now some might say he's a psycho, and that's true, but I don't think he is an unfeeling psycho. It was his feelings that made him what he is. Quite frankly, I didn't come away hating Shelby like a lot of people. I guess it's because I knew he was the killer all along but overall I think it all makes a lot of sense and transforms him to by far the most interesting character in the game.

Now I do need to comment on something because I was reading TV Tropes' Character Sheet for HR characters. The one character who lives and doesn't get a happy ending is Jayden. The poor guy is losing his mind.... Now I thought it was on account of the drugs but the trope page says it's due to the ARI System. I don't recall the game ever saying the ARI System was such a massive danger to a person's brain or that's why Norman took the drugs in the first place.

But apart from feeling bad for the two of them, the ending was pretty nice. Ethan has another chance for a good, happy family with Madison and Shaun.

The game was very interesting. I'm sure if I felt like it I could think of some plotholes...god knows I've seen so much hatred for the game that there's possibly a whole bible dedicated to Why Heavy Rain Sucks. But the game was so unlike any other game I've ever played.... I recently played "myself" for the first time due to Dragon Age but here, while I wasn't playing myself exactly, I was still so engrossed in everything that happened that it might as well be me. I'm not Madison or Ethan but that doesn't mean I wasn't freaking out at certain scenes for those two. Everything is just so visceral in Heavy Rain that it really gets inside you in a way I've never really felt with other video games.

And of course the soundtrack is fantastic. I hope not even HR's critics can disparage the great music.

On a less positive side of the game's audio...well, is the voice-acting better in Beyond Two Souls? Obviously Page and Dafoe are gonna be good but what about everyone else? I think Shelby and Madison had the best voices in HR and Jayden's VA has a queer charm to him. Ethan was okay, but it varied a lot from scene to scene. Everyone else was meh to awful.

Overall, great game, loved it. I might even play it again someday and just let everyone die or whatever.

I think my fave characters were Shelby and Madison.

EDIT:

I forgot to say, Madison visiting Ann Sheppard was also heartbreaking. It's an all too realistic and grim situation - a poor old woman wasting away in loneliness. And when you finally jog her memory she worries her only living son hates her.

edited 30th Dec '14 2:41:38 AM by Nikkolas

The kids have distracting European accents that make no sense for their supposed backgrounds. Heavy Rain takes place in the same universe as Dexter's Laboratory.

It's weird how Madison's motivation is never directly explained if Ethan doesn't sleep with her, especially since the characters talk about it as though it were.

I'm curious, what did you do to get everyone to the warehouse? Did Madison call Ethan, or did he find it himself? Was Jayden there?

Ethan got there on his own. I got 4 out of 5 trials and the audio hints on the cell phone were pretty clear - seagulls and a big ship horn. So naturally I picked the only location near a large body of water. Madison got the address off Shelby's computer but everyone already knew. it's a pretty nice touch that the game gives you another chance though. And yes, Jayden was there, he's the one who killed Shelby. I helped the bastard up too and he attacked me again. What a jerk.

Played the Taxidermist DLC. Very intense when he arrives home and you gotta try and figure out what the hell to do before he finds you. I got the End of Nightmare ending where Madison offed him with a chainsaw. Looking up the other endings, I got the best one first try. There's even another variation of the one I got where she just escapes so I did good.

As usual it had good atmosphere but it was too short for my taste. I take the fact it was called "Heavy Rain Chronicles Episode 1" to mean that there were probably to be other DLC for the other characters (possibly a prequel with Norman?) but they didn't happen for some reason. A shame.

Do a Perfect Crime play-through now.

Gotta remember to not answer the phone in the Manfred chapter.

Although, what about when Shelby kills the guy? I'm pretty sure I didn't wipe that.

Also, for my favorite parts....

The Lizard and the subsequent desperate fleeing from the police. Madison saves Ethan's ass it was so much more intense than Ethan's later escape from the cops. There was also Shelby burning all the evidence, the aforementioned visiting Ann Sheppard, Madison's imprisonment by The Doc and the final fight between Jayden and Shelby. Oh and executing the drug dealer. That part was...hard.

Worst part was definitely The Butterfly.

edited 31st Dec '14 12:34:16 PM by Nikkolas