Three minutes into the game, I was completely was blown away. The graphics are beautiful, obviously, but I was even more impressed by the narrative-style gameplay.
It's very much a character-driven, immersive movie-like experience where you guide key characters through particular scenes (ie a detective questioning a prostitute, or studying a rain drenched crime scene for clues). The story is told through the players actions - not cut scenes - and every action has a consequence. The choices you make in a scene affect the storyline.
The film-noir narrative revolves around the hunt for a serial killer called The Origami Killer by four very different people: an FBI profiler, a detective, an architect and a journalist.
I've not yet finished the demo but it really got me thinking that it has the potential to completely redefine console game development, and serves a niche market for those mid-30s gamers.
Inviting established TV/film writers like Neil LaBute to write game narratives makes for an entirely new experience - where you really feel like part the story in a movie, taking care not to blindly go shooting your way around a scene.
The future of gaming/reading/movie watching?
Imagine playing The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo and being able to switch between Kalle Blomkvist and Elisbeth Salander as they unravel the deepest dirty secrets of the Vanger family. I’d buy it!
I don't imagine this style of narrative-led gameplay will ever truly replace high-octane racing games and FPS games, but it’s the most interesting thing I’ve seen in gaming for years. It might just get me back into the sport!
Of course Sony shoots itself in the foot (again) by blocking me from embedding a nice trailer from YouTube.
More on Heavy Rain:
Eurogamer review
Guardian review
Evening Standard on Neil LeBute (writer)
