Redeemed: A Design Analysis of Heavy Rain

I could hear the man yelling at the cashier.  I have to do something, I thought to myself.  I quietly started walking towards the grocery aisle behind the gunman and began to approach.  Maybe I could tackle him or something.  Suddenly my arm brushed a bottle and it began tumbling to the ground.  A button appeared for me to catch it, but I wasn’t prepared, and whether it was a Circle or a Triangle escaped me.  The bottle tumbled to the ground and the gunman looked back at me.  Drat!  Now I was in trouble.  He pointed the gun at me and ordered me over by the cashier.  So much for that…now what?

And so continued another scene in Quantic Dream’s Heavy Rain.  This Playstation 3 only game has been getting a lot of press and some pretty impressive reviews recently.  Being embraced rightfully as an “interactive narrative”, Heavy Rain chronicals the story of four characters tracking down the identity of a murderer known as the “origami killer”.  An unlikely private investigator, a hopeless father of a murdered child, and other personalities pay a central roll in the game’s unfolding, built of deep characterization and large swaths of time developing your emotional connection with the characters.

I’ve written about Quantic Dream’s spiritual predecessor to Heavy Rain, Indigo Prophecy (Fahrenheit) several times.  It was an interesting experiment in my mind, but from a gameplay design standpoint, I argued that there were some Base Mechanics that were poorly executed that completely harpooned the experience.  I’m all for games that focus on unique Core Experiences, and having a game built around story and exposition is certainly not something that is done often on major consoles nowadays.  Many players and reviewers enjoyed the game, but as the hours wore on, the poor gameplay design became too much to bear.

I am happy to say that Heavy Rain repairs much of the damage done by Indigo Prophecy’s design choices.  This studio’s game title is definitely much more mature in its development than its predecessor, likely due to feedback and iteration on the first game’s choices.  Let’s break it down. WAIT! There is more to read… read on »

Gameplay is King: Story is Distant Second

I only recently got around to playing 2009’s  most critically acclaimed game title: Uncharted 2 for the PS3.  Personally as a player, this isn’t exactly my kind of game; I’m not a huge shooter fan and, like Avatar, the story and premise seemed a bit simple.  However, as a game designer, I can’t excuse myself from a game so highly regarded among players and developers alike.  Even if it didn’t interest me in the name of my own entertainment, it certainly interested me in the name of my design education.

After sinking a good number of hours into it, I can definitely say that it is worth the ride.  The game has a captivating story and interesting characters, but that’s not why it’s a great game.  It is a great game because of the only thing that can make a great game: great gameplay.  Let’s step through two of the best points of this game’s design and execution.

Don’t Tell Me About It; Let me Do It

Let’s start with Uncharted 2’s biggest selling point: you get to play everything you want to play.  You do everything you want to do.  Action?  You do it.  Talking?  It’s just a cutscene.  This may seem obvious, but it’s more difficult than it sounds. WAIT! There is more to read… read on »