Heavy Rain

I've been waiting for this game for a long time and I am looking forward to its release. It's a risky game for quanticdream to make, but if they pull it off and its anything like the game play footage they have shown and the way they have described it, it will be amazing. If you're interested in this game I highly recommend searching for the live E3 game play footage shown earlier this year to give you a better idea of what this game really is all about.

Just downloaded the demo for this game which allows you to play two full scenes. Have to admit this is a game that really draws you into the story.

They weren't kidding when they say “cinematic experience”, the way this game plays out it really feels like you ARE the character in the scene instead of just playing a normal character with its set of personalities. This game seems to be detective orientated as well so if you're into those CSI and crime scene shows you are in for a real treat. Demo is pretty big about 1750 mb but its really worth the download, to get a glimpse of how truly beautiful this game is. 10/10 for me

I'd definitely download the demo before buying this one, because its not for everyone, but WOW it looks great. When I first heard of Heavy Rain I didn't understand how it worked, but once you get into this title its another world. A must purchase and one of sonys best exclusives this year.

Presentation: 10/10
The menus are excellent, some might find it a bit gloomy, but its contextual and beautiful. The game comes with two square papers to make your own origami and with instructions, a nice touch. The box art and manual are both good too.

Graphics: 10/10
I looked around a lot of places and everyone seems to be giving the graphics only an 8 or 9. Personally, i think they are gorgeous, among the best on the PS3, probably only second to the Uncharted series. The in-game cutscenes are motion captured, so again, very beautiful and emotive. The only problem I could think of in the graphics department is that the characters you control, look kind of stiff when you move them around.

Sound: 10/10
Excellent and most importantly clear voice acting. Being of foreign ethnicity, this is one of the few games where I barely looked at the subtitles. The music is dark and really gets you into game. As much as the control scheme and excellent story, keep you into the game, the music plays an equally important part.

Gameplay: 9.5/10
I am a big fan of button pressing set pieces (Uncharted) and quick time events (Yakuza, God of War), so I absolutely loved this game. The unexpected surprises, leading to the quick time events are awesome. The game starts off slow with you performing mundane daily activities but then goes onto become on the most involving and emotional engaging games ever made. Even gamers who like fast paced games and FPS's should try it out. The story will suck you in. This game is intense, the story, the situations you will find yourself in, the unexpected surprise you are about to step in, everything. You cant really lose in this game as selecting different actions or missing some of the buttons during a fight, will make the game play out differently. However, you should try and redo them or just concentrate heaps to avoid a disappointing ending. Thats the price you pay – if you dont make the right choices or miss buttons, then you will get a disappointing and unsatisfactory ending but if you do everything right, you should get a good and happy one. The only problem is in the control scheme as some of the prompts that appear on the screen, look similar to the others. Prompt for pressing a button and pressing it rapidly, look really similar and since everything happens at a break neck pace, you could find yourself in a hot spot.

Lasting Appeal: 9/10
My first playthrough took me about 10 hours. But that is because I like to check every nook and cranny. If you just storm through it, it should be about 8 hours long. However, the longevity comes here through the different endings. If you did everything right, you could go back and retry the whole game or specific chapters and mess it up to see what happens. Theres a lot of possibilities. The only complaint here is that, you cant skip cutscenes, so you will have to sit through them again if you have plans of going back and doing things differently.

Overall: 9.5/10
The cutscenes cannot be skipped if you want to redo some of the chapters, and some of the button prompts can be confusing. But apart from those minor complaints, this is a beautifully presented game – its gorgeous, excellent soundtrack and voice acting and an innovative gameplay. Definitely try it out, atleast to experience something new and for its intense gameplay and emotionally engaging story.

Awesome game, really great plot that can branch any direction you choose. Recommended to anyone who prefers a story based game over action.