How far would you go to save someone you love ..Would you kill? Endure overwhelming pain? or just do nothing. Get used to it. These are the questions you will have to give an answer too and live with those consequences. The people at Quantic Dream has done it again. If you are familiar with the game Farenheit then you know you are about to experience an emotional,dark game that is 100% unique in every way and is in a genre of its own which they say is an “Interactive Drama/Movie”, to have you intensely submersed in the in the world of the Origami killer where every decision you make could save a life or end one.

The story itself is quite simple really, it is the journey that is hard. Children have been going missing and found dead a few days later with origami figures in their hand and orchids on their chest in various locations in the city. Police are on the hunt for what they call the “origami Killer” and it’s you that has to uncover who this killer is before he strikes again.

There are 4 playable characters in the game ; Ethan Mars a man who had his life torn apart in a way no one should and will have to summon the strength to save what is left of his family.
Madison Paige, a photographer that will do anything to get to the bottom of the Origami killer case using her wits and body to get what she needs.
Norman Jayden, An FBI profiler who is sent in to help the local police force figure out who is the origami killer. With his hi-tech ARI ( Added Reality Interface ) glasses he is able to on the go detect DNA, foot prints or anything that might be useful for the investigation.Being strung out on a drug called triptocaine he must battle to save people’s lives , as well as his own.
Last but not least, Scott Shelby, an Ex cop turned Private Investigator who is hired by the victims mothers to find out who killed their sons.

The game will have you switching play to each character and seeing how they are involved in solving the Origami killings. What is great here is you actually have each person’s story intertwine and even meeting and interacting with each other, and of course, have a say in all of the choices that are to be made

What the creators of this game have done is make it so that you can play through the game a few times and have a completely different start ,middle and end – but a lot of these decisions don’t really make much of a difference, and once you find out who the killer is open completing it for the first time, the game loses its replay value ( like watching an ok film but already knowing the ending). Unless the people you play die then you will miss out a bit and yes, and you can’t “try again”. If the player you are controlling dies, then the story will continue without that character.
The controls in this game you will either love or hate. Having to hit certain buttons as they appear on screen is fun and interesting way to get from point (a) to (b) but is slow enough that any standard of player can do it – An option here to make it much faster would have been nice. The Walking mechanism can be troublesome – to walk you hold R2 which is easy enough but it’s the turning that can be a nuisance. It’s not like you control you guy with the analogue stick like every other game. What it is you basically have to look where you want to go then walk. It is weird as I have found myself in many situations where I wanted to go left and ended up doing a complete 180 spin.

The character models and landscapes are beautiful.The 4 years spent making the game has really paid off. Realistic facial features, the fact that you can walk upstairs right even makes the characters look alive. Each new area you go to is just full of atmosphere, with its dark and dingy room making you even think the places don’t smell right, it’s that good!
This is all heightened by the awesome soundtrack. Everything that is happening in the game just has this amazing audio to just complete the story narration . Of course there is a hitch( as always )…even though there is some great audio to go with the game, I feel a lot (especially the dad/son scene in house) was reused. Every time I sat down on a chair I got the same dramatic music. Not that the music was bad just, it just seemed to be stuck on repeat.

Unique, intense and passionate – the game will leave you wanting .There is 7-9 hour gameplay lifespan that has you glued to your seats and I mean it. Once you stick this game in your machine you will play it right through till the end and there lies the problem. Once you complete it it’s very hard to go back to playing it other than to get trophies. Controls can be sketchy at times and some plot holes are their if you look hard enough but minor things. A major thing is some people are having issues with the game crashing etc and mine did twice while others have had no problems.
A prequel, Heavy Rain Chronicles: The Taxidermist, is due out for DLC on the 4th of march and “should” give the player many more episodes to chew on. No mention on price or how long the DLC will last but it’s something to keep us going.
It’s a hard choice but it does come down to this – I think If you don’t care about DLC then don’t buy the game. Renting this game will be more than enough to get your fill of drama. If you think you will hold out until the DLC, then the game is a wise purchase for all drama / movie fans.

Still To Come

We thought we would share more than 1 opinion on this game as a few of us had something to say and well this is the best place to say it. Underneath this text is going to be a mini review from Zarran and Peeps telling us what they think about the game, did they like it or hate it and were the team at Quantic Dream could have improved on. Keep an eye on this post to see what they have to say.

Review Written by Redmerosha