When we sat down to record this week’s BattleCry episode, we knew we had a lot of opinions to share on the Heavy Rain demo. Too many as it turned out; we had to cut more than half our conversation to squeeze it into the skirmish. Thankfully, this is the exact reason mighty Odin invented EpicBattleCry On Tap! So here, as promised, is our full, un-cut discussion on the Heavy Rain demo.
Check it out and share your thoughts with us after the jump.
Stay sharp.
I haven’t played the demo yet but I saw that mall gameplay video and I simply couldn’t believe how shitty the voice acting. Most reviews seem to mention the shitty voice overs as well, while Brent actually liked them? What gives?
I wrote a little piece about the demo in your DEMOUP section, so I won’t go into great detail here. But basically I loved the demo, I thought it showcased exactly what was needed to answer any lingering questions one might have about the control scheme and gameplay mechanics. Also I really appreciate you taking the time to upload the full convo, great job guys.
@boysangur. While I cannot speak for Brent. I myself really dug the voice work in the game. It reminded me alot of Demon’s Souls, where you could tell that with some of the voice artists english wasn’t their native/first language. Yet it still added enough if not more character not only to them but to the overall game itself. There’s that old saying “it’s our flaws that truly define who we are” (or atleast some shit along those lines). How many times can you hear Keith David or Nolan North and still feel connected to that character without it just reminding you of all the other games you’ve heard that exact same voice in? Don’t get me wrong i’d never knock a game or character voiced by either one of those two, they are both great talents. I just think it’s nice every now and then to hear a voice that isn’t so “perfect” for a character, a voice that gives it a little flaw that can hopefully grow on you and in the end make that character that much more unique.
Aiight man that’s just my opnion
Great ‘On Tap’ guys!
I’ve completed the full version of the game and one thing I’ve realised is that it’s not really a game – it’s an experience. Despite the clumsy controls, I found it to be one of the most engrossing pieces of entertainment I’ve ever experienced.
I say this for many reasons – not least of all the totally emersive storyline – but there are two that weren’t highlighted by the demo but that are ever present in the final version: (1) knowing that at any time during the game your actions can result in the death of a character, without the possibility of going back a replaying a section (there are no checkpoints), made for some of the most tense and heart-pounding moments of game-play since Mother Brain from ‘Super Metroid’; and (2) Speaking to others who have finished ‘Heavy Rain’, I’m surprised by how different each of our play-throughs have been – there were whole sections of story that I never experienced because I just didn’t play it the same way, and vice versa.
So, as a game it does have its flaws; but as an experience, for me, it’s up there with some of the best games I’ve ever played and definitely commands multiple play-throughs.
Viking Brent
I always listen to EBC and Skirmish 64 was agreat show as always. I just wanted to say in the show it was mentioned that this game is for a more casual player but the control scheme was for the more advanced, however you can change the difficulty setting.
I also got to play the demo and I loved it. I now own the game and I’m enjoying every second. I haven’t been so involved or emotionally invested in a game in a long time. Maybe its because I’m a dad and I can empathize with Ethan. The simple parts where he’s playing with Shauwn at the playground invoke so many emotions that I forget its just a game.
The full impact of this game will not truly be evident until years from now after many games have followed HR’s lead. You guys will be on Skirmish 150 asking axe heads what were some of the most influential games ever and HR will undoubtedly pop up. Truly an amazing experience.
i havent played heavy rain… but i think this is the kind of game you need to try , i am going to buy it very soon-
I see what you’re saying. From what I’ve seen though, it didn’t seem like the voice overs were the good kind of flawed, they just sounded ass bad. It was like listening to one of those language learning programs. Maybe it gets better in the game but I was really put off.
Also, there are plenty of good voice actors besides the guys you mentioned. To name a few, Mass Effect and the old Fallouts (1 and 2) had a lot of great voice work, beside the big name actors.
It’s funny to see people debating about a demo. I played the demo and i thought it sucked. I didn’t like the gameplay and voices were crappy.
But i already pre-ordered the game and I wanted to give it a shot and oh man, I’m glad i didn’t cancel my pre-order.
Once you get into the game you’ll forget all about “press R2 to walk” thing. It’ll actually feel natural. The QTE also feels perfect for this game and the story and graphics are very good. I also changed the language to “Dutch” and it must be the best Dutch voice-acting in a video game.
People who watched me play were actually wondering what’s gonna happen next. They watched it like it’s a movie while i played it like a game. It’s pretty unique.
But yeah, it’s the kind of game you’ll either love or hate. I love it.
[...] real soonish. UPDATE: You can now listen to the full On Tap Heavy Rain demo conversation right here. -iPod compatible mp4 download- AudioPlayer.embed("pod_audio_1", {soundFile: [...]
i play the on Heavy Rain demo not bad and like the stoyline
I agree… I personally love it and while I had to put up with the weird R2 to walk thing I love the game. I have to say that I’m not a big fan of the story, but it’s a good one never the less.
I do have to play it a few more times… but unfortunately after you complete it, it does feel like you can guess what sort of ending there could be… if they are as unpredictable as the story in heavy rain then BIG THUMBS UP!
I hope this game gets good reviews and good reception… more games like this YES PLEASE!!!!
I also what to say that I agree with Daniel a 100%. The game is very good and I understand where Brent is going with this, saying that they want to separate themselves from a traditional game… but bad controls ARE bad controls…
Yes you can get used to them, but it does get in the way of FULL immersion. When play heavy rain and your character starts to twitch between camera changes because of the controls, it pulls you out immediately and ultimately ruins the experience
i can’t believe no one mentions Farenheit/Indigo Prophecy (here’s a gameplay video of the first scene http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xaBJun5hrko ) and keeps calling Heavy Rain something “totally new” and “different” and “never before seen”. I’m not saying it’s exactly the same thing, but it’s not “a new concept” it’s just a little more refined farenheit.
Indigo Prophecy was a “movie-like” game, even the tutorial took place in a movie set. It was supposed to be a Choose Your Own Adventure kinda thing, but it was kinda limited… by the ps2′s capabilities i guess; but it still offered a good level of choice, mainly in the things you could choose NOT to do or even not notice you could do. Some things you were forced to go through though. There’s a scene where a boy is going to drown, and you have to save him or save him.
The game had boobies too, and tried to play with new ways of interaction, so every action you took was started by a flick of the right stick. and maybe followed by a qte. most of the game were qte’s actually, but they are fit for a game like this… somehow.
So, i already knew this was a successor to indigo prophecy, and that’s why i felt and feel so dissappointed. The demo is suppossed to show what the thing comes with, and it was kinda empty. Some things had advanced.. kinda. conversations were dull, and you had a few options of things to say that go around the screen and you can say most of them but not all. that’s exactly what farenheit had, but the options didn’t fly around the screen, so i could actually see what button said what. the voice acting was cold and uninmersive, walking still feels stiff and clumsy and now you can’t run, so you have to do it for prolongated ammounts of time… and it sucks.
Besides, i understand “it’s supposed to feel uncomfortable”, but it’s not making it more immersive, it’s making going up a hill feel like playing twister.
By the looks of the demo, i would never buy it. I could change my mind, but we’ll see.
Love On Tap, un-cut, real and talk about topics that need to be debated about.
As for buy,rent or pass… I’ll say rent, because I don’t really want to spend the $60 for something that i’m not sure on.
I’m not going to rent either, because I don’t have netflix or gamefly etc
I preordered it because I liked the first third of Indigo Prophecy. (Story just went lame) Anyways, after playing the actual game for a couple hours, alot of the control issues seem to have gone away for the most part. The slow start got me used to the control scheme. I really would like another On Tap or even a Review after Bent and Daniel play it, assuming Tony is going to pass.
Keep on Tappin’