The Forecast Calls for Heavy Rain

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So for the last several weeks, I've been hiding in a cave. No, not literally, but metaphorically, I've been avoiding gaming sites and other such news.

Only coming out the play a little BFBC2 Demo or Warhawk, I've been just hiding out while I waited for the storm. It finally came yesterday, traveling at an average speed of 142.61 mph, it finally blew in yesterday.

Of course I'm talking about my copy of Heavy Rain. Here at Full Frontal Gaming, we don't get to review games before they come out, so you'll have to excuse our lag. That said, from just the first few hours, it became clear that this game is a must own.

Starting off with first impressions. The UPS guy delivered the game to my office. I was there to pick it up as it came in the door. I ripped open the yellow envelope and protective plastic covering to reveal this jewel. I opened it up to find a small square of paper, pre-printed and the instruction manual.

Spending the next 4 hours concentrating on work, was a Herculean task. Some how I marched on and finally, it was time to go home. The wife was out so I popped the disc in. Immediately there was an update to the game, version 1.01. It downloaded and installed in just a few seconds. Then came the install onto the hard drive. 4 GBs of space needed. The install seemed slow to me. I'm sure you guys are aware there's several different speeds of USB, 1.0 1.1 and 2.0. Most devices these days support USB 2.0. Using raw speed, one can in theory transfer 4 GB in approximately 70 seconds. Also considering that a BluRay disc is 50 GB, it certainly should have USB 2.0 speeds right?

Well, my dear reader, do not fret too much. Quantic Dream has taken care of you. Remember that square in the case. Well, during the install you get to do some origami yourself. Best use of a prop to distract the user from install time I've ever seen.



Due to a small emergency I couldn't finish my figure before the game finished installing. That said, it left up the instructions and I now have the bird shown above.

So the game then gives several different levels. It took me a couple of looks to figure out basically it is easy, medium and hard, since they didn't call it that.

After selecting your level, you get to play some with the controls. Let's just say, leaving the door open as you use the bathroom, such a guy thing. The most impressive parts of this open sequence include the juggling and drawing pieces. Not only did it look good, it really felt like I was helping draw up the plans for a new house. The only thing I'd note it there's sometimes very little warning before a task must be done gently (meaning slowly). The camera angles can be problematic sometimes, but nothing your typical gamer can't handle. I only ended up walking in circles once or twice. Especially problematic was the mall scene, where not only did you have these camera transitions but you are trying to push through a crowd.

And while I'm talking about the crowed mall, I've got to say, it really did feel crowded. It is kind of like Assassin's Creed in that respect. You really did have to shove your way through as you ran through the mall.

Without giving too much more away, I'll say there's a possible fight scene early on. Yes it was mostly quick time events, but they made sense usually (though only after you saw what the result was). Additionally the character thoughts add new depth to the game.

So I'm just starting, not anywhere near done with the game. There's been reports of finishing it in approximately 9 hours. With so many different endings though, this could be a very long game.

Once I finish the game, I'll post a full review, but as first impressions go, this game (if you can even call it that) is awe inspiring and awesome.

Avoiding Heavy Rain Spoilers - *SPOILER FREE*

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So I'm convinced that Heavy Rain will be an awesome game. So much so I actually pre-ordered the game, something I don't normally do. With approximately 13 days to go until I have the game in hand, avoiding spoilers is a little harder than normal.

First there's the Demo. While I'd love to get my hands on the game early, the demo has to give away some of the story. Even if it is just the first chapter, it would only drive me nuts later on.

Second, the trophy list. Almost all the trophies for this game are hidden trophies. Why? Well the trophies are based on the story line. Thus the trophy list its self is a spoiler, once it is populated.

So if you're like me and want to enjoy the entire story line, I'd strongly recommend skipping the demo/trophy list. Remember, what is seen cannot be unseen.

Upcoming Must Buy Games

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So in my apartment, across from the kitchen there's a white board. That whiteboard has a special section, games I want to get.

If you were to look at my board, right now there's 5 games, 2 of which haven't been released yet. These are my must buy games.

The first of these games is Heavy Rain. Coming out on February 23rd, you can see our trailer review here. Calling this a game is a little like calling F1 racer a car. While technically true, this description doesn't really give you the whole picture. Heavy Rain is a playable movie and the first game to really embrace that aspect of gaming.

The other big game is Battle Field Bad Company 2. I'd like to highlight one passage from the Amazon review:

Destruction 2.0. Take down entire buildings, create firepoints or blow it up entirely. In Battlefield Bad Company 2 there is be no place to hide.

While there hasn't been a trailer review on here, I've talked about GameStop exclusives.

I'm keeping an eye on several other upcoming games, such as Valkyria Chronicles 2, but I don't have enough information to recommend anything else at this time.

Oh and for the other 3 games on my board? I'm just waiting for a price drop on Wii Sports Resort, Brütal Legend and Uncharted 2.

Adult Themes in Gaming Today

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So, while not everyone who reads this is from the USA, we all feel the influence of American society. I'm talking about sexual themes in games. Companies like Nintendo and Sony will all out kill games that don't conform to their acceptable view of the world, but it seems the envelope is growing.

What you have to understand about he US is, seeing a women's nipple is considered more harmful to a kid than watching someone killed. Don't believe me? For those in the US, how many times have you seen a nipple during prime time? How many times have you seen someone killed?

Violence is considered OK, while sex is not. But now it seems, for Sony/Microsoft at least, violence is a way to slip things past. Take for example Conan on the PS3, it was the first game to actually show bare breasts in HD (at least on a major console). Now let's look at the next few games, Bayonetta, Dante's Inferno and Heavy Rain. All include violence, all include nudity (or partial nudity).

Is this a bad trend? In my opinion, no. The US is far too sensitive about nudity, which is a big part of art. Some of the most famous and influential art is of the nude figure. And when you talk about art, video games are the new medium.

Still, count the number of M rated games and compare that with the number of AO games (for sexuality) and you'll see there's a long way to go.

Trailer Review - Heavy Rain

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For years, video games have relied heavily on movie like aspects. For example, Wing Commander over a decade ago had professional voice and character actors. That said, while this undertone existed none have really embraced their movie like quality. Heavy Rain is set to break that barrier, by ushering in a new type of game. Think choose your own adventure meets Hollywood.

So, finally acknowledging their movie roots, the Heavy Rain trailer plays more like a movie trailer than a game trailer. We start out with narration from one of the main characters. I say one, because this game has 4 main characters.

The antagonist in this game is a serial killer, known as the Origami Killer. He has taken a boy, and the narrator is that boy's father. While none of this is explained by the trailer, you need to have this background to understand what is going on. Que the shot of the boy and his father.


Of course the whole family has to be involved.


If you're like me, you'll recognize that this film style seems to be in vouge right now, showing several angles a the same time.

Although it doesn't show it, use of the motion control and quick time events are required to "watch/control" this movie. A main character can even die, and the story will continue skipping that character in future chapters. Que the diving save.


The story line appears intense and the characters draw you in, even in the trailer. This is more than just a movie, you want to save the child.


This game looks great from everything I've seen. It is done by a French gaming comapany Quantic Dream.


Word of warning though, this is rated M and does include nudity. Games are pushing the edge of the ratings finally, but that's another post.

So time for the scores.

• Explosions - No
• Game Play - Yes & No (Game is all about the video)
  
• Pre-rendered Video - Yes (But that's the whole game)
  
• See the trailer - Yes
  
• Overall Rating 14/15
  

Buy, Rent or Skip the game - Buy (for now)