Heavy Rain mastermind David Cage has defended the decision to have Madison get naked in the game - claiming it allows players to develop a more intimate knowledge of the character.
Quantic Dream boss Cage told CVG sister publication the Official PlayStation Magazine: "She's fragile, she's vulnerable, she's naked. Okay, now that's out of the way."
He claimed that nothing in Heavy Rain was gratuitous - and that every clothes-less scene had artistic merit.
"The game is not shocking for the sake of being shocking," Cage added. "There's never sex for the sake of sex or gore for the sake of gore. Nothing is gratuitous, and I think everything supports the narrative and emotional immersion of the player."
LOL, I feel a bit sorry for the developers of this game. It's as though they would like a bit of tabloid publicity, but I really think the newspapers are too sensible to get annoyed by some boobs. You could understand them being concerned about something disgusting like Manhunt 2, but not a bit of sex.
Also, I don't think there would be anything wrong with titillation for its own sake. Sometimes that's part of art. Take the sex scenes in a film like Basic Instinct, for example. Yes, they are related to the story, but they're also meant to be sexy. Nothing wrong with it, in my opinion.
From what I can see from Dante's Inferno where there's a giant female boss who fires attacks from her nipples, a little bit of tastefully done nudity is fine in my book.
If it wasn't for David "Cage" De Gruttola constantly referring to the nude scenes nobody would care.
I'm more worried that Madison takes a shower without soap, puts the same clothes back on again, then goes to the toilet, doesn't wipe, & leaves without washing her hands.
She can keep her clothes on for me, thanks.
Also, why does nobody react to the rain in the demo? Not even moaning about it, or lowering their heads to stop water falling on their faces?
For all the realism of the environment & the attention to detail with the characters why do nobody’s clothes get wet?
If it wasn't for David "Cage" De Gruttola constantly referring to the nude scenes nobody would care.
I'm more worried that Madison takes a shower without soap, puts the same clothes back on again, then goes to the toilet, doesn't wipe, & leaves without washing her hands.
She can keep her clothes on for me, thanks.
Also, why does nobody react to the rain in the demo? Not even moaning about it, or lowering their heads to stop water falling on their faces?
For all the realism of the environment & the attention to detail with the characters why do nobody’s clothes get wet?
BFN,
fp.
Having played the demo, I discovered that by pressing L2 at any time, you can read your characters thoughts. Let me just say that rain was a prominent thought.
Oh, and the characters sneezed, shrugged and looked very, very wet.
I agree with the hygiene problems though. Not that it was a prevalent feature in the demo.
In regards to the demo, I (as did the missus) found Shelby to be the most amiable character of the two. We also found his section to be the most interesting, mainly because of the choices that you make from the conversation with the prostitute. We chose different options, on different playthroughs, achieving a few different reactions from her.
The fight scene was pretty cool too. I battered (though I did miss a couple of buttons) the bloke, whilst the missus ended up getting beaten up and gaining a few bruises into the bargain. Again, a subtle, yet nice difference in outcomes.
The FBI agents level was just a crime scene, without any conversation or action sections, though it did give an insight into how to gather evidence.
One thing to note was that I managed to spot some evidence on a hill that led up to the highway, whereas the missus did not.
I wonder how important it will be to gather as much evidence as possible?
It's safe to say that I can't wait to play the full game. And neither can the missus, for that matter.
FBI Agent Norman Jayden managed to get back into his car without looking wet. No drips from his hair, for instance. Also his glasses didn't even get smeared with water whilst he was wearing them outside. I found that odd considering the weather conditions.
Yes, I expect the gathering of evidence is probably going to play a major part in the story, but also may provide many red herrings along the way just to prolong the game. Hopefully it will not turn into a random search & retrieve kind of activity but the dialogue between the characters will hint where to look if you have missed something vital for the story to continue.
Supplemental findings such as that "unrelated to the case" due to contamination of the crime scene by one of the police officers on duty may also prove useful. He may even be the killer... as it is easy to dismiss evidence of this nature due to the officer's presence at the location.
Like you said, Scott Shelby was the more likeable personality of the two playable characters we saw but, even then, I could not relate to anybody on-screen. The voice acting seemed a little disjointed with the on-screen action. I think the industry has a long way to go before we can expect video gaming to replace movies as core entertainment.
I too saw differing outcomes when Shelby visited Lauren Winters' room, but each time he opted to leave to the left out of the door not remembering he was at the end of the corridor & he had entered from the right! Not a big concern, but another worrying observation that details like this can be missed.
I was hoping that my impression of this game as reported throughout many forms of media was going to be turned to a sale with the demo, but unfortunately not.
Maybe a 'hit' for you, & many others, but unfortunately I group this title with "the missus".
Pity.
@monkey_puncher:
All true except the soap & your spelling of "shower".
FBI Agent Norman Jayden managed to get back into his car without looking wet. No drips from his hair, for instance. Also his glasses didn't even get smeared with water whilst he was wearing them outside. I found that odd considering the weather conditions.
Yes, I expect the gathering of evidence is probably going to play a major part in the story, but also may provide many red herrings along the way just to prolong the game. Hopefully it will not turn into a random search & retrieve kind of activity but the dialogue between the characters will hint where to look if you have missed something vital for the story to continue.
Supplemental findings such as that "unrelated to the case" due to contamination of the crime scene by one of the police officers on duty may also prove useful. He may even be the killer... as it is easy to dismiss evidence of this nature due to the officer's presence at the location.
Like you said, Scott Shelby was the more likeable personality of the two playable characters we saw but, even then, I could not relate to anybody on-screen. The voice acting seemed a little disjointed with the on-screen action. I think the industry has a long way to go before we can expect video gaming to replace movies as core entertainment.
I too saw differing outcomes when Shelby visited Lauren Winters' room, but each time he opted to leave to the left out of the door not remembering he was at the end of the corridor & he had entered from the right! Not a big concern, but another worrying observation that details like this can be missed.
I was hoping that my impression of this game as reported throughout many forms of media was going to be turned to a sale with the demo, but unfortunately not.
Maybe a 'hit' for you, & many others, but unfortunately I group this title with "the missus".
Pity.
@monkey_puncher:
All true except the soap & your spelling of "shower".
BFN,
fp.
You could go into any game with that attitude and find flaws.
To me, it sounds like you are intent on the negatives, rather than the positives.
Maybe it is a case of reading forums, rather than playing the demo?
You could go into any game with that attitude and find flaws.
To me, it sounds like you are intent on the negatives, rather than the positives.
Maybe it is a case of reading forums, rather than playing the demo?
Yes, you could... and I do if the game prides itself on attention to detail & being a real experience. Also, if it is a title that expects you to pay attention then I will do.
The negatives outnumbered the positives for me but, as I mentioned, others (including you) may feel differently.
Forums are not the only source of information about "Heavy Rain" but I do like to be sure that I am not wasting my money. £30-£40 (now slightly higher for the HMV Exclusive version) is a lot to spend if a game proves unsuitable.
You could go into any game with that attitude and find flaws.
To me, it sounds like you are intent on the negatives, rather than the positives.
Maybe it is a case of reading forums, rather than playing the demo?
Yes, you could... and I do if the game prides itself on attention to detail & being a real experience. Also, if it is a title that expects you to pay attention then I will do.
The negatives outnumbered the positives for me but, as I mentioned, others (including you) may feel differently.
Forums are not the only source of information about "Heavy Rain" but I do like to be sure that I am not wasting my money. £30-£40 (now slightly higher for the HMV Exclusive version) is a lot to spend if a game proves unsuitable.
BFN,
fp.
Each to their own, I suppose. However, I think that I enjoyed it because I went into the demo without the thought of finding flaws.
Even some of the best films have silly flaws, as I am sure you are aware.
One of the most famous is the Ben Hur aeroplane scene... And he was wearing a Rolex!
It doesn't stop it from being a tremendous film though, does it?
Each to their own, I suppose. However, I think that I enjoyed it because I went into the demo without the thought of finding flaws.
Even some of the best films have silly flaws, as I am sure you are aware.
One of the most famous is the Ben Hur aeroplane scene... And he was wearing a Rolex!
It doesn't stop it from being a tremendous film though, does it?
Thank you for your reply, Mark240473. I have not seen "Ben Hur" but yes, many aspects of life are not perfect... nor would I expect them to be. If they were we would be in a boring existence with no incentive to better ourselves.
If the "perfect" game was produced for everybody then the developers, publishers, store staff, and every other individual in the supply chain would be out of job the day after that game's release.
"Heavy Rain" has been receiving review marks of between 85-95% so far, in majority, with "PlayStation: The Official Magazine" giving it a full 100% score.
Back on our side of the Pond, the UK's complementary publication states "Put gaming conventions aside, go in with no expectations other than this is something new and massively good-looking, and you'll be rewarded with a unique experience that lurches between genius and madness, manages to be genuinely emotional, and that you'll be bursting to talk about with your friends..."
As mentioned above, I kept reading how good this game was going to be & I should, as you suggested, give up reading. Expectations will, no doubt, be set (too) high in some cases, & ultimately they will not be met for everybody; either with a short demonstration of the title, or without.
I have, though, not been carried along with expectations. The game has never sounded attractive to me although, as I acknowledge, I am in a small minority (maybe of one). I first commented on it just over a year ago in a blog entry at Three Speech (comment #26) when it was suggested that there would be many more resultant conclusion to the game than the, I believe, twelve potential “endings” currently being discussed.
Back to what we have today, though… if I rated every potential release on the strength of the Playable Demo version alone then I would also be sadly disappointed with other titles once I have access to the full commercial release.
I did not go into “Heavy Rain” with the intention of finding fault; I tried the Demo to see if the opinion I had already could be changed. Yes, that may be a negative approach, but equally you viewed the Demo with a positive attitude. Both of us had a preconceived impression of the experience.
The flaws were there to be seen. Sorry if you missed them, or do not think they were relevant. They mattered to me, hence why I voiced an opinion on them above.
In summary, the content of the Demo did not encourage me to purchase the game, but two other family members did find something positive to take away from the brief introduction to the environment.
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Not a big concern, but another worrying observation that details like this can be missed.
And he was wearing a Rolex!
