New Heavy Rain Details Spilled, Lapped Up

271w ago - While most of us in North America don't read the Dutch magazine Chief, one of our readers abroad pointed out that they'd run a major exclusive on upcoming Quantic Dream/Sony title Heavy Rain. (You know Quantic Dream as the company behind Fahrenheit/Indigo Prophecy, and you know Heavy Rain from my fanboy obsession).

Joystiq Reader Saimon was kind enough to translate some of the more enticing statements about the title made by Quantic Dream's founder David Cage.

On Locations:
"I don't want to do a big free-roaming city like GTA, because the flow of the story will then be hard to control. Nevertheless, I do want to incorporate big sets, with a crowd, heavy populated areas like a mall and a subway are going to be in there. Of course, the gameplay has got to make use of that aspect too."

On Graphics:
"People will be surprised. Internal (Sony's) feedback on graphics has been great. This is going to be a truly next-gen game. But still, we want to do something unique with the graphics, going beyond just making the most photorealistic world we can."

On Gameplay:
"With the release of Fahrenheit, we gave the adventure genre a new grammar. We brought new ways into the genre, new words if you want to see it like that, a new vocabulaire. With Heavy Rain, where going to expand on that same grammar."

On Story:
"Heavy Rain is about normal people that have landed in extraordinary situations. I wanted a much more personal story. The first thing that came to my mind, as a father of two little boys, was that the main theme should simply be a father's love for his son. This is not a game about saving the princess or the world. Its purely about a father's love."

"The main story will revolve around 4 different characters, and we're putting the spotlight on their perceptions. The question 'what is good and what is evil' is the key here, that will be just a matter of viewpoint...I believe heavily in moral choices, I'm going to use them A LOT. They're not about being good or bad, but about finding the right balance."

So far, so good. Thanks to Saimon for all the hard work on this one.