What do you guys think? The people that critcize Heavy Rain say that there's no traditional gameplay (Shooter, RPG, etc) while the people who laud it emphasize the story. A major part of its gameplay and replayability is the different possible outcomes that could create branches and differeent routes in the stories.

I really wonder how different the story could be multiple playthroughs. I'm really interested in the Ethan character out of all of them (I really like the question of morality and ideals vs hapiness and reality. Sure we know what to answer when we're asked a basic moral question, and it's easy to say we'll do it when we're sitting in our chairs and in front of our computers, but will you really sacrifice the most valuable things just so you could proudly say (to nobody) that you did the right thing?

Seems more like an interactive movie (done right) than a novel to me.

I'm thinking there will be a mix of gameplay styles and some QTE scattered throughout like Policenauts or Shenmue.

Its more like a really cinematic game ;)

Yh i would say a movie where you decide how the story folds. I am really hyped for this game

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Visual_novel

Ding ding ding!

It's not literally a novel >.

@Akvod: Like the article you posted said, a visual novel is usually a series of static images and text where you sometimes make choices.

This is more like an action movie where you are both director and actor.

CGI-Quality said: Cinematic, emotional driven experience. Also, an upcoming masterpiece!!!

B_E_L_I_E_V_E?

So aside from moving and static images (notice I said similar, not the same), do you think that Heavy Rain shares a lot with the genre? I feel like Heavy Rain can take what a visual novel does and take it to the next level. Instead of just having Bad and Dead Ends, you can keep continuing to play the game. You can actually take part in the minor parts of the character's lives to be able to step into their shoes more.

But at the core, both genres focus on choice with story being the main driving force.