Heavy Rain Writers Produce A Massive 2,000-Page Script
Heavy RainAs most any loyal PSXE reader knows by know, I'm a big supporter of games like Heavy Rain; games that push the boundary of interactive storytelling and attempt to infuse more artistry and character development into a still-growing industry.
Script writing has become more of a science for such titles, but did you realize just how lengthy and intricate the script for Heavy Rain really is...? Before you think of an estimate, you have to realize that due to the open-ended decision-oriented aspect of the game in question, the writers have to pen different results based on dozens (perhaps even hundreds) of player actions. Therefore, considering everything we can do, they deemed it necessary to write up a mammoth 2,000-page script, one that will sufficiently address any and all major decisions you make as you work your way through the adventure. For a frame of reference, even the most epic films will have around 150-200 pages of script...but then again, you're only writing one story. In Heavy Rain, one needs to provide multiple branches for the storyline in question, which means there has to be a great number of written-out options. It wouldn't make much sense to give the player a choice without letting us see the repercussions and consequences of that choice. It's like one of those old Choose Your Own Adventure books, only on a much larger scale.
The more we hear about this game, the more excited we become, and that's simply because it seems as if Quantic Dream wants to take everything to a whole new level. Gotta appreciate that.
Related Game(s): Heavy Rain
8/24/2009 Ben Dutka
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Comments (35 posts)
mexgeo86
Monday, August 24, 2009 @ 9:57:42 PM
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5 up, 0 down
Morals
Monday, August 24, 2009 @ 9:58:56 PM
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Last edited by Morals on 8/24/2009 9:59:09 PM
1 up, 0 down
godsman
Monday, August 24, 2009 @ 10:19:29 PM
1 up, 1 down
Deleted User
Monday, August 24, 2009 @ 10:27:20 PM
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2 up, 0 down
WorldEndsWithMe
Monday, August 24, 2009 @ 10:33:58 PM
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Last edited by WorldEndsWithMe on 8/24/2009 10:35:43 PM
2 up, 0 down
bebestorm
Monday, August 24, 2009 @ 10:34:07 PM
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4 up, 0 down
Scarecrow
Monday, August 24, 2009 @ 10:38:59 PM
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I could learn a thing or two(thousand) things from these devs...
Coming up with a compelling storyline + deep characters ain't easy. Believe me, I've tried it...
This game will be something
2 up, 0 down
ThePearlJamer
Monday, August 24, 2009 @ 10:47:13 PM
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2 up, 4 down
King James
Monday, August 24, 2009 @ 10:56:34 PM
2 up, 1 down
Fane1024
Tuesday, August 25, 2009 @ 3:28:13 AM
2000 pages really isn't that long. I would bet the scripts of Uncharted and MGS4 are in the same neighborhood and scripts for RPGs could easily be longer. There's a reason they take 12 months and more to record all the dialogue.
1 up, 0 down
Gregory Freeman
Tuesday, August 25, 2009 @ 5:41:34 PM
1 up, 0 down
Break_The_Mould
Monday, August 24, 2009 @ 10:49:07 PM
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3 up, 0 down
Alienange
Monday, August 24, 2009 @ 11:15:51 PM
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2 up, 0 down
johnld
Monday, August 24, 2009 @ 11:23:17 PM
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3 up, 0 down
TEG3SH
Tuesday, August 25, 2009 @ 4:07:14 AM
2 up, 0 down
Tha_Joker_186
Monday, August 24, 2009 @ 11:34:59 PM
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1 up, 0 down
Kangasfwa
Tuesday, August 25, 2009 @ 12:05:23 AM
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"I know it sounds weird, but I'd prefer people to play through [Heavy Rain] once, and then maybe never replay it again." (Cage)
"One gets the impression that if [Cage] had his way, the disc would immediately self destruct, leaving nothing but a wisp of smoke wafting from the drive tray of your PS3." (play magazine, august 09, pg 39)
Last edited by Kangasfwa on 8/25/2009 12:07:36 AM
2 up, 0 down
WorldEndsWithMe
Tuesday, August 25, 2009 @ 12:15:12 AM
Last edited by WorldEndsWithMe on 8/25/2009 12:15:22 AM
7 up, 0 down
Ultimadream
Tuesday, August 25, 2009 @ 3:25:19 AM
2 up, 0 down
Kangasfwa
Tuesday, August 25, 2009 @ 3:48:02 PM
You said it yourself. Heavy Rain has a multi-path script to allow you create your own story. Playing this game more than once defeats what Cage is trying to achieve.
0 up, 1 down
Banky A
Tuesday, August 25, 2009 @ 12:17:09 AM
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If they want to, as a bonus.. I hope they let us unlock at least half of that script if you master the game so we can read it and..
increase our brain capacity lol
0 up, 0 down
Ricochet
Tuesday, August 25, 2009 @ 12:29:23 AM
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0 up, 0 down
___________
Tuesday, August 25, 2009 @ 2:43:54 AM
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it just seems like your never going to get the full experience out of the game, everything you do changes what you do next, and theres so many variations of what you could do.
like the E3 demo for example, theres so much going on if you do 1 thing different the line changes and you cant go back.
so your never going to experience everything out of the game, its sort of a good thing because you can play it multiple times and have a completly different experience, but theres only so many hours in a day how many times can you replay the 1 game?
they should of made it that you can retry, lock it onto 1 path and thats it that way you know that path is complete and you can go onto the next.
what if i get crushed in the car crusher?
what if i want to find out what happens if i get out, i have to play the whole game again?
now that just sucks.
0 up, 4 down
Gregory Freeman
Tuesday, August 25, 2009 @ 5:46:32 PM
after all, you only get 1 go at life... every action creates an equal and opposite reaction, eliminating the ability to change what you have previously done...
the more i think of heavy rain, it sounds like a life simulator... like living the life of someone else, while you live in the real world... if that makes any sence
Last edited by Gregory Freeman on 8/25/2009 5:48:39 PM
2 up, 0 down
Ricochet
Tuesday, August 25, 2009 @ 6:46:48 PM
You're obviously missing the point of this game. The story continues to the way YOU play it, it breaks away from the standard game over screens, yes I can say many people aren't used to this but that is why Quantic Dreams wants to push the envelope. You die, then just continue, that's the whole purpose, you can have 100+ different scenarios and that's basically unheard of in any game.
The whole idea is to have a "different" experience every time you replay the game, unlike others where you play the same game then make choices in some checkpoints, from what I've read, this game has a free system of choosing HOW and WHEN you want to progress through the game.
From the Developer's Diary, I've also seen saved checkpoints that CAN be reloaded at anytime in the game, so I guess that solves your problem. But in all honesty, I want that feature removed, it destroys the seamless experience of the game.
1 up, 0 down
___________
Wednesday, August 26, 2009 @ 7:41:56 AM
thats exactly what i said.
im not saying its a bad thing, its nice to see a game go so in depth and different, yes its like a life simulator and thats to me the best part about it your actions have consequences.
BUT i like to get everything out of a game, i like to know i have experienced everything.
i hate it when i feel like i have missed something, and evidently thats exactly whats going to happen with heavy rain.
1 up, 0 down
BeezleDrop
Tuesday, August 25, 2009 @ 12:14:20 PM
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Or you could try to talk the man down, my goodness this is a very impressive game here people. Intense graphics, story driven(thank god), and promising. All around astounding. Now I don't know about you, but I have never seen anything like this. It's just too epic for the normal person to comprehend.
1 up, 0 down
BeezleDrop
Tuesday, August 25, 2009 @ 12:16:39 PM
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1 up, 0 down
Gregory Freeman
Tuesday, August 25, 2009 @ 5:50:01 PM
0 up, 0 down
___________
Wednesday, August 26, 2009 @ 7:46:55 AM
as for replaying the game choosing a different path.
the game takes around 12 hours to complete ive heard, say theres 10 different possible paths im positive theres more but meh lets use 10.
10 different paths times by 12 gives us 1200 hours of gameplay.
i dont know about you but i dont have 1200 hours to spend on 1 game.
1 up, 0 down
Zemus101
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Monday, August 24, 2009 @ 9:29:07 PM
I'm really looking forward to Heavy Rain now after seeing that convenience store gameplay from Gamescom. This reminds me of the old Maniac Mansion game I used to play for NES waaay back in the day. That game even scared the hell outta me just because you had so much control and so many different options and had no idea what could lead to what. I'll buy this game as soon as I'm able, at the very least just to support this type of idea coming back in a big way.
Last edited by Zemus101 on 8/24/2009 9:29:22 PM