8. Being that Heavy Rain is a game about choices, I wanted to ask your opinion about "good" and "evil" choices in video games. Do you think that the "good" to "evil" menu selection of choices is a good or bad idea for games that include choices? Should players be allowed to make the choices they want to without necessarily being labeled as "good" or "evil" -- or are those identifiers important for some games?
DC: I have never been a big fan of this “do you want to be good or evil” kind of choices. These sort of choices never happen in real life. Sometimes we are good, something we are bad, and most of the time we are a little bit of both. In many games, deciding to be good or bad just leads to different choices of weapons or special powers, but there is no real moral implication to the choices. My problem is that the player clearly feels like he is pretending to be one or the other, at no point he really feels personally engaged by this choice.
In Heavy Rain, I wanted to play with shades of greys, with moral choices that are really ambiguous, where if it was happening to you in real life, you would not know immediately what the best decision would be. For example, Ethan has to decide if he wants to take a life to save his son’s. There is no real good or bad choice here, and the game does not reward you or punish you whatever you choose (although it will significantly affect the storyline). Your decisions depend on your own moral values, which means you feel emotionally involved in the decision and its consequences.
9. Do you think that there's a next step or evolution for Heavy Rain's style of gameplay? Do you think that games like Heavy Rain could reach those next steps via the upcoming PlayStation Motion Controller?
DC: I don’t see Heavy Rain like an achievement but rather like the beginning. We have barely scratched the surface of this new genre and I am convinced that it is possible to tell better stories with more talent, blending even more interactive game play and narrative. Controllers are certainly a barrier to get non gamers to play as they are still too complex for most people. Motion controllers may make games like Heavy Rain more accessible. Now I don’t think that this is the ultimate answer to all problems with interfaces.
10. Can you give any hints as to what your next project is or when we might see it?
DC: We currently work on two very different projects. After the success of Heavy Rain, we continue to explore how we can go further with interactive drama, working on emotion and interactive storytelling for a mature audience, but with a very different story and a different approach. I think that people who enjoyed Heavy Rain will be surprised by what we prepare. Quantic Dream also explores how to use what we learned about emotion on Heavy Rain in very different types of experiences.
Often, after a long and challenging project like Heavy Rain, it is difficult for the team to get excited again about a new idea. This is absolutely not the case at the moment at Quantic and all the team seems enthusiastic about the possibility of other projects. The team and the company continue to grow in experience, confidence and talent.
After Heavy Rain, we have some credibility in experimenting with new IPs and new concepts. We are not going to play it safe from now, we are going to use this credibility to continue to take risks, give ourselves exciting challenges and try to invent new ways of playing. I believe that this is what Quantic Dream’s fans expect us to do. It is also what keeps me passionate about what we are doing.
A very special thanks to David Cage for taking time out of his schedule for this interview.
Comments
"Motion controllers may make games like Heavy Rain more accessible"
Accessibly=Taking a good game and letting old people mindlessly press buttons, waggle analog sticks, and/or fling their hands
around in it.
Did Sony not say that the move controller wasn't going to be about that?. Did they not say that the move controller was going to be used to move gaming forward for the hardcore?.
Dango - what's wrong with taking a good game and letting old people play them? You know, most of them are probably smarter than you and me, so why can't they play if it's still gonna be a good game?
If you think about it, older folk probably have experienced similar experiences. They might just be trying to make it feel as though they are trying to make the different choice, the one that they thing that is best for them in the game, as well in their imaginations. Haven't you ever thought of trying to say one thing, but regret it. Then thought you could have said something else? This game makes you feel as though you have ultimate control as to what you might and/or might not do. It truly is about previous experiences that you might have been through, and might want to change. The game is simply amazing, and is about experiencing all of the possibilities.
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