Gamasutra - Dreaming of a New Day: Heavy Rain's David Cage

David Cage, founder of French studio Quantic Dream, feels strongly about the evolution of games as a medium. Starting out in 1997, the company debuted the David Bowie co-starring Omikron: The Nomad Soul for PC and Dreamcast in 1999.

But Cage is probably best known for his company's 2005 game Xbox, PS2 and PC title Indigo Prophecy, known as Fahrenheit in Europe, which was critically acclaimed for its inventive storytelling and immersive techniques - and is now available on the 'Xbox Originals' program for the Xbox 360 for those wanting to investigate it in more detail.

Going even further is the company's PlayStation 3 exclusive Heavy Rain, described at one point by Cage as "a very dark film noir thriller with mature themes", and which was shown behind closed doors to select members of the press last week at E3. It intends to take the narrative and emotion-oriented elements of Cage's previous title much further.

In this in-depth Gamasutra interview, Cage discusses here issues as diverse as capturing true emotion in games, what it really means to make a "mature" game, the true diversification of the gaming audience, and the controversy that surrounds games in the mass media.

[Fishy Fingers]

Good interview, bit harder going than say a CliffyB interview but David Cage seems to have some serious grey matter.

[Siesser]

He does indeed, and seems willing to call out his own industry, as well as those on the outside looking in. I never really thought about it, but it is kind of unfortunate that the video game industry lacks any kind of formalized, unified front with which to address issues and topics greater than any of the individual consoles. It's probably just too tumultuous a field though, with the caustic infighting between the console makers, the buying and selling of services amongst developers, and the speed with which a new company can be created or bankrupted. I guess that's part of its draw as well; anyone with the skill can supposedly get started. Then again, with all the crazy revenues that these system owners make on the back end, maybe a little bit of profit sharing and incentives to keep those companies that actually TRY afloat wouldn't be such a horrible idea...

[Mr BlueScreen]

The graphics are one reason to buy the by its self.

The stories have got to be great.

This is one game that I can't wait for.

Its good that a developer is going a different way with video games.
And its only on the PS3.

[Siesser]

The graphics are indeed like nothing we've seen in a real-time game before, I think.

[ToastyMcNibbles]

ahhhh heavy rainnn soooo hot want to touch the heineyyyy

[TheColbertinator]

Heavy Rain looks very promising

[Vino]

Can't wait to see this game in action.

[Siesser]

Agreed; great interview. He nails many of the issues that I have with the progression of gaming: I am older now - a 25 year old male who's been playing games for around 2 decades. And although I appreciate the progression the industry's made thus far, it's still an industry swamped with games made "for teenagers," as he says. Developers are afraid to invest in something with depth and breadth that doesn't have you carry ammo or casting spells. And while such games are incredibly fun, as they've always been, I still yearn for the storyies to mature and evolve.

Playing through Indigo Prophecy felt amazing because you are NEVER not experiencing the story. You're controlling the decisions (to an extent), the speed, the pauses, the order - the cumulative effect of which is a persistently cinematic experience that the player explores, alters, and directs. Some would say it's an "interactive movie," but I think that's unfair, implying the it's not an evolution of the gaming medium, but more a one-trick-pony copying of another. I feel instead it's a truly "cinematic game," one of the few where the most important part; where all of the fun, and pleasure, and purpose of playing comes from no place BUT the story.

I agree with his opinion of games coming across as porn too; which isn't bad by any means. One of my favorite games, God of War, was a very cinematic game as well, but it's still, as most games are, story with gameplay elements in between. And no one can frown against this, because video games clearly are supposed to be things that you play; the gameplay's what's always made them fun. But there's no reason to just pause gaming where we've always been and only change pixels and physics engines every couple of years. There are whole, untapped facets of what this medium can do that people haven't broached yet, and seem afraid to do.

I'm also just hard to please though, because that is asking so much of developers; especially with there's not massive demand, nor the security of sales and profit. Thankfully Quantic Dreams seems up to the risk. They, at the very least, know what's important to many mature gamers, and that's story, not body count. And they realize the breath of fresh air that a REAL story in the REAL world involving REAL people provides. To this day, I rewatch more movies than I replay games. And I re-read more books than I rewatch movies. It's undoubtedly a pain in the butt to pace and write and develop; to have to factor in and create everything with story in mind, rather than cutscenes with action in between, but any developer that tries has earned my money, easy.

[Bombibomb]

I can't wait to see Heavy Rain again oh man. Loved Indigo Prophecy.