Heavy Rain and the future of Interactive Fiction

Photo by believekevin

Recently I've heard a lot of Buzz about a new console game called Heavy Rain. I've not played it personally, but I've read several reviews, I've watched the game be played, and I've done a fair amount of research on it. It's being called a new paradigm in gaming, and hailed as incredibly original. 

As I listened to all the hype that surrounded the game, I was met with something akin to Deja Vu: an intense sense of 'this-has-already-been-done-to-great-effect.'  Heavy Rain is billed as an "interactive Drama" one player I spoke with went so far as to say "It's like a movie, only you're the main character, you write the story." 

Dining at Milliways, and other Interactive Fiction

photo by bre pettis Licenced CC non comercial 

It should come as no surprise to most of you that I am a long time fan of Text Adventure (or Interactive Fiction) games. I've played through hundreds of them, and was planning on doing an article detailing the best way to do that on an HP200 LX (Short answer, DOSFrotz and patience!). In light of the fact that my 200lx is now little more than a waterlogged mess, I bring you the Douglas Adams interactive fiction tribute.

In 2001, shortly after Mr. Douglas Adams took his leave from the planet earth, a competition of sorts was held to honor him. The original rules stated "Create your own tribute to Douglas Adams in no more than two hours. Sign the location below when you've finished the game." with a deadline of just a few days later. In true Adams style, the deadline was quickly extended to "when no more games come" which means the contest is technically still open.

Though technically most of these works are infringing copyright (something I point out only in order to highlight how ludicrous current laws are), they are among some of the most enjoyable text adventures I have ever played.

Joust

I tend to enjoy vintage video games, from my Atari VCS 2600 to the NES, SNES, and Sega Genisis. But Joust holds a special place in my heart as one of the greatest games of all time.

Atari 2600 Review - HERO

HERO, Sometimes referred to as H.E.R.O. (standing for: "Helicopter-Equipped Rescue Operation" or "Human Extraction and Rescue Operation") is one of my all-time favorite video games, and a big part of the reason that I own an Atari.

The graphics, though they don't look like much, were far beyond anything else available at the time.

The Atari 2600 had a lot of limitations. The system is only capable and aware of two sprites (the graphics for characters) at a time, and each sprite is only one color. (The three sprites and multiple colors seen in this picture are evident of how people pushed the system beyond what it was designed to do.)

Graphics aside, the beauty of this game lies in the game play. The concept is simple enough: Man enters mine shaft to rescue miner, but that alone would not make a good game. In order to insure that the game is interesting the rescuer is equipped with various amenities:

• A backpack ( With integrated helicopter) allows him to fly (and surprisingly enough, he has to fight gravity to do it.)
  
• A Laser cannon allows him to kill bats, spiders, snakes, and other bad things that stand between himself and the miner.
  
• A healthy supply of bombs, to break through walls (though the laser cannon can do this as well, slowly.)
• A battery (shown as a power gauge at the bottom of the screen) which serves to limit the amount of laser-beam-shooting/flying you can do per level (and add to your score).

You fly around a bit, shoot at things, rescue people. The first few maps are rather generic and, to be honest, after playing through them nearly 10,000 times, boring. But they quickly give way to more interesting and confusing arrangements. (I don't think I've ever gotten passed level 6, and I still love this game.)

All in all, HERO is a great example of what a good Atari game should look like, and if you haven't played it, I suggest you do. (If you're not keen on buying an Atari, there is all ways the windows remake, it was also included on the Activation Classics disk for the PS1.)

Of course there is always emulation, yet however much I disagree with current copyright laws, I do not wish to attract legal action, so I must discourage you from emulating the game.
(Though it runs well in most emulators, including StellaDS for the Nintendo DS).