The premise is basically that it follows four characters each searching separately for the identity of a child serial killer known as the Origami Killer, and it plays out like watching a psychological thriller movie except that you control whether or not the characters succeed in finding the killer through quick-time-events and exploration and whatnot (and I'm not really a fan of quicktime events, hence I'm watching instead). The game was critically acclaimed when it came out, but in light of rather pretentious statements the director has made, not to mention the poor scene direction, the voice acting, and the writing in the game, it's gotten quite a bit of a backlash from the online community. I remember Harrison telling me awhile back not to bother playing it, although to be honest, it's quite entertaining to watch the game while it's being made fun of, cause there's a lot of ridiculous things about it.
Random things that stood out to me while watching:
- The game makes you play through a lot of mundane real life scenes... almost like The Sims, except you have to actually control your character to make them do things like pee (holy crap how many scenes are there of someone peeing in this game), tie a man's tie, and at one point, change a baby's diaper. Evidently, everyday life is more complicated to handle in a video game than it looks.
- Every time the Origami Killer murders a victim, it's by trapping them under a grate and making them drown under 4 days of heavy rain, if no one is able to find the victim (and hence the title). Realistically though, a serial killer who can only kill based off the whims of the weather? How often do you get 4 consecutive days of rain consistently enough to drown a person anyway? And how does the killer drain the grate for reuse? o_o
- The psychiatrist in this game refers to dissociative identity disorder as schizophrenia multiple times. THEY AREN'T THE SAME THING. Ugh.
- The psychiatrist in this game refers to dissociative identity disorder as schizophrenia multiple times. THEY AREN'T THE SAME THING. Ugh.
- The one female lead character (Madison) kind of contributes to the whole argument about women being marginalized in video games, considering that it seems like she's the only one constantly getting trapped in rooms and assaulted by a stream of manically laughing male sexist serial killer psychopaths (the taxidermist, the doctor, the club owner, the origami killer, rapist ninjas- I mean imaginary apartment burglars. no seriously, you have to play through a pointless dream sequence involving them in her intro).
Madison also gets a scene where the player has to help her make herself look slutty and then dance provocatively in front of the club owner in order to get information from him. And then she ends up stripping in front of him... that is, if the player isn't smart enough to have her knock him out with a lamp in time. These scenes just play out like they're enacting some weird creepy fetish of the game director.
Madison also gets a scene where the player has to help her make herself look slutty and then dance provocatively in front of the club owner in order to get information from him. And then she ends up stripping in front of him... that is, if the player isn't smart enough to have her knock him out with a lamp in time. These scenes just play out like they're enacting some weird creepy fetish of the game director.
- Not to mention, if the player makes the wrong choices, then Madison ends up exemplifying the stereotype of the incompetent female.
Madison: Here, take this. It'll help bring down the fever.
Ethan: ...but I'm not running a fever.
*minutes later*
Madison: Here, take this. It'll do you some good. It's an antibiotic.
Ethan: An antibiotic? I'm no doctor, but I don't think there's any risk of infection with a broken rib.
Madison: Sorry, I'm stupid, I'm using anti-burn ointment on your cuts!
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- Failing quicktime events is actually kind of amusing. The best part of this fail clip is the live chickens at the end.
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