Eurogamer Review - 9
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Heavy Rain also won't be for everyone. Not everyone will accept the way it sometimes offers prompts even when they may have no impact on actual events. For all the game's flexibility and manifold outcomes, there are also times that you may wish to do something that is not available, as the illusion of free will and suspension of disbelief strains at the writer's narrative leash. Perhaps most damning, for some, will be the realisation as the game reaches its narrative apex that the bonds of empathy it has fought to establish were somewhat diversionary.
It would be a shame to look past Heavy Rain for these reasons, however, because while it is an intricate game that deserves to be debated for a long time, it is also a simple one to enjoy: a thrilling mystery, cleverly composed, and unlike anything else you will play this year. It may also be the only game you play this year where pulling the trigger makes you really feel something, and I can think of no greater compliment.
IGN Review - 9.0
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Heavy Rain is a hell of an experience. Its controversial control scheme actually works really well in allowing the fantastic story to dictate how events play out, and many of the game's scenes will keep you on the edge of your seat. It starts slow and the presentation isn't perfect, but the character development, dialog and story twists will hook you like few games can. Heavy Rain is not to be missed.
1UP Review - A-
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Talking to others who've played through Heavy Rain, I don't think I'm overstating it when I say that no two people will have the exact same experience. And I would encourage you to not cheat yourself on your first time through the story. When you first boot up the game you're taken directly to the opening rather than the main menu; avoid the Chapter Select screen and keep your experience more organic.
Though shorter than other epic, multi-disc titles, there's more than enough content in Heavy Rain to warrant a purchase. At the end of my first playthrough I was left utterly satisfied with the conclusion of the story and wanting more titles of this caliber. Heavy Rain may not appeal to every twitch-shooter fan out there, but if you believe games can evolve beyond Pac-Man and Mario then I suggest supporting the amazing work Quantic Dream has done.
Videogamer Review - 9
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But for the rest of you, for those of you who can open your minds to the possibility of something genuinely new, this is mana from heaven. Heavy Rain is one of the most exciting things to happen to video games for a long, long time. It's not a threat to the old way of doing things, but it does hint at a whole new direction that some games could take. It occupies a middle ground somewhere between video games and cinema, and to be quite frank, there's nothing else like it anywhere. If you do plump for it, I can guarantee that you'll be discussing it – and all the great moments that I've resisted telling you about – for months to come. And if you want a true indicator of what the PS3 can do, and of the true potential of next-gen gaming, I can think of no better candidate.
GamePro Review - 5/5
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Put simply, Heavy Rain is a gaming experience that took huge risks in design, narrative, and game mechanics, and executed on its ideas to masterful effect. You will care, in the end, about the decisions you made to shape the fates of your characters, and wonder long after it's over if you made the right choices. Most of all, I hope that it will send a shockwave through the media industry as a whole and prove that video games can in many ways be the best medium to convey a story, and are more than capable of stirring up infinitely complex emotions; namely, love.