Ep. 016: Heavy Rain

MAHQ's general podcast for nerdy things, which ran from 2011-2017.
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Chris
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Ep. 016: Heavy Rain

Chaos Theater Ep. 016 - "Heavy Rain"
- Download Now: 64 kbps - 151 mins, 19 sec. (2:31:19) 69.3 MB

Special Guest Host: Austin Blake (opening and Heavy Rain)

Segment Breakdown for this Episode:

01. Intro: "What We've Been Up To" and "Slaying the Sacred Cow"
Runtime: 0:00:01 - 0:36:00

02. Discussion: "Heavy Rain"
Runtime: 0:36:28 - 1:43:10

03. Special: listener rant by The Fowl Sorcerous
Runtime: 1:43:30 - 1:47:15

04. Outro: "Chaos Theater Mailbag" and "Internet whoring"
Runtime: 1:47:31 - 2:31:00

A wave of hate descends upon the show as Austin Blake makes his Chaos Theater debut. The hate is so strong that it brings audio problems and lag throughout the show. After catching up on what we've been up to, we slay up the sacred cow of judging anime by its animation style. We then dip into our main discussion, a contentious debate of the PS3 noir interactive movie/game/thing Heavy Rain. As a bonus, we've got a Heavy Rain rant from listener The Fowl Sorcerous of the SBO Podcast. We wrap up with your questions in a super-sized Mailbag segment. Next time: a science fiction double feature as we take on both Dark City and Gattaca.

Music Featured in this Episode:
"Boing Zoom DAKOTA!" from Rock Candy 1 by Shadow
"Scott Shelby's Main Theme" from Heavy Rain by Normand Corbeil
"The Chase (Madison's Action Sound)" from Heavy Rain by Normand Corbeil

Websites:
MAHQ.net - Gundamn.net - Chaos Theater -Laplace's Box -Chaos Theater Mecha Talk Forum - Gundamn! @ Mecha Talk Forum - Laplace's Box @ Mecha Talk Forum - MAHQ.net @ Twitter - Chaos Theater @ Twitter - Gundamn! @ Twitter - Laplace's Box @Twitter - Main RSS Feed - iTunes
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Re: Episode 016: Heavy Rain

foe the love of all heavy rain... first in line for this hatred war... ready GO!!!
Yuri lowenthal- "Angel Lopez(sakurangel) you are the manliest man I ever meet"
Alexis Tipton- "angel is was nice meet you"
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Re: Episode 016: Heavy Rain

I forgot this was the new topic! Totally hyped!
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Re: Episode 016: Heavy Rain

Ok so where to begin.

The Sacred Cow: For me sometimes it can be an off putting thing, but it depend what the series is and the style used.
I've tried to get more tolerant though over time.

As for Austin and his dose of hate to 2040.
I would say screw him again, at least 2040 had an ending and 2040 Nene had more simple kind of realistic hair.

Heavy Rain, I can't comment on, since I haven't played it yet myself.
Surprised he wanted to defend it, so I will hate on it in return for hating on 2040 again! :P

I know alot of people like the original BGC and hate on 2040, but once again, I will say to Chris as I did before and Pedro, if you haven't seen it.
Don't let Austin's opinion influence yours, he hates on things sometimes unjustifiedably.

And I wasn't surprised your mailbag got clogged with Peter's questions mostly.
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Re: Episode 016: Heavy Rain

Mu La Flaga wrote:I know alot of people like the original BGC and hate on 2040, but once again, I will say to Chris as I did before and Pedro, if you haven't seen it.
Don't let Austin's opinion influence yours, he hates on things sometimes unjustifiedably.
Don't tell Austin, but there's a lot of things I ignore him on. 8) Also, the last word of that sentence of yours isn't an actual word. The my inner grammar Nazi couldn't control himself.
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Re: Episode 016: Heavy Rain

Chris wrote:
Mu La Flaga wrote:I know alot of people like the original BGC and hate on 2040, but once again, I will say to Chris as I did before and Pedro, if you haven't seen it.
Don't let Austin's opinion influence yours, he hates on things sometimes unjustifiedably.
Don't tell Austin, but there's a lot of things I ignore him on. 8) Also, the last word of that sentence of yours isn't an actual word. The my inner grammar Nazi couldn't control himself.
Well in that instance I wasn't sure what the correct spelling for the word would have been.

So hence why I threw together a mish-mash and tried to cover all bases.
And your inner grammar nazi made a slip up :P
Chris wrote: The my inner grammar Nazi couldn't control himself.
Last edited by Mu La Flaga on Tue Jul 10, 2012 10:21 pm, edited 2 times in total.
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Re: Episode 016: Heavy Rain

I've only heard the Sacred Cow so far, but I have to say, those were some prime cuts. You hit pretty much all my pet peeves with regards to faceless internet zombies and video games:

1. Hate something because of how it looks / one screenshot.
With regards to DMC, they've actually shown two gameplay videos, both which look pretty sweet, and the bitching QUADRUPLED!!

2. One entry in a game series ruined my childhood.
Everybody whines and whines about wanting sequels to games, and when they get them, they say that the series would have been better off without a sequel. Pick a lane...

3. 3rd Party Series X was supposed to be "console-exclusive" / developer Y said he wouldn't do this and then he did and now I hate him!!!
First of all, if it's not 1st party, it doesn't 'belong' to anything. These people only whine because they invest so much energy and money in one company's products before considering their game lineup. I would love nothing more than for Kingdom Hearts 3 to be a WiiU exclusive, just to see a massive hoard of trolls slit their wrists.*

edit: not literally of course, we all know these 'people' are just mad-lib spam-bots. "The sequel to _____ sucks because they ruined my favorite character ________. She never used to be a whore with big breasts!"
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Re: Episode 016: Heavy Rain

When I saw Dante's new design I didn't think the game would be bad, I just thought that the re-design really screwed with Dante's character and that's what I didn't like.

You guys complained about lack of questions and now you complain about too many questions. Make up your minds :P

Honestly I thought you'd break up my questions over the course of several episodes like you did with Mu a few times.

For moe, I define it as it was originally intended: it's an emotion one feels towards a character they like. Any character can be moe, any character could not be moe. It all depends on personal preferences. The thing is that the term has been extremely generalized. Cutesy big eyed characters evoke feelings of moe for a large portion of the population and as such moe gets associated with those particular kinds of characters. The whole wanting to protect notion is self evident: of course you want to protect something you like, even if they don't need you too and they can kick your ass any day of the week.

I'd chill out on Alabasta too and probably join the royal guards so I can put the moves on Vivi :wink:

My question regarding Nintendo was refering to how Microsoft and Sony have their computer and electronics divisions to fall back on while Nintendo is just a video game company.

What's wrong with Man-Bat? He was the first villain in the Animated Series and I like how he's a giant mutant bat with the obvious contrast to Batman. He's a personal favourite of mine.

Regarding how Catwoman might be, that's another point my brothers were saying. That just because Bane in the comics isn't that prominent a Batman villain doesn't mean Nolan's Bane will be the same. But that's the thing: making them different characters defeats the purpose of using those characters in the first place. As a fanfic writer I encounter this all the time, people twisting established characters so they'll fit a certain role, often times ruining those characters. A complete bitch Selena Kyle isn't Selena Kyle. A Bane without his Venom is not Bane. Might as well just create entirely original characters instead.

I think it would be a fitting end to the saga if Ra's came back as the final boss, but he's confirmed to only have a cameo. Ra's being alive would work fine since he's immor... Oh wait, not realistic. If Talia's in it that would be good too since it's a connection back to the first. Maybe Ra's mind will be in her like that one epi... Oh wait, not realistic.

Seriously, it's about a guy who runs around fighting crime in a bat outfit and Nolan thinks it should be realistic? I know he wanted to distance his movies from Schumacher's, but he didn't need to get rid of the super powered villains to do that. He is a good director so he has the talents to make super powers not be silly. I dare say it almost seems like Nolan is somewhat ashamed of the comic book roots and is trying his hardest to make it as unlike the comics as possible.

This leads me to the stupidest point my brother made: He said that the Nolan Batman movies are not comic book movies. He was talking like they're serious cinema and it's impossible for comic book movies to be serious cinema. What a load of crap. They're comic book movies because they're based on comic books!

As for Nickleback, don't you think we suffer enough? Canadian law states that radio stations must play a percentage of Canadian content, and since radio stations only play the mainstream stuff, most of that Canadian content is Nickleback. We have to listen to them much more than you guys do.
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Re: Episode 016: Heavy Rain

Peter, I don't know what your hangup is with Nolan and "realistic." Batman has no superpowers, and many of the villains he fights don't either, so I think it lends itself perfectly to what Nolan has been doing. As for Bane, no adaptation is ever going to be like the source material. That's why it's called an adaptation. Even if it's not identical to the comics, I know Nolan can do Bain much more justice than Shumacher did with his Bane, which basically was a C-level idiot luchador. Also, if you don't like Nolan's "realistic" take on Batman, you only have to wait a few years to get what you want. This is Nolan's last Batman movie, and in a few years I'm sure some other director will come along with a reboot and a completely different vision.

I wouldn't agree with your brothers that these movies aren't comic book movies. That sounds like art snobbery to me. They very clearly are comic book movies, even though they have a lot of film noir elements. Comic book movies and depth aren't mutually exclusive. Sometimes people get too caught up with labels, such as the endless debate about what qualifies as a "super" or "real" robot.

Man-Bat is just a dumb monster, and I don't find him interesting. He's basically a werebat.

Finally, you will never atone for Nickelback, short of traveling through time and undoing their existence. :twisted:
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Re: Episode 016: Heavy Rain

Part of Batman's appeal is that he has no powers, but he is able to take on super powered villains despite that. Nolan said at the beginning that he was only going to use down to Earth villains with no super powers and I just think that's a shame because it eliminates a number of Batman's notable rouges. He put a restriction on himself and the possible stories he could tell that didn't need to be there.
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Re: Episode 016: Heavy Rain

Alright, now that I've calmed down from that sacred cow, I just have to say I didn't like Heavy Rain for one of the reasons Chris said - if you are going to make an 'interactive fiction' game, make sure the fiction stacks up. Not only would it make a B-list mystery/thriller, it WAS a poor mystery/thriller, starring Ashley Judd... though I think even that had a better ending. If you want a series with true multiple endings, great gameplay, and lots of decisions that impact the storyline, play the Way of the Samurai series.

@DestinyGundam: My favorite shoujo comic is Gals! (or SuperGals! if you watch the anime). It's definitely shoujo through-and-through, but the main character is pretty unorthodox and goes against the grain of how females have been built up in manga and anime. She's my favorite manga/anime character of all-time, male or female!

Finally, did someone say something about James Cameron making the brain porn movie?! This trailer was intended for NO audiences!
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Re: Episode 016: Heavy Rain

Battle Angel Alita is a manga I strongly recommend for anyone that loves cyberpunk dystopia stories. It has very heavy post humanist themes, mainly in that if a human is defined by more than the mere substance of the either the body or mind hence all the so called "brain porn". Not to mention, Alita is just 10 kinds of bad ass in a slim, cute, five-foot tall cybernetic chassis!

@Hotlimit: Yes James Cameron has been talking for years about making a Battle Angel Alita film, but it's all vaporware, he'll tease that he's working on it, then puts it back on the shelf to work on other projects so he may get around to it sometime between now and the day he dies.
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Re: Episode 016: Heavy Rain

Hyakushiki wrote:cyberpunk dystopia stories
Oh is that what the kids call brain porn these days? I don't know much about James Cameron, but Battle Angel Alita seems a little too scattershot to be made into a coherent movie. I wonder which part he thought needed to be on film?

In the time since I asked that question, I've read the entire series up until the latest chapter (it's still running, apparently), and the post-2000 continuation is definitely less brain porn and more space kung fu.
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Re: Episode 016: Heavy Rain

hotlimit wrote:
Oh is that what the kids call brain porn these days? I don't know much about James Cameron, but Battle Angel Alita seems a little too scattershot to be made into a coherent movie. I wonder which part he thought needed to be on film?
It would no doubt cover the early story arc of Alita's quest for identity, becoming a warrior hunter, and her romance with Yugo. That's straight forward enough to adapt into a film, any sequels could have facing off against Desty Nova and learning the dark secrets of Tiphares if it goes that far.

Cameron directed the Terminator films and has said he was a fan of the Battle Angel manga which shares elements in common with his work so he obtained the film rights.
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Re: Episode 016: Heavy Rain

Battle Angel Alita/Gunnm (which was an engrish mash up of 'gun dream' yeah don't ask) probably wouldn't have worked well with CG from 10 years ago back when the rights were announced (I believe) but now could probably work given the types of FX movies are out now.

Question is who to cast as the titular character, I would love it if they kept close to her manga look AFA body type and mechanics aesthetics would go. Doesn't have to be a dead ringer tho, especially with the hairstyle which doesn't work well in the real world.
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Re: Episode 016: Heavy Rain

I wrote out a long question to Chris regarding his heavy dislike of the game this episode is named after, but scrapped it due to my worry about being hated upon.

So instead, I'm just going to sigh and hope that the next topic that I can relate to doesn't get a train of single-minded hate from Chris.
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Re: Episode 016: Heavy Rain

Rob DS Zeta wrote:I wrote out a long question to Chris regarding his heavy dislike of the game this episode is named after, but scrapped it due to my worry about being hated upon.

So instead, I'm just going to sigh and hope that the next topic that I can relate to doesn't get a train of single-minded hate from Chris.
Wow, that's real nice, assuming for no reason that I'm going to hate on you for asking a question. And then on top of that you say that you hope I won't hate on some nameless future topic with my "single-minded hate." I should be offended, but go ahead and ask your question. It can't piss me off anymore than you already have with what you said.
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Re: Episode 016: Heavy Rain

Chris wrote:Wow, that's real nice, assuming for no reason that I'm going to hate on you for asking a question. And then on top of that you say that you hope I won't hate on some nameless future topic with my "single-minded hate." I should be offended, but go ahead and ask your question. It can't piss me off anymore than you already have with what you said.
Sorry, but I do believe that I have no idea what's going on. I'll get back in line now.
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Re: Episode 016: Heavy Rain

Rob DS Zeta wrote:Sorry, but I do believe that I have no idea what's going on.
That should be my line. Do you have a point to make or not? You make a post that provokes me saying you're afraid I'll hate on you for a question you haven't even asked. Then after I respond, you still don't ask the question. Please don't waste my time teasing that you have some question and then not ask it.
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Re: Episode 016: Heavy Rain

Man, this episode sneaked up on me like nothing, probably the four days without power doing that. And since we've realized that the audio distortion is caused by the waves of hatred, I fear what would happen with getting Sho and Austin in the same room.

I agree with your points on the Cow and Higurashi's a perfect example...I'm actually getting a friend to watch it and his mind has been blown. Heavy Rain, I haven't played, though I have played Indigo Prophecy (can't spell Fahrenheit...without spell check), and I didn't care for it that much.

And PS, Peter, you OVER-Mu'ed it :twisted:
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